Handcrafting Jewelry Boxes: What it Really Means to be Committed to Quality

by Russell Pool

There's so much hype in today's marketplace about quality, it has become an almost meaningless word. So rather than talk on and on about quality, it will be more instructive to talk you through the rigorous quality practices that define the kind of quality inherent in true hand crafting.

Let's start with the design process: Aesthetics and functionality are like the two wings of a bird; without the right balance between the two, the piece won't "fly". We have spent the past ten years in a continuous improvement process in both of these areas. What people immediately notice about our boxes are the pleasing, soft lines. Whatever design themes you choose to highlight must be applied consistently and consciously, leaving no detail to chance. Exceptional care must always be taken to make sure that the beauty of each individual piece of wood is displayed to its utmost advantage.

It is important to apply the same level of detail to the functionality of each piece. Years of experimentation and problem solving have yielded the most efficient and easy-to-use space use that we have seen anywhere. Design features like removable trays and customizable dividers are standard because no collection is exactly like anyone else's. Efficient space use can and should be beautiful, as well.

In order to show the designs properly, you must use the finest wood availablein the world. This is no overstatement. We work directly with sawyers at the source of where the wood grows at its finest. Our sawyers know we are fanatics about wood quality and choose from their prime stock. Once the wood arrives in Colorado, we allow it to acclimate for 1-6 months depending on the species. By adjusting to the arid climate of the southwest, the wood naturally reaches an optimal 5% moisture content without structural tensions. Needless to say, you should use only solid wood construction that is color matched naturally. That way, you don't have to use the numerous dyes or pigments that most manufacturers use to cover up inconsistencies or flaws in the wood. The other material required for true quality is genuine rayon velvet made by A. Wimpfheimer & Bro., the finest manufacturer of velvet for jewelry boxes in the country.

It's not enough to have extraordinary designs and materials - the approach to craftsmanship is where the magic really takes shape. You must care more about expressing the lost art of craft and sharing the beauty that results than about being the biggest or best known jewelry box maker. And how the wood feels when it is touched and about how many generations of use a box can provide. So we go to exceptional lengths in the crafting process and take care with things like: selecting each piece of wood for the box from the same piece of wood, so the wood "wraps" around each corner, and constructing each wooden box with floating panels so the wood can move as needed, depending on the climate you live, and reinforcing joints in several ways, providing a redundancy that mass manufacturers don't have time to do, sanding each piece up to 20 separate times, and using a finish that's durable, non-toxic to the environment, and maintenance-free. There's a lot more but, hopefully, this helps you understand why our jewelry boxes have been displayed in museums and described as "heirlooms".

In a book featuring our work, Objects for Use: Handmade by Design, Holly Hotchner, American Craft Museum Director, writes: "Art, craft, and design are ultimately about relationships established between the makers of things and the individuals who become the possessors, consumers, and users of those things. Through these objects we are invited into the artistic, emotional, and spiritual worlds of the creator; by selecting and using these objects, we complete a creative process begun by the maker. Objects designed and made for use underline humanistic values honored and shared by makers and consumers, values that give meaning and purpose to our lives at many levels." We invite you to share in our artistic, emotional, and spiritual world through the use of extraordinarily high quality containers for your most treasured objects.

About the Author

Russell Pool has been perfecting the art of quality wooden box creation for over two decades. Each piece he creates reflects his passion for quality and his love for the spiritual qualities of balance, beauty, and getting things "naturally right." To learn more about his work visit Russell Pool Fine Woodworking.

http://www.myguidetocrafts.com/handcrafts/