Here are the beginning shots of the progress I'm making on the paper mache secretary desk. The first shot is the boxes I'm recycling for the project, the second shot is setting up the shelf placement and the third shot is the shelves all attached and a coat of sealer so the moisture from the paper mache doesn't warp everything. Next up is making the drawers for the 3 lower shelves, I made one last night but it fits pretty snugly in there so I need to cut it down a bit so when I add the layer of paper mache it will still be able to slide in and out with no problem. I'm still debating on if I should paper mache the whole base first and then make the drawers since I'll know how thick of a layer the paper mache is an not have to remake the drawers. I think this is the smartest way to go about this, I'm not trying to make up all 3 and then not have them fit when they're ready to go in. So this weekend I'll probably just paper mache the whole base. Stay tuned for the next update.
Since I like to keep busy and I'm almost done with the curiosity cabinet, my mind was searching for a new project to start yesterday (not that I don't have a ton of other things going on but they're more side projects and I need a new main project) I came up with the idea for a new piece of paper mache furniture. On Antiques Road Show a few weeks back I saw this miniature secretary desk that's been in this family since the 1660's, filled with newspaper clippings, family photos, historical documents, the list goes on and on. It was really the coolest thing ever to have all that stuff in one place and to be able to trace your family history back that far is amazing. So I pulled out my sketch pad with all my ideas and got to drawling and came up with this.
Just a small table top version for my desk at home, it's going to be made the same way as the curiosity cabinet but a lot more detailed with the drawers that pull out. I'm thinking maybe 24inces long 20inces high? I have to play around with sizes a bit, I don't want it to big but not super tiny either. I'm going to get some boxes this weekend and start constructing and prepping it for the first layer of paper mache.. I'm still not sure on the finish I'm going to use either. The brown paper bags I've used for the other pieces are nice but I might try something different this time, maybe with dark brown tissue paper, I've done some books that have been covered in this method and they came out looking really neat so maybe just the outside finish will be that the the regular smooth brown paper bags inside.
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