NotableNlays

My journey with music boxes began, when I happened to see router bits in a wood worker magazine for making joints for multi-sided boxes and I thought it would be fun to make an eight sided music box with a nice top. I bought a wood inlay kit of a nice geometric pattern for the top and made my first music box. I became intrigued with the possibilities of making my own wood inlay designs from scratch for the tops of the music boxes. I started with an inlay of the bust of my daughter's cherished dog. Next I made a inlay of our daughter's silhouette portrait as a six year old for my wife. I was hooked. Making wood inlays became hobby and the music boxes became the medium to frame the inlays .
The design and construction of my music boxes and the marquetry tops have gradually evolved from more primitive editions. My hobby is now maturing. (Because I have retired, I can't call it work.) My reward has been the satisfaction I receive from the process of making the boxes. All my family and friends now have music boxes .
I make the marquetry tops in a workroom upstairs which I call my studio. My wife smiles and rolls her eyes at my visions of an imagined grand studio. The box proper is made in my wood working shop, which some might call a "garage," when the weather is not too severe.
Each box takes about 8 to 10 hours all together to make, including about three hours for the top. This doesn't include design, which I often get carried away with, or time when I piddle or experiment with a new technique.