We've incorporated glass into many boxes, and recently we're starting to make boxes with two glass sides and 2 wood sides, like this now-finished (and for sale on our "Wood and Glass Boxes" pages) Parakeet Cage Box. It's a challenge to cut and grind glass perfectly so it will fit into the wood pieces, and the bars were challenging on this one. But I do love the juxtaposition of the birds on either side facing in opposite ways. This box is just beautiful with light behind it. The sides are canarywood and the top and base are purpleheart. We used an old metal handle for a lid lift. I suppose we should have lined the base with newspaper.
Tom wanted to do an aquarium box like this, so I etched these two glass panels with aquarium fish and plants, and they look pretty cool facing each other- it's busy like a real fish tank, and there's lots of detail on all the fish. It seems like this one should be lit inside. I hate it when decorative lights like this need to plug in, though- I think it ruins the effect, so I've been investigating LED mini light kits that are battery-powered so you could place this, say, in the middle of a table without having an ugly cord attached. It will be another engineering challenge to figure out how to place cords and lights and batteries and switches in the wood so it's all hidden. If anybody out there has ideas on good kits or ways to do this more easily, shoot us an email.
I also etched these panels with winter trees for another box with two glass sides. I think it might look good to use light wood for the other two sides and continue the tree design onto the wood by woodburning so it's winter trees all around.
And don't ask us why we make boxes that you can see through, which makes it hard to put things in them. We like making boxes, OK? Boxes are beautiful whether there's something in them or not. There's something about the possibility of opening it up and putting something in it that is satisfying. I sort of collect boxes, and I inherited my grandmother's wonderful antique pillbox collection (which I can't afford to add to), and most of them are empty, and I don't think that's weird. So there.
And don't ask us why we make boxes that you can see through, which makes it hard to put things in them. We like making boxes, OK? Boxes are beautiful whether there's something in them or not. There's something about the possibility of opening it up and putting something in it that is satisfying. I sort of collect boxes, and I inherited my grandmother's wonderful antique pillbox collection (which I can't afford to add to), and most of them are empty, and I don't think that's weird. So there.
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