BLANKET CHEST

This chest holds more than blankets. It also holds your gaze thanks to a lid with curved ends and a figured panel, plus angled ends and subtle, elegant details.

- DAVE STONE

Blanket chests are great for storing But they're also big boxes that often end up "storing" other things on top. The beautiful design of this chest ensures you'll want to leave the outside fully visible, so you won't turn it into a piling place.

Thankfully, the extra details that mark this elegant chest don't add a lot of complexity. Veneer creates the contrasting lid panel. A router and plane help form the curved lid ends in a few simple steps, and the angles are easy to create.

START WITH THE SIDES

1 Begin by cutting the front/back (A) and end (B) panels to size [Materials List, Drawings 1 and 2]. We used an 80-tooth plywood blade to avoid tear out. Miter-cut the ends of the front/ back panels to 10°. Finish-sand the panels, taking care to avoid sanding through the thin plywood veneer.

Note: Because they lean inward, the end panels (B) are slightly wider than the front/ back panels (A).

2 Cut the front/back stiles (C) and end stiles (D) to size [Materials List], miter cutting the ends of the front/back stiles at 10° [Drawings 1, 2].

3 Cut slots for #10 biscuits in the edges of these parts, positioning them so that the inside face of the stiles and panels will be flush. Finish-sand. Then glue the stiles to the panels [Photo A].

4 Cut the front/back upper (E) and lower (F) rails to size, miter-cutting the ends at 10° to fit the end panel/stiles assembly [Drawing 1]. Also cut the end upper (G) and lower (H) rails to size [Drawing 2]. Note, once again, that the end rails start out slightly wider than the front/back rails.