This trough shelf is a great easy project. It holds books, CDs and DVDs, and it looks classy and timeless. Power tools might speed up the process, but you can build this project with just a handsaw, a coping saw, a chisel and a smoothing plane. Although the simple Arts and Crafts theme I've chosen usually calls for quartersawn white oak, most species of wood will do.
Before you get going, think about the 1/2"-thick wood you'll need. If you don't have access to a thickness planer, there are a couple of options. You could plane standard 3/4"-thick stock down using a hand plane (quite practical with parts this small) or use that thicker wood as is, modifying the dimensions as needed for joinery. Although this second approach would work well, the completed project might look a little heavy.
Start by preparing all of the parts as listed. You need two end pieces, two stretchers and four wedges. The key is to make both shelf ends identical, especially the location and orientation of the rectangular holes (called “mortises”) that the ends of the stretchers pass through. Do yourself a favour: make a tracing pattern to ensure those parts come out the same.
Draw the outline of your completed pattern on heavy cardboard, using a “toonie” for the radius of the outside curves, and a quarter for the inside curves on the bottom. One of the trickiest parts of pattern layout is locating the bottom shelf mortises at the correct angle and position. Use a carpenter's square to create the required 90ยบ orientation, laying out mortise sizes and locations along the square's two edges.
Cut Your Mortises
There are no shoulders on the sides of the tenons on the stretcher ends. This means that you must cut the mortises in the end pieces cleanly, without splinters, since they'll be visible even after assembly. You might be able to do this with a chisel alone, but since the wood grain runs diagonally through the mortises, it won't be easy. But I have a trick.
Carefully score the outline of each mortise with a utility knife to reduce the possiblity of an unsightly chip. Next, drill out the majority of the waste wood, then clean up the mortise with a chisel. Because the two end pieces are interchangeable, if you do get a messy mortise, you can place it on the inside face of one of the ends, where your books will hide it. When each mortise is done, use a chisel or a file to put a slight chamfer on all edges. This helps prevent chipping when the tenons are inserted and taken apart later while fitting.
As you work to shape the outside edges of the end pieces, you'll find that a coping saw or jigsaw works perfectly on the curved corners. Use a coarse half-round file to clean up the cuts, followed by sandpaper.
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