Just An Old Cedar Box

This is the story of an old cedar box.  For some this will bring back memories for others it read like ancient history.  None the less this is the story of a 70 year old cedar box and its transformation.

Lane is a name most people today would recognize for it's furniture but there was a time they were best known for a specific piece of furniture - cedar chests. Cedar Chests were a part of everyday life and many if not most families had one. The reason, they repelled bugs specifically moths. So most would use them for storage of sweaters and other woolens that would become food for moths in the summer months. Many women also used them as a hope chest. A hope chest was where she would start gathering special things for the day when she had a family and home of her own. My mother came from a farm family in a very rural area of South Texas often referred to as the Rio Grande Valley. My grandparents did not get electricity until the 1950s and indoor plumbing about 1958. Oddly enough the only cedar chest my mother ever owned was this small one. Oddly enough my wife Pam is also from a farm family in South Texas though not as far south. Her mother (Alva) did have a cedar chest as did her aunts. While Alva's was redone and is in Pam's sisters house we have one of her aunts that we had redone by a very talented restorer in San Antonio.  Even after 70 years the inside of that chest still has the cedar aroma.

The Lane company would make small cedar chests and give them to graduating senior (girls). I believe the practice stopped in the mid 1970s though Pam did get one when she graduated in 1970. The practice was most common in rural areas with the local furniture store distributing the boxes. Pam's was destroyed or lost in one of our moves. My mother's that she got in 1940 however survived. My sister brought it to me out of storage recently. Though it was not in the best of shape I manged to put it back together. I converted the box from hinges to slip in top. The old cedar had simply become to dry to hold the hinges. After some sanding being careful to retain the lane stamp and the furniture store tag I decided to carve the box. Sanding the box proved interesting as once the finish was removed the box still had a strong Cedar smell. It is amazing how many of our memories are triggered by smell however, that is another story.

Now the decision to carve the box was a risky decision as the wood was dry and brittle and I had to limit my designs due to the wood condition. I decided to put some of my mothers favorite things on the box. On one end we have a shell. My mother loved to collect shells. She and my father went to the beach in Corpus Christi often, he would use his metal detector and she would look for shells.

She also enjoyed feeding the seagulls. If you have never been to the beach in Corpus the seagulls are quite entertaining and will mob you if they think you have food.

For the top I chose a carved rose. My mothers name was Rose and she always enjoyed them as well.

The front has two angels and a heart. My mother was committed to her church and enjoyed it most when her children were together and attended with her and my father.

For the back I went with on of her favorite bible verses (which seemed appropriate) and her name and year of birth and year of death.

Inside the top lid you will see the manufacturer's mark

On the bottom the store that gave it out and most of the label that lane put on the bottom. I have also painted in the information on when my mother got the box and signed the carvings. I did little to the boxes bottom except add new pads. Small box turned into a family keepsake.

If you are thinking of doing something similar here are a few things to consider.

• Is the item worth more to you than a collector.
• Is the item sound enough to survive the process.
• Does the item contain is it finished in a toxic finish (Many old items can be finished with paints that are toxic or contain lead).
• Do you have a clear plan and have you tried the designs on scrap to insure they will turn out as you wish.

In my case the box was so damaged it had no worth other than to my family. I was able to say with certainty the old finish was not toxic and by working the simplest design first I knew I should have success in carving on it. The box as it appears now has just over 25 hours of work considering repair, carving, sanding, painting and finish.

Perhaps this story will give you some ideas for an old battered keepsake hiding in your attic or storeroom.  Pam and I have done a number of these projects turning damaged old quilts into stuffed toys for nieces and nephews as well as framed mementos.  While we are not big on keeping clutter we like turning something with history into something a family member can keep an display replete with all the memories that go with it.  If you have an old deteriorating treasure go and make it something new with those special memories attached.

More to come


Bruce and Pam

It Has Been Hot!

Sorry for the lack of post but we have been hiding from the heat.  So there is not a lot to post at the moment.  We are used to getting about 10 or twelve 100 plus days in a summer.  Usually in late July and August.  However it is usually broken up by more normal (for the area mid 90s).  Now I know five or six degrees doesn't seem like a lot but coupled with this summers very high humidity (really I don't live on the coast for a reason and that is humidity) it has been unbearable.  We are how poised to take second place as the hottest summer on record since 1980 and that was the hotest ever recorded in this area.  It has not been cooling off that much after dark either as it is usually still in the mid 90s by midnight.  Lows have been in the mid eighties.

Look for a slew of new posts on my woodcarving blog in the next few days as I have been hold up in the craft room carving.

Hope it is cooler where you are.

Bruce and Pam