Woodworker: Julia C. McLain

McLain’s cedar-lined, white-oak blanket chest is a close replica of the “Norman Tooth Chest,” which she saw in Wallace Nutting’s Furniture Treasury, Vol. 2. Fortunately, while she was working on the chest, the original happened to be on exhibit at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, Connecticut, so McLain was able to get measurements and detailed photographs. The lid opens on a shopmade wooden hinge, and all of the intricate carvings were done by hand. The finish is a hot-wax mixture consisting of beeswax, carnauba wax, and Japan colors.

Photo: Lance Patterson