Peter Follansbee, joiner's notes

A post about a carved chest and box for sale. But first, a detour to Elia Bizarri’s site – he’s put his pandemic videos he made with a bunch of us on sale for the weekend. Half-price. Dave Fisher, Curtis Buchanan, Jane Mickelborough and me. Get ’em here https://handtoolwoodworking.com/spoon-carving-videos/

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The other day my son Daniel & I emptied much of the shop:

not a yard sale…

it was so we could photograph the chest with drawers I made…

it was a nice day outside

The chest is one I’ve mentioned over on the substack site- made 2017/18, delivered and never used, never even displayed. Sat in storage until I bought it back this spring/summer.

PF chest w/2 drawers. Oak, pine, walnut, Atlantic white cedar 2018

It’s featured in my book with Lost Art Press – Joiner’s Work. The chapter about making drawers and the section showing how I fit a lock to a piece like this. https://lostartpress.com/collections/joinery/products/joiners-work

It’s based on one I saw at Historic Deerfield years ago. The original was made either in Windsor or Wethersfield, Connecticut in the 2nd half of the 17th century. Mine follows the original pretty closely – my triangular corner plaques are walnut, I think the originals were oak. I don’t remember off the top of my head what the original moldings were, mine are Atlantic white cedar.

There’s a lock & escutcheon with two keys, made by Peter Ross, a favorite blacksmith.

center panel

The chest is not small – H: 40″ W: 47 1/4″ D: 22″. It’s available for purchase. Email me at PeterFollansbee7@gmail.com if you’d like to discuss it. Here’s a gallery of the rest of the recent photos.

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The other piece is a recent carved box w/carved lid.

PF carved box w/carved lid, Aug 2025

Made with a Spanish cedar lid and base molding with what I thought was a Spanish cedar body – but is probably a type of mahogany. Iron hinges. Mitered dovetailed corners, based on an English box from Exeter, Devon. Lidded till inside.

another gallery:

H: 7” W: 22 1/8” D: 14 3/4”
price is $2,600 including shipping in US.

Email me at PeterFollansbee7@gmail.com if you’d like to purchase this box…you’ll have to dust the lid…

If you follow my substack blog then you’ve already seen these two boxes. But I post frequently there, which bumps the post with the boxes off the top of the order. So I’ll put them here for a while.

Small carved oak box

small oak box, July 2025

It’s based on some Thomas Dennis boxes, one of which I’ve seen, the others I only know from photographs. It’s made just the same as a period box – in this case, riven red oak with a millsawn pine board for the bottom. It’s small – 6 1/8” high, 9 1/4” x 13 3/4”. But it’s made just the same as my other full-sized boxes – all the oak riven and planed by hand, corner joints fastened with glue and wooden pins. This time it has iron hinges – these small-scale examples from Horton Brasses (although the hinges are iron.) A lidded till inside.

It’s available for sale – $1,000 – including shipping in the US. If you’re interested, email me and we can sort out the details. These days I add Paypal’s fee onto the price if paying that way. A check, though old-school, avoids the fee. My email is here Peterfollansbee7@gmail.com

a gallery of images

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Carved oak box with lock

carved oak box, pine lid & bottom. Lock by Peter Ross

There’s a story to this one – I made it several years ago – and a customer bought it and two other pieces. The story I heard is that someone didn’t like them, so they went into storage. I bought them back this summer – in the exact same condition they were in when they left here. This one’s not a copy of an existing box, but it’s typical in most of its features. Red oak box with white pine for the lid & bottom. The carvings are based on the works associated with Thomas Dennis of Ipswich, Massachusetts. The scrolls on the front appear in dozens of pieces from his shop. This box is nailed at the rabbeted corners – with what we often now call “T-heads” – wrought nails whose heads are flatted to form a narrow, wide head that buries nicely in the oak.

detail showing T-head nails, escutcheon, etc

A till inside, oak lid with pine bottom & sides. In this view, you can also see the iron “gimmal” hinges- better known today as snipes/snipebill hinges.

till, hinges, lock

These are the most common hinges on carved boxes in the 17th century. I only use them once in a while – I more often make a wooden hinge. These are simple and quick. But setting them just right takes a deft hand.

H: 7 1/8” W: 21 3/4” D: 13 3/4”
linseed oil finish
$2,000

Email me at PeterFollansbee7@gmail.com if you’re interested in purchasing this box (or ordering any of my oak furniture…)