This project was a Christmas present for my wife, Aggie. I wanted to build a Japanese toolbox after finding some articles about them at Daiku Dojo. The box measures 14″ x 10″ x 5″, and it was designed to hold papers at Aggie’s desk. So far, it’s just sitting in the bookcase looking pretty.

I usually enjoy making things out of wood that I salvage — stuff that people are throwing away, washed up on the beach, scraps from other projects — but this time I splurged on some nice half-inch poplar from the Home Depot. I didn’t expect it to turn out as elegant as it did.