To say this project had many oops-moments would be an understatement. I haven’t done very precise woodworking before, so this seemingly simple box was definitely a lesson learned!

I started by cutting five pieces of 7″x7″ 3/4″-plywood. They were not all exactly 7″x7″, so I used the belt sander to sand each piece down to the desired size. Using the corner clamp, I assembled the sides two at a time – combining two sides two times to form two 90-degree corners, and then combining the two corners to make the complete sides of the box. I used the Kreg jig at the 1/4″ mark to drill hidden holes on the insides of the box and used the 1-1/4″ Kreg jig-specific screws. My first mistake: I didn’t really think about how to hide the combining screws. I couldn’t fit the drill into the box to screw everything together, and I couldn’t find a manual screwdriver short enough to fit. Thus, there are four screws visible on the outside.

Then came my second mistake – not accounting for the wood thickness. I assumed the bottom piece could also be 7″x7″, when it should’ve actually been 7″x8.5″. At this point, there were no lab techs to ask and I had to wait another day to complete the box. However, I decided to go ahead and use the Kreg jig to make hidden holes for the bottom piece. I must’ve been really tired, because I immediately made a third mistake: drilling the hidden holes on the wrong side.

Granted, these were “inside” the box and did not warrant taking apart the box and cutting new pieces, but I was getting pretty frustrated at this point with how complicated this supposedly simple box was turning out to be.

I came back to the OEDK after resting and cut out my last, bottom piece (the correct 7″x8.5″ this time). I clamped the bottom piece to the four sides and easily screwed in the Kreg-jig screws using a screwdriver (the power drill would not fit into the box). I then used the router to round out the edges of the box. This caused some splintering at the bottom corners – another lesson learned. This time, I just sanded them out to be as smooth as possible.

My finished box! Lots of lessons here, the biggest of which are: think twice before drilling and get some sleep before woodworking.

Cost analysis:

Assuming that I’m a Rice student and OEDK resources (not consumables) such as the clamps, belt sander, router table, and table saws have no cost:

• 3/4″ plywood, 24″x96″ – $61.98 (Home Depot)
• Kreg jig – $29.97 (Home Depot)
• 1-1/4″ Kreg jig screws – $4.99 (Lowe’s)
• Sandpaper, 220-grit – $2.97 (Home Depot)
• Labor (assuming Texas minimum wage for about 4 hours) – $7.25/hour = $29.00

Total: $128.91