This week I worked with Annanya on building a wood crate as beginners. I only once drilled the hole on the wall and it’s our first time to learn drilling, screwing, sanding and staining a box from very beginning of a batch of lumbers. We’re really satisfied about our work and did learn a lot on those hands-on machines and skills.

For our project, we used pre-cut materials of 9*14.5” long pieces of 1*4 lumber, 6*12” long pieces of 1*4 lumber and 4*11′ long pieces of 2*2 lumber. Firstly, we lined up the ends of two side of the box in the corner clamp securely and drilled a pilot hole at the joint with 1/8” drill bit. To make it look more smooth, we used much larger drill bit to create a shadow hole on the surface of pre-drilled position. So we can screw the wood screw into the hole evenly to create a sturdy frame.

After assembling three layers, we sanded each layer with sanding machine with 60 grits and 120 grits sand paper to smoothen the sharp corners and remove some splinters and uneven surfaces on the wood. At this time, they were soft but not smooth enough.

Once pre-sanding three outer layers of box, we assembled all of them with four long square cross-section lumber at each corner. and repeat the same process of drilling holes and driving wood screws to construct a basic structure of wooden box. However, at this part we found one of layers was loose, so we had to drive more wood screws to secure them until entire box is sturdy enough.

We started with a coarse grit sandpaper to remove any rough edges and uneven surfaces before assembly. we would gradually move to finer grits for a smoother finish with 400 grit,800grits and 3000 grits sand paper. We did pay special attention to the corners and edges to achieve a polished look.

To enhance the natural beauty of the wood and protect it, apply a wood finish or oil. Wen chose a teak oil because this oil is water-resistant and has some degree of UV resistance to prevent fading. Most important point is oil finish can dry very quickly and non-toxic.  We applied the oil to the surface of entire box with paper towel and make sure the oil to immerse into the wood thoroughly. We really like the original color of wood itself.

Crafting a wooden box is a satisfying and creative endeavor that allows us to learn and practice essential woodworking skills. From drilling to assembling and finishing, each step is an opportunity to build our craftsmanship. Once we’ve completed your wooden box, we are proud of our job of our first-time wooden craft and would like to try some home projects of wood like accent wall.

Cost Type	Cost	Price	Source	Quantity	Total
Materials	1×4 Board	3.32/8ft	Home Depot	17 ft	$7.06
	Screws	0.07/screws	Home Depot	50	$3.5
	Sand Paper	$5.47/7pieces	Home Depot	7	$5.47
	Teak oil	$16.97/quart	Home Depot	1	$16.97
Labor	Woodworking Operator	$15/h	Indeed.com	8 hrs	$120
	Prototyping Engineer (You!)	$36.5/h	Bureau of Labor Statistics	1 h	$36.5
Overhead	Facility Cost (Machine Time)	$4/h on drill $4/h on orbital sander	Home Depot	Total 6 hrs	$24
	Quality Control	$18/h	Bureau of Labor Statistic	1h	$18
Design	Engineering and Development	$0	N/A	N/A	$0
	Iterations	$18	Bureau of labor statistics	N/A	$18
Misc.	Waste and Scrap	0.42/ft	Home Depot	6ft	$2.52
TOTAL					$252.02