A Heart-Shaped Box Woodworking Project

Create unique home accessories with wood hearts.

Hearts often find a place in home decorations, from wall hangings to fabric patterns. One way to take a heart design and create a unique piece of furniture art is through creating wooden heart boxes. While wood does not easily bend into the shape of a heart, cutting out heart-shaped patterns allows you to stack hearts into an original, functional piece of wood art.

Things You'll Need

• 3/4-inch plywood or other wood material
• Reciprocating or jig saw
• Drill
• Cardboard
• Pencil
• Wood glue
• Hinge
• Paint or stain

Instructions

1. Print out the basic shape of a heart with a software design program. Simple clip art also works. Blow up the first heart to the exact size you want the outside of your box to be before printing. Print out a second heart that is 1/4 inch smaller than the first heart.

2. Cut out the larger heart pattern and place it on a piece of cardboard or card stock. Trace the heart onto the cardboard. Cut the heart out carefully with scissors. Repeat with the smaller heart.

3. Place a piece of masking tape on the center of each heart. Use the tape to help hold the stencil in place on the wood. Use a pencil to trace the larger heart onto the wood surface. Remove the stencil. Place the smaller heart directly in the center of the larger heart. Trace the second heart.

4. Cut out the larger heart from the wood with a reciprocating or jig saw.

5. Create a hole near the edge of the smaller center heart large enough to fit your saw blade using your drill. Make sure that the drill hole does not go outside the traced line. Cut out the smaller heart from the bigger heart using the drill hole as a starting point.

6. Trace the rest of your hearts onto the wood using the first wood heart cutout as your new stencil. Calculate the number of hearts based on your desired height of the box. Divide the height you want by the thickness of the wood. On two of the hearts, trace only the outer heart, as those hearts will serve as the top and bottom of the box.

7. Stack your box starting with a full heart on the bottom. Place a thin layer of wood glue between each heart as you go. Allow the glue to dry between layers before placing the next heart to prevent layers from sliding while building.

8. Paint or stain both the inside and outside of your box.

9. Attach the hinge using the included screws to the top hollow heart layer and the second full heart to allow the box to open and close.

Tips & Warnings

• Draw the hearts close to the edge of the wood when tracing so that you waste less material when using your saw.

• Try cutting hearts from two different higher-quality wood. Rotate between each kind as you build the box. This will create a unique look once stained.

• Always wear goggles when using power tools to protect your eyes from flying wood pieces and sawdust.

References

• Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety: Saws -- Sabre, Jig and Reciprocating