Blooming Spring Fretwork Flowers

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Blooming Spring Fretwork Flowers

Use these versatile patterns in several ways

By Gloria Cosgrove
Cut by Leldon Maxcy

These fun fretwork designs can be used any number of ways, from wall hangings to photo frames. Use your imagination to come up with your own unique project. To get you started, we’ve developed a way to use each design.

Making the Flower Basket

Drill blade-entry holes and cut the fretwork for the flowers in the basket design. Create a stack of the fretwork and the backing board, and cut around the perimeter of the design. Separate the stack and sand both pieces smooth. Dab acrylic paint on the backing board so the colors are visible through the frets and accent the work. Glue the fretwork to the backing board.

Making the Simple Rose

Cut the rose fretwork from an attractive hardwood. If you choose thin wood, you can frame it in a shadow box. Cut from thicker wood, it can be hung directly on the wall with or without a backing board.

Making the Fretwork Frame

Cut the fretwork for the heart-shaped flower design. Then, cut the backing board, and use the backing board as a guide to trim the photo. Use double-sided tape or spray adhesive to attach the photo to the backing board, and use rare earth magnets or small screws in the indicated areas to hold the backing board to the fretwork frame. Attach a small hanger with small screws or epoxy.

Materials

• Baltic birch plywood, 1/8″ (3mm)
   thick: flower basket, 2 each 6 1/4″ x 7 1/4″
   (159mm x 184mm)

• Wood, such as mahogany, 3/4″ (19mm) thick: 6″ x 9 1/4″ (152mm x 235mm)

• Wood, such as Baltic birch plywood, 1/8″ (3mm)
   thick: fretwork frame, 2 each 8″ x 8 1/2″
   (203mm x 216mm)

• Wood glue

• Spray adhesive

•Finish

• Double-sided tape (optional)

• Small screws or rare
   earth magnets

• Small hanger

• Epoxy

• Acrylic paints: assorted colors 

Tools

• Scroll saw with blades: #3 reverse-tooth 

• Drill with assorted small bits

• Paintbrushes: assorted

• Screwdriver

 

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