 |
The Twins
|
They
were sort of conceived at the same time, so they qualify as twins, right?
Well, fraternal anyway…
Twin #1 is made of “rare woods.” It’s got a pink ivory handle, its top is bookmatched curly anigre, and the box is black palm, with its strange endgrain – heart dots.Twin #2 is a curly sycamore box, bookmatched panga-panga top, and a sort of free-form handle made of spalted maple.
They’re about the same size. I don't know what fits in them.
I
suppose this would be a good place to “explain” kandi boxes. I’ve been asked
why they’re not made to hold something specific, like jewelry, or packages of
tea, or recipes, whatever. I could “sell them in a second,” so I've been told.
Doubtful.
Here’s how it goes: I like to cut dovetails and leave them proud with little bevels on all the edges for a tactile feeling and because I just like to cut dovetails. I like thin sections and wedged mortise and tenons. Which combination of woods gets used for a particular box depends.
I stare at wood a lot.
And the handles, well, there’s whimsy, geometry, frustration, laughter, history, and…
It’s
not that I’ll never make a jewelry box, a specific box, a box for something.
As a matter of fact, I will do just that in the very near future. Something
extravagant, with a mirrored top and graceful figure, perfumed drawers that
whisper luxury, and concealed doors that spring open to expose rubies
and diamonds, maybe a secret compartment to hold ancient gold, etc.
etc. etc.
Maybe someone will fill it with a lifetime of memories. Gifts. Surprises. Secrets.
But, in the end, I just hope it will be a kandi box. It may not. Because the fact remains, there’s only one thing that must go into a kandi box for it to be a kandi box and that’s…
kandi.