Recycled Glass Lazy Woodwork

Recycled Glass Table

The major inspiration behind this table is ownership of a circle of glass that is too good to throw away. In the 1980’s it was part of a fashionable little iron framed thingy.

A clever wood turner made three legs with large balls on top and slots cut to enable glass to be slipped into the ball. He held legs in place with a strong rubber band.

This blog entry puts a variation of the band idea into use with the circle of glass.

Lazy Woodwork

Exploiting rigidity of a piece of robust glass enables legs to be held in place without need for complicated leg to rail joints. Each leg is supported at three points: a wooden slot and two pieces of sticky felt. The larger this triangle of support the more stable the leg becomes. Also, support at three points means that a problem with wobbles never has to be sorted. Once the legs are held in place with a Spanish windlass the whole construction  becomes particularly stable. This is lazy woodwork but still functional, and inspiring for its simplicity.
Making the little wooden toggle was a response to guilt for having done so little work to make the table. A stick would have done the job just as well, but I still think there needs to be something about a piece of work that emphasises excitement in the maker.

What’s It For?

My disabled friends live in assisted accommodation. They have no need for more furniture in their lives.
However, this table will take a confident place in a display where I try to inspire woodworkers to continue exploring their imaginations.
I also have a regular job teaching men and women who simply want to explore craft. They question their abilities and this simple style will assist their confidence to explore coffee table making.

Plywood gives a wonderful freedom to work without needing to worry  too much about grain direction. The hooked shape at the top of this leg would create problems if I had used solid timber. There is also something interesting in the sight of veneer all making multiple fine parallel lines intersecting at joins.

The little windlass adds greatly to the fun of the piece. It draws attention to what is going on under the glass.

Removed from the context of the table the shape doesn’t even look like a furniture component.