Photo above by Hal Kelly; all others by Milton Salomon

The young lady of the house is entitled to her private area for party primping and childhood efforts to "look like mother."

Since vanity - a pride and pleasure in her own appearance-plays an important part in every little girl's life, this simple and modern vanity table is a must in your daughter's room. It will give the little lady a feeling of importance, as well as making her mother feel proud and pleased. As for father . . . well, turning out this table will be a pleasure in itself. It's a wonderful project for beginners, and shouldn't take more than one weekend.

One-half sheet of plywood and the few small essentials shown in the material list will do the job. Cut out all plywood parts as illustrated in the plywood layout drawing, and mark all pieces as shown. Next, plane all edges smooth.

Cover the end edges of the table top (A) with matching Weldwood Wood-Trim, using Weldwood Contact Cement. Bore four equally spaced 1/2-inch holes 5/16 inch deep, located 3/8 inch from and parallel with the left end edge of (A). Bore four similar holes 3/8 inch from the bottom edge of cabinet side panels (B). In both cases start holes 3/4inch in from the front and back edges. Now bore 3/16-inch holes all the way through the center of these 1/2-inch holes.

One-half inch holes for wood plugs are bored 5/16 Then 3/16-inch holes are drilled through center inch deep into top of drawer-case top piece (D). of 1/2-lnch holes, all the way through, for screws.

Repeat this operation by boring holes 3/8 inch from and parallel with the left, right and back edges of drawer case top (D), and with the bottom edges of both drawer case sides (E). Then bore three holes (the same kind as done previously) on top (A), 155/8 inches from and parallel with the left edge, and square with the back edge. Start the first of these three holes 3/4 inch from the back; the second one 41/4 inches more toward the front; and the third another 41/4 inches forward.

Bore 3/16-inch holes all the way through drawer case bottom (F), 3/8 inch from and parallel to the back edge, and countersink all holes on the bottom surface for flathead screws.

Now assemble both cabinet sides (B) to base (C), using glue and l1/4-inch No. 8 flathead screws. Hold the bottom edges of (B) flush with the bottom surface of (C), square up as necessary, and set the pieces aside to let the glue dry.

Cabinet sides (B) are joined to base (C) with glue and 11/4-inch No. 8 ftathead screws; square up.

Drawer case sides (E) are similarly fastened to bottom (F): keep parts flush on bottom and back.

Check drawer case back for fit before mounting Complete the drawer enclosure by mounting top top (D). It's important that all edges are flush. (D) onto sides. Drawer case must be made square.

In drawer part layout below, front (G) is at the left, dadoed drawer sides are at top and bottom.

Assemble the drawer case by first mounting both drawer case sides (E) to bottom (F), using glue and l1/4-inch No. 8 flathead screws, keeping all parts flush on the bottom and back. After checking the fit of the back, mount the top (D), keeping the sides flush. Mount the back of the drawer case, holding it flush in the back. Plane all front edges flush and cover them with Wood-Trim, and file the trim flush. Fill all 1/2-inch holes with long-grain plugs (see the chapter on construction tech­niques), and set the assembly aside.

Table top (A) is now assembled onto already assembled parts (B) and (C). Use glue and 11/4-inch No. 8 flathead screws, square up the assembly, and fill all 1/2-inch holes with long-grain plugs. Plane all front edges flush and cover them with Wood-Trim.

Next step is to make the drawer. First fit drawer front (G) into the case so as to leave a heavy 1/16-inch margin all around. Then check the 1/2- or 3/4-inch thick (same as drawer front) solid wood sides for fit, and mark them both at the same time. On drawer front (G) and both sides, dado a 1/4-inch square channel for the drawer bot­tom, 1/2inch from the bottom of these pieces. Cut the drawer back piece to the same length as the front (G) less the thick­ness of both drawer sides. Then rabbet both ends of front (G) 3/8 inch deep; the width of the rabbet is determined by the thickness of the sides.

Assemble the drawer, using glue and 3d finishing nails. Square the drawer up and refit as necessary, making sure the drawer is straight. After covering the top edges of the drawer front with Wood-Trim, attach a drawer knob in the center of the drawer front.

Mount the drawer case onto top (A), holding the case flush on the left side and back, and fasten it with four l1/4-inch No. 8 flathead screws through the bottom of (A) after boring 3/16-inch countersunk holes in (A). Do not use glue, and sand the top surface of (A) well before permanently mounting the case.

Make the mirror frame from Ix2-inch matching solid wood. Bore two 1/2-inch holes, followed by 3/16-inch holes in the cen­ter of these as done for previous assemblies, in each end of the side members, 3/8 inch from the end. Assemble the frame with glue and l1/4-inch No. 8 flathead screws, and square and straighten the frame if necessary. Plane the edges flush and cover the front with 1/4-inch plywood, using glue and 3/4-inch head nails. In order to conceal

To begin drawer assembly, glue and nail sides Into the tabbets (see above) in drawer front (G).

the 1/4-inch plywood edges, a 1/4-inch deep by 3/8-inch wide rabbet will have to be cut in the front edges before assembling. Bore three 3/16-inch holes through the bottom strip of the frame, and another 3/16-inch hole through the side member that mounts against the drawer case. This lat­ter hole is located 2 inches from the bottom edge of the side. Countersink the holes for flathead screws. When the frame has been fitted correctly, take it off again and have a 1/4-inch polished-edge mirror fitted onto it. Use two metal clips on the top and one on each side to fasten the mirror. But do not attach the mirror before mounting the frame—and hold off on mounting the frame until the legs have been attached.

Drawer back is glued and nailed between sides, keeping 1/4-inch channel for drawer bottom clear.

Square method up drawer fay is described in measuring diagonally; chapter on techniques.

Refit drawer into enclosure to straight, then insert bottom into

check that it's Table top (A) is mounted on assembly (B-C) with 1/4-inch dadoes. glue and screws. Then fill boles with wood plugs.

Turn the vanity table upside down for mounting the legs. Preferably use ready-turned, brass-tipped legs with slanted steel-plate mounts. For the lower part of the cabinet, mount on 9-inch legs located 4 inches from the front and back and 7 inches in from the outside. (These measurements indicate the location of the centerpoint of each leg.) After the 9-inch legs are mounted, measure the height of the legs plus the cabinet, up to the bottom surface of table top (A): this will give the length of the longer two legs.

Since the standard 28-inch leg is too long for your use, cut it down as follows: Re­move the screwpin from the legs, cut off as much from the top of each leg as necessary, bore new pilot holes and replace the pins. Attach the steel mounting plates diagonally, locating the legs 4 inches from the front and back and 7 inches from the right side.

Holding drawer case flush on left side and back, fasten it to top (A) with screws from the bottom.

Assemble mirror frame made from Ix 2-inch match­ing solid wood; use glue, screws (see drawings).

Now mount on the mirror frame and sand the entire table. (Remember that all parts are always sanded before assembly.) At­tach the mirror in place. Note: No cabinet back was used in the project photographed here, but one can easily be mounted by cutting 1/4X3/8-inch rabbets in pieces (B), (C) and part of (A), before assembly. •

Fill boles with 1/2-inch long-grain wood plugs of matching wood. Chisel and sand down excess plug.

Plywood backing. 1/4 inch thick. Is then glued and nailed to mirror frame front with 3/4-inch nails.

Edges of mirror frame are sanded smooth and even. Polished-edge mirror will be cut to fit the frame.

Fasten frame to tap (A) to check for perfect fit prior to having mirror cut, then remount frame.

Tapered brass-tipped legs are attached before frame is, are set at angle and located 7 inches in.

Coat of white Firrzite followed by two coats of Satinlac and final wax rub completes the project.

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