This project is easily in my top 3 purely because of the amount of struggle involved in making it. I’ve had this idea for a while now to try introducing paint into a project, the only problem is that paint is kind of a taboo topic when it comes to fine woodworking. So, I set to work trying different types of paint on ring pous woods and found that a simple latex paint, when sprayed on ash, gives you a strong colour and keeps the distinct grain visible.

As for the design of the cabinet, I wanted to try building a hanging cabinet using frame & panel construction as opposed to the normal solid panel structure I’ve used in the past. The real trick with the design process was making sure the weight of everything in the cabinet would be transferred to the back panel. By taking what I know from building floor standing cabinets, I knew that vertically oriented pieces are the best way to create strength. On this cabinet, there are three levels of vertically oriented stretchers which makes this cabinet extremely strong and stable and through the testing I’ve done, this thing should have no problem being hung on a wall, as long as it’s tied into a couple of studs!

So the final question is, if I think it’s strong enough to hang, why haven’t I hung it up yet? The main problem is that I don’t have anywhere to put it. The original spot I had planned for it would’ve limited the view of the cabinet and I just couldn’t justify hanging it there. Someday it might get hung up or it might live on a small table, at this point I don’t really know, I do know though that it’ll be a centrepiece of whatever room it’s in!