Making a TARDIS Jewelry Box with Wood Panels

I haven't been posting lately because a.) I'm completely swamped with school and b.) all my craft time has been dedicated to a new custom order request. I'm pretty excited about this one and I'm sharing it with you today.

I apologize in advance, this is not a tutorial with the level of detail you might expect from my blog. Since I was trying out some new techniques, I decided to skip most of the step-by-step photos as they do take more time. Don't worry, though, I have learned a lot from this project and already have plans to ramp it up to the next level (more on that later).

TARDIS Jewelry Box with Wood Panels

Picking the Panel Materials

At first I thought I would be buying a thin sheet of balsa or other overlay wood and using a saw to meticulously cut the pieces down to size. Then I wandered over to the wood crafts section and discovered the myriad of precut wooden sticks available. Most are the same thickness. Check out the pics below for all the sizes.

And conveniently, the 2nd stick down in the top photo was the right width for the door panel crossbars. Voila!

Finding TARDIS Blue

Then it was on to picking the right TARDIS blue. I really loved the Americana True Blue I used for my other 2 TARDIS projects, but it didn't look right in pictures. I am thoroughly convinced TARDIS blue is the most difficult color to accurately photograph. I tried a couple of darker blues, but they looked too purple. Finally I decided to go back to True Blue and go for accuracy in person rather than in photos. When I walk in my friends' house, I can spot the TARDIS in the room almost immediately because the blue catches my eye. Next time (which I hope will be mine to keep), I want to try distressing the exterior like I did on the Distressed Gift Box.

Assembling the Panels

So here comes the tedious part. Basically, measure, cut, try it on the doors. Then get frustrated with the fit. Pry off half of what you put on. Cut new pieces. Accidentally crush a delicate window made of toothpicks. Re-glue tiny window. You get the idea. Spending hours fiddling with little pieces...and loving it (to quote Maxwell Smart).

Window and Door Assembly

The picture above shows the unpainted window mullions. To get them exactly right, I glued them directly onto the template I used for my cardstock panels. The assembly was very similar to the other two TARDIS projects which you can check out here or here.

Trim and Paint

If you look back to the various stick sizes photograph, you'll notice the longest sticks are pretty wide. In order to get the right length, I had to glue on extra and carefully trim it off. Then for some sanding and touch up painting (including the little narrow bits of the door panels). If you're wondering why there are white plastic toothpicks in the photo, I was thinking of using them for the window panels, but I couldn't get them to hold together and I fortunately found the wooden ones instead.

Interior

I didn't change much on the interior of this one from the other wooden one. In the photo below, the light bulb is jutting more in to the interior than it does in the final version.

Finishing Details

At this point, it was nearing completion and I was on a roll. So no pictures of the last few steps, sorry. I will tell you the drama of the light and casing, however. I had the auto bulb already, but had no idea how to adapt the casing from my previous TARDIS. On that one, I used a little bit of card stock to make a small box for it. For this one, I struggled for days trying to figure out how to replicate that one piece while making it sturdy enough to match the rest of the box. Then my sister came over to paint. She happened to have a mini canvas in her kit which I immediately seized. So that is what you see on the top of this TARDIS.

I also replaced the latch system. My other sister, who owns TARDIS 2, says the latch system on hers sticks and makes it hard to open. And by latch system, I mean a small piece of wood that holds the box shut with pressure. For this one, I upgraded the latch to a brass latch that matches the hinges. I also find some mini hooks which allowed me to put more hooks in the box (6 small rather than 2 large). With a box like this, some of the latch screws may poke in to the interior of the box. I used my trusty Dremel to file down the ends for safety and painted over them.

And without further ado, here it is! Okay, one more further ado. Remember my complaint about the color not photographing well? These pictures are all of the same box. That's what you get when you try to photograph something with a chameleon circuit, working or not.

The Door Panel

The Top

New Latch

The Back

The Interior

So What's Next?

Well, at the moment, house cleaning, home schooling, and completing my school projects. In terms of a TARDIS 4.0, doing one with a beacon that lights up, maybe adding the iconic sound when you open the door, installing glass in the windows and painting the back of the door panels like the back of the actual TARDIS doors, maybe making a plinth. Who knows? Coincidentally, all three of my TARDIS projects have been completed in April, so maybe by next April I'll have a TARDIS 4.0 tutorial up for you. Thanks for reading.

Making a TARDIS Jewelry Box or Key Chest

Finished TARDIS Wooden Box

This TARDIS project was started when I did the gift box. I really wanted to do one that was a little more sturdy and practical. Using a store-bought wooden box as a base, I added front panels, a beacon, and an interior to look like the TARDIS. This box serves as a jewelry box or key chest with hooks on the interior.

Materials:

• Store-bought wooden box measuring about 7 1/4" x 4 1/4" (I got mine from Hobby Lobby for around $3 and used a coupon on it- super cheap!)

• Wood Filler
• Blue Acrylic Craft Paint ( I used Americana's True Blue, but I think it looks way too bright in some lighting)
• Metallic Copper Acrylic Craft Paint
• Light Bulb- Fortunately my husband was changing a headlight this weekend, so I got an awesome-looking bulb. If you don't want to rip out your headlights, you can always use a nightlight bulb or see my other TARDIS for how to use a miniature hand sanitizer cap. 
• Card Stock
• Photo Paper
• Vellum
• Plastic Wrap, approx. 2" x 3"
• Black Trash Bag Piece, approx. 2" x 3"
• Brass Cup Hooks x 2

Preparing to Fill

Wood Filler Applied

 

 

 

 

Sanding

 

  1. Prepare the box. 

 I grabbed the last box the craft store had in stock and it had a big crack down the middle of the lid. Had it been in the center, I would have incorporated it to the design as the seam between the TARDIS's doors. However, it was just enough off center to be useless. So my first order of business was filling and sanding it.

Finer Sanding

 2. Paint it Blue!

Perhaps I got a little ahead of myself on this step. What I did: painted the box blue, then drilled the hole for the beacon/light bulb. What I recommend: drill first, paint later, then add bulb. 

I also painted a whole sheet (8.5 x 11") of card stock to use as the panels. If you use this method instead of painting after assembly, I'd recommend painting parallel to the short edges of the paper instead of the long. The "paint grain" would better match the wood grain of the box.

5p Marks the Spot

 3. Drill a Hole for the Beacon. 

The headlight bulb I used was about 3/4" in diameter. I used a coin to mark the hole for drilling (and the coin I found happened to be 5p- pretty neat!) The picture at right also shows how hard it is to accurately represent this blue on screen.

Clamped in Place

It fits!

I used a large drill bit to make the hole, then a Dremel tool to widen it. See the big scratch? This is why you should paint AFTER you use the power tools. No worries, I was able to touch it up with a little paint. After installing the beacon, I glued it in place with a hot glue gun.

TARDIS Interior

 4. Paint the Interior. 

I happened to have a great copper patio paint on hand, so I used that for the interior of my TARDIS. Being slightly metallic, it helped ease the transition between wooden exterior and the photo I'm using on the large panels on the interior. You could use the photo on every surface, but I decided the paint would be easier and look much cleaner.

Photo Printed and Ready to Cut

5. Install the Interior Photo. 

I printed a picture of the TARDIS's interior (which I found at Geek Syndicate) using my color printer and photo paper. I cut two large pieces to fit the inside of the lid and the back of the box.  Then I glued them in place.

TARDIS Interior Glued in Place

Using the Template

6. Cut the Panels from the Painted Card Stock. 

Like my other TARDIS project, I used multiple layers of card stock to achieve the wood panel look. I also used the same cutting template. The lower layer had the door panels and window openings removed from it. The upper layer is just a frame on three sides. Since this TARDIS has only one decorated side, I only cut one set of door panels.

Door Panels Almost Cut

I glued a small rectangle of plastic wrap and a small rectangle of black plastic bag to the reverse side of the top two openings (see my other TARDIS for more detail) to serve as the window "glass." I glued the 2 panels onto the front of the box, smoothing the wrinkles with my finger.

 7. Make the Beacon Casing. 

Unlike the other TARDIS, I added a casing to the beacon on this one. I drew a grid on the back of the excess painted card stock. In the center is the hole for the light bulb surrounded by a square. Then I added a 1/4" border, 1/4" for the casing's sides, and rounded tabs to attach it to the top of the TARDIS. The small side tabs are folded in and glued. The round tabs are trimmed and folded under.

 

Grid for Casing

All Cut Out

Using Paper Clips to Glue the Side Tabs in Place

Both Sides Clamped in Place

Casing Box as Viewed from the Bottom

Finished Casing

 8. Attach the Beacon Casing. 

I folded the round tabs under and glued the casing in place. It was a perfect fit. Yay!

9. Attach the Window Frames and Signs.

Window Frames are Too Small

At this step I ran into a little bit of a problem. The template I used had already been used for my other project. Over the course of having 5 panels cut from it, the openings had been widened. Which meant the window frames were too small to cover the window openings (see picture at right). 

Cutting the Double Frames

A Fully Framed Window with Frosted Panels

 Luckily I had a leftover set of window frames from the other TARDIS, so I cut a little larger than the existing frames and cut out the mullions altogether. Then I glued frosted panels made from small pieces of vellum to the wrong side of the frame with mullions. Next I glued the larger frame to the mullioned frame and glued them in place on the TARDIS.

I also glued on the iconic signs: "Police Public Call Box", "Pull to Open", and the "St. Johns Ambulance" Medallion (since this is the 11th doctor's TARDIS). For more information on these signs, check out my other TARDIS entry.

 Almost done! The process went by much faster this time since I wasn't multiplying by 4.

  10. Install the Hooks. 

The Interior of the TARDIS

Perfect for Keys or Jewelry

I used 2 brass hooks for the interior of my box. Of course you could use more and mount them to the back, but I chose to mount mine at the top. Since the threaded ends of the hooks were slightly longer than my box top was wide, I installed them directly under the beacon casing. The casing hid the ends protruding out the top. (The above pictures were in direct sun, so the blue looks REALLY bright).

 ...And it's done!

 
I think the next step is making one completely out of wood with real glass panels, but for now I'm going to enjoy my key box as is. (Or give it to someone for a birthday present, which is more likely).