Lidded Box Intro

My sister has asked me to make a box for her to hold scrip gift cards. She manages scrip sales for the church she attends and her current plastic box is not holding up well. I’m going to walk through the process I’m using to design and make a box for her.

The size of the gift cards are the same as a credit card, 2-1/8″ x 3-3/8″. Her requirements are that the box have dividers between three or four rows of cards; a hinged, latchable lid; and a carrying handle.

I modeled the box in SketchUp (I’m still using the free SU Make 2017, despite their attempts to get me to upgrade to a paid version). I modeled groups of gift cards to make sure they would fit, modeling the rows 1/8″ wider to ensure easy insertion and removal. For joinery I’m using box joints, which are relatively easy to make and very strong. The top and bottom fit in grooves in the box sides. Once the model was complete, I started looking for hardware.

The hardware took a while to find. I had a difficult time finding items that fit the requirements, were small enough to fit the design, all match in finish, and be reasonably priced. After over an hour of searching, I found everything I was looking for on the Lee Valley website. I changed gears several times; for example, I was initially looking for quadrant hinges, but gave up on those due to cost and quality issues (and the hassle of installation). I think what I settled on fits the requirements well, but I won’t know for sure until the parts are in hand. Below are images of my design and the hardware.

I’m debating how deep to get into the construction of the box until I get the hardware. It’s always best to have your hardware in hand prior to making sawdust, but this is pretty straightforward (or so it seems…). I also need to figure out what wood I’m going to use. The top, bottom, and dividers are plywood, so there is very little solid lumber involved. I’ll probably go with walnut or cherry, but it will also depend on what plywood I use for the top and bottom; I want the sides to complement the large exposed plywood areas.

I don’t have a video at the moment; things have been busy as we are prepping to move my father-in-law to an assisted living apartment and sell the house he’s been in for over 35 years…