In this article, I'm going to show you how I made this using a chunk of scrap walnut I had laying in the shop. Overall, this was a pretty simple project that I believe any level of woodworker/maker can make!
Check out the full build video below!
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STEP 1: Prepping lumber
So as I was digging through my stash of offcuts and scraps, I found this piece of 8/4 walnut with a giant crack through it, which made it pretty much useless for anything else I was going to make. So I decided to crosscut it into two smaller pieces, clean up the surfaces, and then glue them together to make one thick chunk.
step 2: pour epoxy
Once the glue has dried, I removed the clamps. I will use epoxy to fill in the crack, but first I used some tape to cover up the cracks on the side of the piece so the epoxy won't ooze out. I added some green pigment to the epoxy. This is a dark green, which I always find goes really well with walnut, especially as an accent. The tone seems to compliment the dark walnut really well, it's bright enough to still stand out, but also dark enough not to distract from the natural colors and patterns of the walnut.
step 3: Clean up the epoxy
After waiting about 10 hours, I came back out to clean up the epoxy. The waiting period for curing is different depending on the epoxy, so make sure to check the manufacturer's website. It doesn't need to be a full cure to start cleaning it up, it just needs to be hard. After removing the tape, I ran the workpiece through the planer to clean up all the overflow epoxy on the surface, and then I ran it through the table saw to clean up the ends.
STEP 4: tennis ball inlays
Once I have the block of wood cut to its final size, it's time to start cutting bevels. I basically just set the blade at different angles, alternating between 45, 60, and 70 degrees. Then with a combination of a miter gauge and a tapering jig, I added compound bevels all around the piece. I just did whatever I thought looked good.
STEP 5: making template
Once I've cut the block of wood to its final shape, I traced the outline of the top surface on to a piece of 1/4" MDF. Then I took measurements of my iPhone, Airpods, Apple Pencil, and some pens to start laying out the pockets. To cut the pockets, I first drilled a hole using my Forstner bit in each of the pockets. This will allow me to insert the blade of the jigsaw. Then I proceeded with cutting out the pockets. These were small pockets, so be sure to stay within the layout lines, because it'll be easy to come back with a sandpaper to smooth out any jagged edges.
STEP 6: cut out pockets
Alright, once the template was done, I used a couple pieces of carpet tape to tape the template to the workpiece. I first used Forstner bits of different sizes to remove the bulk of the material from the block. Then I used a 1/2" bit, along with my router, to smooth out the pockets.
I didn't like the straight bottom corners left by the straight bit, so I used a tray and bowl bit to smooth out the bottom corners of the two shallower pockets. Finally, once the pockets were done, I took my workpiece back over to the drill press to cut a hole for storing my Apple Pencil.
step 7: cutouts for cables
The last cutting operation is to make the slots for passing the charging cable through. I took a measurement of the charging cable, and then for each pocket, I would drill two holes and then connect them to make the slot that will hold the tip of the cable. Then, I used a large Forstner bit and a router bit to cut the pocket and slots to allow the cables exit from the back of the organizer.
step 8: finish
And that's pretty much it! Now just have to give the piece a good sanding around the outside and inside each of the pockets. I sanded all the way up to 220 grit. Then I applied a few layers of poly on top to protect it.
The last thing I added, before inserting the cables, were a couple of rubber feet on the bottom to keep the part from slipping on the table.
Hope you guys enjoyed the build and the video!