Woodworker's 'Quick Weekend Project' Enters Eighth Month, Third Design Revision

What began in June as a 'quick weekend project' — a simple floating shelf for the bathroom — has entered its eighth month of active construction in the workshop of hobbyist woodworker Garrett Sills, who acknowledged Tuesday that the project has undergone three complete design revisions and now bears 'essentially no resemblance to a shelf.' 'The original plan was a piece of pine, three screws, and a French cleat,' Sills said, standing beside a partially assembled structure that his wife has identified as 'a credenza, or possibly a sideboard — either way, it's not going in the bathroom.' The first revision occurred in July, when Sills decided that pine was 'not worthy of the space' and re-milled the project in white oak. The second revision, in September, added through-mortise-and-tenon joinery after Sills watched a Paul Sellers video and determined that 'pocket screws are for quitters.' The third and current revision, begun in November, incorporates hand-cut dovetailed drawers, a frame-and-panel back, and an ebony inlay detail that Sills describes as 'subtle but important' and his wife describes as 'invisible and adding three weeks.' 'Every project teaches you something,' Sills said, hand-paring a dovetail pin with a chisel he sharpened four times during the conversation. 'This one has taught me that I don't know how to estimate time, materials, or the structural requirements of a bathroom shelf.' The project's budget has expanded from $35 (original pine shelf) to approximately $1,100 (current white oak interpretive furniture piece). Sills notes that the cost per linear foot is 'competitive with custom furniture, if you don't count the 400 hours of labor.' His wife has purchased a shelf from IKEA. It is currently installed in the bathroom and functioning as intended. Sills has described it as 'temporary.'