_The Design._--So far as the question of use is concerned, no problem
of design could be more definite than this one, since an umbrella
rack can have but one use. The only elements of beauty possible are
found in simplicity, proportion, and the general effectiveness of
the construction for meeting the demands of use. The drawing shows
four square, straight posts, squared at the ends, which are allowed
to project a little above the top to avoid a box-like effect. All the
joints are mortised except the division bars at the top. The cross
pieces at the base are made wider not only to conceal the drip pan but
to give a more stable appearance to the whole rack.
_Materials and Tools._--Oak is selected as perhaps the most appropriate
wood; but other woods, if the surroundings require it, may be used to
good advantage. Oak is one of the strongest and most durable of the
woods used for furniture and takes well a great variety of finish. It
is also quite easily obtained.
[Illustration: An umbrella stand]
The stock requirements are as follows: Four corner posts 1-1/4 × 1-1/4
× 27-1/2 inches; four top rails 1/2 × 1-1/4 × 9 inches; four base rails
7/8 × 3 × 9 inches; two division bars 1/4 × 1-1/4 × 9-1/4 inches; four
cleats 1/2 × 1/2 × 9 inches; and one board 1/2 × 7-1/2 × 7-1/2 inches
to support the pan.
The same tools in general will be required as in the previous
exercises, but it will be necessary to add a 1/4-inch bit, a 1/4 inch
chisel, a steel scraper, and two short clamps.
[Illustration: Details and dimensions for umbrella rack]
_Construction._--All the stock should be planed to size, scraped, and
sand-papered with the exception of the base board for the pan, since
that is hidden from view. The scraper corrects all slight unevenness of
surface and removes scratches and other blemishes. Care should be taken
in sand-papering to rub always with the grain of the wood and to avoid
rounding the corners. The corner posts should first be cut to proper
length and the tops and bottoms slightly chamfered. Mortises are then
to be located, bored, and chiselled up. The top and bottom rails should
be laid off and the tenons gauged and cut, care being taken not to have
them too long. The inside edges of the tenons have to be pared off
slightly, as illustrated in the drawing, to allow room for each when
they come together.
[Illustration: Top rail tenons]
[Illustration: Bottom rail tenons]
The next step is to assemble the parts, clamp them up, and test them
for accuracy. While these parts are in the clamps, measurements should
be taken for the cross pieces, which may then be made, allowing extra
length of 1/4 of an inch in each end for the tenons to enter the top
rails. These cross pieces are to be halved together at the centre, as
shown in the drawing. The base rails are designed to be thick enough
to take up all the space on the inside of the posts so as to hide the
corner, as illustrated in the sketch showing the bottom construction.
The next step is to assemble the parts for gluing. It is not necessary
to explain this process in detail, since it has already been thoroughly
explained in the general section on gluing. It is not necessary to glue
on the cleats on which the pan rests; they may be nailed in. When the
base is glued together measurements may be taken for the pan.