This is the plans to make the heart shaped segmented piece that can be used as a filler medallion or a segment for a bowl or vase.
You will need a ½ plug cutter, ½ forstner bit, saw, and disc sander.
- Using contrasting colors of wood, cut two plugs plugs per heart.
- With the opposite color wood, cut a strip 1 inch thick by 1 ⅛ inch wide, by 2 inches long. Measure down ¾ inch and draw a line, measure 1 inch from side to side to get center of the block.
From the crossing point measure, 3/32 from each side to make the center line for the ½ in hole for the plugs.
- Drill first hole and insert the plug; try to match the grain direction.
- Drill second hole and insert second plug.
- Cut this piece off to just below the center of the plugs.
- Using the same wood as the plug, cut a triangle the size of the lower part of the two plugs, 1 inch thick and what ever length you want your heart to be. I used ¾ inches. You can draw it on the strip to get the correct angles you need and cut the triangles out.
From the crossing point measure, 3/32 from each side to make the center line for the ½ in hole for the plugs.
- With the flat stock cut 1 inch thick by 1 ¼ inches x 2 inches, cut the same angle as the triangle measuring off the upper portion. Glue the triangle to the left side to fit one of the blocks and let dry. Sand the point off to make a flat line for second half of the block and glue. Sand the 2 pieces upper and lower to get good clean fit sanding the lower to get the triangle to smoothly align the piece and glue the two halves together.
- Cut the piece square keeping the heart centered in the block.
Sand the 2 pieces upper and lower to get good clean fit sanding the lower to get the triangle to smoothly align the piece and glue the two halves together.
When using your heart insert as a segmented piece, leave it squared and cut the angles on the spacer pieces. For a segmented ring, I used 8 hearts and 8 spacer pieces, cutting the angles on spacers to 22 ½ degrees as you would on an 8 segmented ring.