Coffee and Cream Revisited

My cowhide and wenge Roorkee chair.

Last Christmas, I decided to make a Roorkee chair for my sister.  After having intended to construct this thing for months, I wound up rushing to get it done in time for Christmas.  Needless to say, I didn't get it done in time for her to receive it by Christmas day, but I did blog about it on Christmas.

I chose to make this chair as a Christmas present, because despite its refined look, it is a relatively simple build.  A determined hand tool user could make all of the wooden parts for this project in one day.  The other thing that makes this a great gift, is that this chair lends itself very well to modifications and creativity in design.  There are lots of different options that have been done to this chair, and there are lots of ways to try out things that haven't been done before.

Another artsy close up of a detail.

The day I mailed the chair, I was pleased to see that the Modern Woodworker's Association (MWA) had a contest sponsored by Gorilla Glue called the Last Minute Elf contest.  I figured this was the perfect entry, as it was a gift that was relatively easy to knock out, and it was most definitely as last-minute as you can get.

Wonder of wonders, this chair won the Best Overall Gift!  You can see photos of all the winning projects here.  I couldn't believe it, I have never won anything in a woodworking contest before.  I was extatic! 

The whole chair.

Due to a mixup at the USPS, the prize from the sponsor, Gorilla Glue, didn't arrive until today.  I was excited to open the box, as I had no idea what was in there.  It also didn't escape my notice the irony of winning a prize from Gorilla Glue for a project that uses no glue at all!

A box from Gorilla Glue!

I was astounded to see a "Gorilla Glue Toolbox," which is a cardboard box with samples of many of their products, along with a t-shirt, and a $200 gift card for Amazon!

The goodies inside.

I would like to extend a big thank you to the MWA for hosting this fun contest, thank you to the judges for being so kind to my project, thank you to my sister Janet for giving me the impression she likes the chair, and especially thank you to Gorilla Glue for the box of goodies.