Okay, so I had this crazy idea to build a… well, I’m not even sure what to call it. A decorative… thing? It involved bending plywood, which I’ve never done before, and using these “keel” shapes like in a boat. And “dancing” because, well, I wanted it to look kinda wavy and organic. I had some leftover timber, so I figured, why not?

First, I grabbed a sheet of thin plywood. I think it was like, 1/4 inch or something? I marked out the basic shape I wanted – think long, skinny triangles, but curvy, like a really stretched-out S. I used a jigsaw to cut them out. Man, that plywood dust gets everywhere.

• Plywood – thin stuff, easy to bend.
• Jigsaw – for cutting the curvy shapes.
• Timber – for the “keel” pieces. I had some scrap 2x4s.
• Sandpaper-lots of it

Bending Time.

Next, I use my sandpaper to smooth the keel and * is so important.

Now for the bending. I’d read somewhere that you could soak plywood in water to make it more flexible. So I filled up my bathtub (my wife was thrilled, let me tell you) and let those plywood pieces soak for a good few hours. I even threw in some old towels to weigh them down.

While that was happening, I cut the timber into smaller pieces, shaping them into those keel-like supports. I just kinda eyeballed it, making them slightly curved on one side. I’m not a carpenter, okay? I sanded those down too, because splinters are nobody’s friend.

Once the plywood was good and soggy, I carefully started bending it. It was… surprisingly easy? I clamped the wet plywood to the timber keels, using a bunch of those spring clamps. It looked like some weird wooden sea monster in my garage.

Then came the waiting. I left the whole thing clamped up for, like, two days. I kept spraying it with water every now and then, just to keep it damp. Patience is not my strong suit, but I didn’t want to rush it and have the plywood crack.

Finally Result!

Finally, I unclamped everything. And… it worked! Mostly. The plywood had held the curve, and the timber keels gave it some structure. It was definitely… unique. I sanded down some rough edges, and I’m still trying to figure out what to do with it. Maybe hang it on the wall? Turn it into a… I don’t know, a really weird shelf? It’s definitely a conversation starter, though.

So, yeah, that was my adventure in bending plywood and making… something. It was messy, a bit frustrating, but kinda cool in the end. I might try it again sometime, maybe with a more… defined plan next time. Or maybe not. We’ll see!