Tansu Cabinet
Tansu is the name assigned by the Japanese to a family of cabinets that, over centuries, were designed to serve specific functions. The cabinets you see here are Kaidan-Dansu, meaning “stepped” cabinets. That was their main function — to serve as stairs to a lofted area of the home. With living space in short supply, the Japanese employed the shells of the stairs for additional purposes.
The main case provides a lot of storage options. A set of drawers that are nestled in the lower portion of the case are housed next to a hinged door. And above those is a wide compartment that’s hidden behind a set of sliding doors.
The stepped case is the ultimate in flexibility. With no back to quarantine its use, and decorative hardware on both sides, it’s ready to be displayed in any manner you wish.
Ash is the wood of choice for this project. The joinery is a simple, but strong, oversized box joint that’s pinned with hardwood dowels to strengthen the joint. Making those massive box joints would be a back-breaker at the table saw, so let’s not do that. Turn the page to get the details on how to make and assemble these cases, without having to make an appointment with the chiropractor.
Building the MAIN CASE
To get the ball rolling on this project, I started with the main case. It’s divided into four compartments, two for drawers, and two that house doors.
As you see above, tongue and groove joinery connects the dividers together and binds them to the case. The case parts are joined to each
