The Dovetail Blog — Fine Furniture Making Techniques

The dovetail joint is an ancient joinery technique, it’s used in Egyptian furniture dating from the first dynasty. It’s interesting to think about how this technique could be kept alive in the present day, apart from the benefits from its practical attributes of tensile strength. By using a reliable tried and tested technique it becomes easier to deconstruct it, to explore and push its boundaries from a solid foundation, and push this into the present day through creativity and experimentation.

A dovetail joint is called a dovetail because its shape resembles the fan-shaped tail of a dove. The joint consists of a series of interlocking tenons (pins) and mortises (tails) that are shaped like the spread-out tail feathers of a dove, providing a strong and visually appealing connection. The name reflects both the joint's shape and its functionality. To make a good dovetail joint it must be balanced, the strength versus the load it’s required to take, and hence it must look balanced, too strong and the elements will look bulky and out of place, too light and the potential...