After discussing a design idea I had with my client and getting his blessing on it, I cut out some diamond shaped inlay pieces from cherry and cut the recesses for them in the face of the front frieze board. If you look closely you can see the white penciled layout lines indicating the location of the moldings and center line for the cherry inlays.

    After applying a little glue, I tapped the diamonds in with a soft-faced hammer. The fit was perfect!
    Although these appear small, they really stand out in the finished mantle. This small feature not only tends to pull the viewer's eye to the center of the mantle, but I think it adds something special to it too. This is a case where simple is effective.

    I mitered the inside corners of both pilasters. Before applying the glue, I ran a piece of clear packing tape down the back of the part that's clamped to the bench and left half of the tape for the other part. Next, I carefully placed the second piece against the edge of the first and pressed down to make the tape stick. Then I folded the two pieces up and used a piece of tape to hold them until I could add the clamps.

    The clamps are on and left to dry before attaching the next piece of the pilaster.

    To complete the pilasters, I attached the outside piece using a simple butt joint and pocket hole screws.