First, I filled in any knot holes with epoxy.

With all the knot holes filled, I could rip the boards to width.

Next, I cut all the pieces to length.

With all 4 pieces cut out, I began laying out the half lap joints and the curved top.

Then I took the pieces to the bandsaw to cut everything out.

I fine tuned all the joints with a chisel and then I did a dry test fit.

I also sanded the inside faces of each piece as it was much easier to do this now rather than later when the box is assembled.

Next, I applied some masking tape to the inside corners in order to catch any squeeze out from the glue. This step saves a lot of time later on. Then I applied glue to all the surfaces in contact and clamped it all together.

I made sure to check for square. 

Next, I took my router and routed a groove along the entire inside bottom edge.

I then cut a piece of thin plywood to size that would sit flush in the groove I just routed in.

Next, I marked out the locations for the brass rods.

Then, I could drill holes for the brass rods over at the drill press.

Then I applied some epoxy to each brass rod and hammered them into the holes.

While the epoxy on the brass rods cured, I glued and brad nailed the bottom panel in place.

Then I sanded everything smooth.

For a finish, I used wipe on poly. I really like this finish because it's incredibly simple to apply. 

And just like that, it was finished!