This gorgeous white-washed oak table was unique and challenging build due to its sleek legs and uniquely beveled skirt. Were this table made from cheap "engineered wood" at one of those supposed "high end" furniture stores, then the construction would not be as difficult because fake, I mean "engineered" wood, doesn't move the way real wood does as it acclimates year round to the changes in seasons and ambient humidity. In a nutshell, the top wants to expand and contract along the width of the boards and may see upwards of a 3/16 inch fluctuation. So the top has to essentially "float" freely from the skirt.
The reveal around the table between the skirt and the top is there because the table was built with a floating table top assembly, meaning the top is able to expand and contract freely from the skirt. If the skirt were mounted permanently and sanded flush, tight to the edge of the top, it would absolutely tear the table apart, creating large gaps throughout the seams of the table top. We've seen this happen, and it's fairly extreme.
A normal skirt assembly, where you have a vertical 3" tall skirt wrapped around the table is also a floating assembly. We use these clips called Z-clips that clamp the skirt to the underside of the table but allow for movement. In the case of this table however, just doing a z clip or even a modified or larger Z-clip would not be strong enough to hold that very large and sharply angled skirt tight to the table, and to create an assembly that would support and lock in the legs. And it certainly wouldn't have been strong enough to ensure the skirt stayed even with the edge of the table.
If you look on the underside of this table, it has cross pieces connecting the skirts. These are unique to the assembly of this table. The cross braces keep everything held exactly how we want them to sit, free from pivoting at all.
This is essentially the only responsible way we could imagine to build this table out of real hardwood, which expands and contracts forever with the seasons. Your reveal will change very slightly with the seasons, but always stay uniform. A table made out of engineered wood that is more stable than real wood, and they are able to get away with things that you shouldn't be able to do with wood. Also, their material is lighter and thinner, so they probably have less concerns with stability and support for the top and leg assembly. The reveal we created is uniform all the way around, and will ensure that no matter what is going on with the top, it will look uniform and stay flat.
The table is heavy, solid as a rock, and built to last from thick solid oak, while maintaining a polished and contemporary feel.The table expands 20" on either side. Our patent pending extension system rigidly supports the heavy oak boards like no other system can. These were great clients to work with. The table now lives in a water front home in South Dartmouth, MA.