Ideally you have the length of material to use single lengths of board whenever you're doing a waterfall so that the grain patter can continue over the edge. It's a subtle thing, but when you don't do it, there is something subconsciously off about the piece. This reclaimed oak bart top was a careful build. We went out first to measure and template.
We don't typically take on smaller projects like this, but the client was a designer with whom we have worked in the past and designers and design professionals always get special treatment at Cannon Hill Woodworking. This reclaimed hemlock barn siding mirror frame came from real old barn siding. We're talking nail holes, dirt, dust, flaking and peeling paint, flimsy old material. Cannon Hill's Sam O'leary built a frame within the frame, and shelves, that we clad in the hemlock.
Big is beautiful! At Cannon Hill Woodworking we have some big tables under our belt. Building big our of reclaimed oak is an art in an of itself. You need to have the strength and stamina to mill all of this lumber that is dirty, nail ridden, and twisted. Each board in this top weighs around 100 pounds so it takes more manpower to do every step of the process. But at the end, the client is still expecting his quality craftsmanship, joinery, and finish. So just because it's big doesn't mean you can cut any corners in the build and finish process.
This reclaimed oak table was delivered to the client the day of their move to Pittsburgh (yes we timed it that way). We built the base so that it could come apart in the pieces and be easier to load into the truck. The top is a 10' reclaimed oak top, with a Rubio oil "pure" finish. The top has 3" breadboard ends on each side, which are done in a responsible way so that they allow for the expansion and contraction of the wood throughout the year, and doesn't restrict it in any way, which caused warping over time.
This reclaimed oak table now lives in a sunny kitchen overlooking a swimming pool in the town of Harwich Port. The sunlight brings out every but of character in the real reclaimed wood top. The client came to us thinking she wanted a walnut dining table. When she was able to come to our Seaport showroom she fell in love not only with the reclaimed oak, but also with the idea that we can make pedestal bases custom and by hand. We typically start with 3 or 4 hand drawn designs and let the client mix or match, or change them, in any way they like.
This table is dark, but not quite as dark as the photos make it out to look. The stain is called "Ebony" which is a dark, dark brown and the top coat is an oil-based-urethane which gives it a little more of a satin sheen. This is a fairly straightforward, custom "modern farmhouse" table set. This style is becoming increasingly popular (trust us, we know!). It's something about the combination of the old wood, with all it's incredible character, and the modern look of metal legs, that works really well to make this reclaimed oak table modern, but not tacky, and classic, but not boring.
This reclaimed oak table is attached directly to the kitchen island in this newly renovated Charlestown condominium. The idea behind the design is that the table can remain shorter, so that it doesn't encroach upon the doorway entry to the condo, but that there is more room for seating. The table is attached to a ledger that sits invisible between the skirts and is fastened sturdily to the island.
This is to date the largest table we've made. Fifteen feet of reclaimed oak. The top weighs over five hundred pounds! It took four of us to carry it into the home from the truck and 8 of us to flip it once we'd assembled the base. The barn that the client built in Ipswich is incredible- the exposed timber framing was reclaimed from a barn in Canada and shipped here. This table was longer than any reclaimed oak board we could get our hands on so it has staggered seams. For aesthetic, it has bowties and dowels throughout.
The clients are remodeling their own home in Natick. They've taken on the remodel as a passion project and wanted a table that fit perfectly into their new dining space that could seat two extra people without getting any longer. The solution was to go wider, so that two can comfortably feet on each end of this wide reclaimed oak dining table.
Th design for this reclaimed oak kitchen island base began as a walnut island with an I/X trestle base. We did a computer spec drawing for the clients when they first reached out because they wanted to achieve three specific design and function points: the I/X trestle, the bench had to tuck all the way in (so the bench height had to line up with the thinnest point on the trestle base, and they wanted an extension for stool seats on the ends. All of these points were achievable, but it required some careful planning on our part.