another claro walnut slab coffee table

coffee table #2 for this month ... a fine cut off from the big slab that passed through here on its way
to miami. it had a pretty big crack, but it also had some incredible crotch figure.
in the end it finished out to be about 40" long x 64" wide.  short and sweet ...

before

it came off the right end of this one

tah dah ...

i still have one cut off left ... +/- 36 x 42 x 3" thick in the rough

smallish, but nice!

a live edge claro walnut table

here we go .. claro walnut table number .. hmmm .. looks like number 31 counting from the slide show.  this one took some back and forth to get the right slab, but in the end, the clients got a real beauty. 

it is the third slab we have used from log #41. the one above is 41 #2 and the one below, #3, we used for this table back in april.  we used 41 #4 for the bed headboard in the previous post .. 

click the photos to enlarge them.

these three log mates had incredibly similar grain, not unexpected, considering they are separated by only 3" and a couple of saw kerfs.  sam made the steel 'nakashima style' base above, and trevor, jim and i did the shaping, sanding, and scraping necessary to go from the raw slab to the finished table.

jim took this shot of trevor 'working on the table' and me with my drawknife and best tin tin hair impression.  you've likely seen these posts before so i'll just add a few process photos and then tell you that the table had to go into an elevator (it just fit, standing on end) and on up to the fourth floor of a new jersey apartment building ...we had to send a piece of cardboard to the clients so they could check that it would actually go into the elevator, which wasn't the biggest one.

the slab was +/- 48 x 102, and the elevator door was 42 x 84 .. we had inches to spare ...

close up of the (really heavy), nicely welded steel base.  fortunately, sam designed it to be knocked down into three pieces for shipping, the two verticals and the 1.75" solid steel bar that connected them ..

before

after .. not bad for a night time cell phone picture

open studio 2013

here we go again  ... vermont open studio weekend.  year 21.  i missed a few in the late 90's when we were building and moving, but typically, we're there, opening our doors and welcoming the public into our freshly cleaned workspaces.  it should be called spring cleaning weekend, at least here at dorset custom furniture.  click the photos to enlarge them ...

here we are, thursday at 5 pm.  looks ok, but, man, when you start to move stuff around, it is unbelievable the dust and clutter lurking, like everywhere.

 

 two truckloads to the dumpster and a totally full pickup for our wood scrap collector ... jim is tackling some seldom seen areas behind the shapers ...

 

 and here's trevor, at around 11 am, attacking the cnc area.  dan starts to freak out ... we'll never be done !

 sam and jen around 2:30, and the shop is starting to come together

 we set up the claro walnut table that recently returned from a gallery show in massachusetts.

 detail of the table above

 and will was excused from morning clean up to fit and hang the doors and install the hardware on this cool claro walnut credenza .. we got rid of a lot of small claro cutoffs making the veneers for this one. we did make him vacuum the office in the afternoon.

 

 and he'll have some banjo stuff to see.  this one is gone,  but there will be others, both finished and in process
6/22/2014 .. for photos of 20 more banjos visit will's website at seedersinstruments.com

and sam cleaned the metal shop ... the new metal shop construction will get under way soon.

 and all these pieces have some sam mosheim metalwork on them .. all for sale ... memorial day clearance sale in process ...

  and kit and penny viscusi are ready for visitors in the finish room ... actually, in the end, we were more organized, and we finished setting up earlier than usual.  come on by if you're in town .. saturday and sunday, 10-5 both days ... lots to see ...