Handpicked Lumber - A Visit to the Specialty Lumber Yard

After going through the project design and wood choices with our customers, a trip to our local specialty lumber yard is called for… come along with me!

A walk through the huge sliding double doors reveals stacks and stacks of wood organized by type, thickness, and quality. The first time you see the huge quantities of wood, you are overwhelmed by it all. The picture above is only one isle out of 7 or 8, it's impressive!

The exotic woods have their own room which displays some of the world's most beautiful hardwoods. It's really neat to see them all standing next to each other, each with their own unique colors and grain patterns.

An adjacent room displays stacks and stacks of premium American hardwoods. I ended up going home with some of the hard maple on the left.

A walk down this isle takes you past a lot of rough sawn lumber. Rough sawn lumber is lumber that has not been flattened, cut down to standard sizes, and sanded; it's usually right from the sawmill.

This piece of project inspiring black walnut is from the isle above. It is a beautiful find (too bad I didn't need it!). To give you an idea of the scale, it's about 2in thick 16in wide and about 12ft long.

A walk down the next isle over reveals even bigger pieces of wood. Some are over 6 inches thick! A big thick piece of mahogany from this isle would be great for a fire place mantel.

After walking around and picking out the wood for your project, it's off to purchase it and load it up.

Picking out lumber for your project at the specialty lumber yard is always an exciting time. This basic, but critical step helps so greatly in determining the character and feel of the final your product. Though it takes time to hand pick these specialty woods, our commitment to this step is one of the things that sets End Grain Studios apart.

Ring Around the Heartwood

The recipe box project, featured in the End Grain Studios gallery, touts a bold display of how heartwood and sapwood can create brilliant contrast.

You’ve all counted growth rings on a tree before (if not, I’m sorry to tell you that you’re missing a part of your childhood). The new growth of a tree creates the outer rings; which is called sapwood. In some cased it its a lighter color than the darker older rings called the heartwood.

The tree goes through a process to protect itself from decay. During this process the heartwood turns a darker color. For furniture makers, the contrasting colors between the sapwood and heartwood can be used as a valued visual feature.

Think about this: A tree gets chopped down, milled, and sent to End Grain Studios to be turned into a piece of art. The final product will incorporate a range of woods from the heartwood (maybe one hundred years old) to the fresh sapwood (maybe only a year old) and will now live in your and your childrens’ homes for hundreds of more years. How cool is that?

I'll Pass

Most families have pieces of furniture that get passed down. My father has a quality antique bed that my grandmother gave him. In my house we have a student desk and a dry sink that have been passed down.

Why do families pass down their heirlooms?

Pieces of furniture tell tales about your family history. They stand proud in your living rooms and bedrooms describing your lineage. By way of their stories we remember the people whose lives that piece of furniture has moved through.

Major retail stores vs. End Grain Studios: Whats the diff?

Where do you shop? The same places everyone else does right?

Let’s change that.

Major retail stores have done a great thing; they have brought furniture onto the market for low prices. For some situations this is good enough (college dorms come to mind).

What type of furniture do you want to “build your home" with?

Take the quiz below to find out!

1. What do you want your furniture to be made of?
a. Particle board with a vinyl or wood laminate
b. Solid woods like maple, ash, and walnut

2. How do you want the parts and pieces to be put together?
a. Thin metal screws
b. Solid wood joinery techniques that have been used since around 2,500 BC http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortise_and_tenon#History

3. How do you want your furniture to be protected?
a. Thin machine sprayed finish or even no finish at all
b. Durable hand applied finishes with multiple coats of the finest products available

Answers:
¡ʎɐpoʇ soıpnʇs uıɐɹb puǝ 11ɐɔ 'sɹǝʍsuɐ ǝɥʇ ɟo (ǝuo uǝʌǝ ɹo) 11ɐ oʇ ,q, pǝɹǝʍsuɐ noʎ ɟı

Feel free to tell us how you did, add you comments! And be sure to stop by http://www.endgrainstudios.com/