Be sure to come visit my display at the Western Design Conference in Jackson WY. September 10 through 12. I will be displaying a roll top cumputer desk that will have some very interesting features. Hope to see you there.
Summer is here in the Teton Valley. A beautiful place to be. It’s not to early, however, to start preparing for fall and more time indoors and your furniture needs. Bench made, hand crafted furniture takes a little time but it’s well worth it. The entire western region is not to far to deliver furniture. Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, it doesn’t matter. Give us a call.
Why all the fuss about quarter sawn? To use the quarter sawn method when cutting a cherry or walnut log would produce boards that are actually rather boring and not distinctive at all to look at. Plain sawn is the best way to cut these logs in order to best display the grain in these woods. The down side to using this method to cut the log is that the boards will shrink and swell a lot more and are more susceptible to warping and cracking. They are still beautiful woods for furniture making though. When oak is quarter sawn, however, one gets a very distinctive ray flake effect that is unique only to oak. You see a lot of antiques made of quarter sawn oak in my opinion because this method of cutting oak logs produces a much more stable board and as a result the furniture simply lasts longer. Iindefinitely actually. I love the look of quarter sawn oak but I really like the fact that quarter sawn, being so stable, is ideal for furniture made for clients in Idaho, Montana, Colorado and Wyoming where the climates are dry.
White oak trivia
In the last blog I talked a little bit about the differences between white and red oak. Here’s a little trivia about white oak. Remember the ship called old Iron Sides? The USS Constitution? It’s hull was constructed of white oak. British cannon balls would bounce right of the sides. White oak was the naturl choise because white oak is more water resistant then red oak. White oak will resist decay and as a result is used in products like whiskey barrels and various types of water vessels. I remember Dad’s old hand crank ice cream maker being made of white oak.
In the next blog I will discuss some of the benefits of the technique of quarter sawing the oak log. In the dry climates of Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and Colorado Quarter swan wood has some tremendous benefits.
Spring is finally here in the Teton Valley, Jackson Hole area. It’s a great place to visit.
White Oak vs. Red Oak
Here are some bits of trivia about oak hardwood. There is basically two different types of oak. Red oak and white oak with subspecies within those two groups. The two oaks can be identified in the forest by the shape of the leaves. With a red oak leaf the lobes on the leaf come to a point and with the white oak leaf the lobes are rounded. White oak lumber is a light brown, tan in color and red oak has more of a red color. When milling and machining the two woods the white oak will throw off a somewhat sweet aroma and the red oak will have more of a sour smell. Oak does not grow here in the higher elevations of Idaho, Montana, Wyoming or Colorado. My personal preference is to get oak that is harvested from the timbers of the upper Midwest. The conditions and shorter growing seasons lend themselves to nice tight growth rings which makes for some very good oak hardwood.
If you are intersted in some really good Mission furniture and live in the Jackson Hole, Teton Valley area give me a call. No location in the country is too far and customers in Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and Colorado will find it just a hop, skip and a jump.
Spring in Teton Valley
Just when you think spring is here everything is white again. Not unusual for springtime in Idaho. This time of year 6″ of snow in the morning is normally gone by evening.
Stay tuned. In the next week or two I’ll be posting some information on the different types of oak hardwood and different joinery techniques that I use.
If you are visiting this site for the first time and are from outside of Idaho…………………..say Montana, Colorado, Wyoming or anywhere else in the west, don’t hesitate to give us a consideration for your furniture needs. I’ll not only make you a really nice piece of furniture, I can see to it that it get’s to you with tender loving care.
Thank you to Alta Realty
I would like to thank the kind folks at Alta Realty for the feature on their blog recently. In my opinion Alta Realty is one of the best realtors in the Teton Valley and the surrounding areas. My experiences with them have always been very positive and I can guarantee they will work their tails off for you.
If you are considering a home in the west or in the Teton Valley in particular consider this. One of the great advantages of mission designed furniture is the ability to use it in different decors. From modern to western to may others. It’s simple design lends itself to many design options.
Welcome
Welcome and thank you again for visiting my web site. From time to time I will post items to the blog concerning interesting aspects of mission furniture, working with solid wood and some of the techniques required to craft furniture with material that has a mind of its own.
Winter is slowly winding down here in Teton Valley and we are looking forward to another fabulous summer. Teton Valley is a great place to visit with lots to do and in close proximity to Jackson Hole, Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park. If you are in the area please look us up.