It is essential to use dry, stable material when making your table or countertop. We use our furniture-grade wood to build the tabletop size by glueing boards together to achieve the width required. We use several approaches to flatten the surface depending on the size and species we are using.
Canadian-Grown Hardwood: Birch is the hardest wood we have available in bulk. The photo gallery will show you a few examples of our birch with and without live edge as well as with a clear or pigmented finish. We also have other species of Canadian-grown hardwoods and our inventory fluctuates. Here again, most tops are built at 2″ thick but we have done thicker.
Sizing & Design Considerations: If you are upgrading an existing piece of furniture you will know the size you need. If you are ordering a table for a new space we will walk you through the design decisions to ensure maximum seating and flow of the room. For kitchen islands, we have done many irregular shapes as well as mitered horseshoes and L shapes. We do recommend only using top-mount sinks on our wood vanities and countertops, as exposing the end grain to a high-traffic under-mount sink is hard on the wood and requires regular maintenance.
Design Tips: Whether it’s a folding countertop for a Tiny House, a table for a boardroom or even a bartop for a restaurant; the room must work. Planning how the space will work for you and with the rest of your furniture is key. Some things to think about are the size of your chairs, how many people are in your family, and your maximum seating for when you entertain. It is important to keep table legs inset from the perimeter of a table at least 4″ to avoid stubbing your toe. We often suggest mapping your floor plan and existing furniture to ensure the room is comfortable to use. You can do this yourself or we can assist.
Notes on Finish Options: We use OSMO, which is an oil-based, oil-penetrating matte finish. We can also apply urethane with a sheen of your choice. We have also done a lot of epoxy coatings. The benefit of using OSMO is that if it’s ever necessary to refinish the top, OSMO can be refinished in situ, whereas urethane needs to return to the shop for a professional refinishing. OSMO also allows for a colour change pretty easily if your tastes change a few years down the road.
Legs & Bases:
We can create any style of table legs in wood or have them fabricated in steel. Design Tip: Remember unless it is an open-concept space, once the chairs are pushed in at the table or people are seated at the table we don’t often see an elaborate leg design. For your budget, a simple leg design is best.
Benches:
Many of our clients choose to have us build one or two matching benches with their custom table. This can save space in your floor plan as well as increase seating for your dinner parties.