
Tablelegs.com
 We do most of our work from end-to-end. We dismantle some buildings, build great custom tables (among everything else), finish them in our shop, and then ship 'em whole to the customer. The other day, we had a customer order a 36 by 77 inch white oak table top that was 1 inch thick. They didn't want the legs, just the top. We got chatting a bit and it turns out that they ordered their base from fellow woodworking company called Classic Designs by Matthew Burak or TableLegs.com
 This made a lot of sense to us. Our customers, Debbie and Ron, specifically wanted painted turned legs. It seems silly to paint over great old wood. In addition, it's a pretty challenging to turn old legs and maintain an interesting old look. Some of the absolutely stunning beauty of our reclaimed wood is, as they say, "only skin deep." As you cut into the wood to turn it, you loose the patina, original woodworker marks, and other character that really make it interesting. So why not, purchase a table base from tablelegs.com and then purchase the top from Antique Woodworks.
 Antique Woodworks crafted the white oak tabletop from old 2-by-8 floor joists from an old 1880s granary. This particular granary has provided a lot of splendid wood for many of our furniture projects lately. Anyway, we removed what square nails we could, then straightlined and planed the boards to just the right size -- dinging our share of blades in the the process. But such is the game with the old wood. With just the right amount of sanding, the beautiful color, nice tight grains, and character all come to life beautifully. Finally, we finished the top with a coat of Rubio Monocoat. Debbie and Ron worked carefully to create distressed, antiqued finish for their tablelegs.com table base. Then, ordered a completed white oak table top from us. They picked up the top and then assembled the whole thing together. It was a nice do-it-yourself project with great results. They did a really nice job. With a set of pictures from the Debbie, we also got the feedback we so love to hear, "It turned out just like we thought it wood. We love it. Thanks so much for being patient with us through the process of making decisions."
Labels: farm tables
Three Tables
A conference room table, a side table, and a farm table all made from reclaimed wood from a barn, a log cabin, and a granary. It's amazing what this old wood has to say when put the right hands. A more complete set of pictures is posted in this photo album.  The first is a white oak farm table that has now found a new home in Wisconsin. The legs are from the first row of timbers from an old log cabin. They were hand-hewn on 2 sides and rounded, hewn-pealed on the other two sides. The end-grain of the legs comes through the table top, while the bolts to the supports are capped over with original log cabin pegs. The legs are accented with an old rusty iron silo bands. The triangular feet were designed to go along with the many other triangles on the bench and fireplace mantel. The tabletop itself was made from old floor joists from a granary. The joists had been planed and sanded just enough to make things smooth, but also give nice color. And the client says.... "Perfect! Heavy enough too - sheesh!" (yes, it probably was near 400 pounds.)  The second table is quite a departure from our typical tables -- much more formal, much more refined. That comes with good reason. This Rock Elm table was created by a highly skilled woodworker -- Randy Griffin from Greenfield, Indiana which is just outside Indianapolis. Going on it's 3rd life, it's hard to imagine that this wood started out it's second as a gray old log cabin. Randy says, "The end grain is really stunning, and I designed that in where I could... I would like to use the rock elm again... it is beautiful." The clean light colored straight grains on the surface accented with a more plain sawn stretcher. Things worked out beautifully with this one. Finally, we come to one of my favorite tables. This  four-by-nine foot conference room table with a farm style flair has a wonderful old white oak plank top accented with a original bolts and unique, exposed end-grain pedestals. Each pedestal was created by combining four 7x7 beams together into a single post. This created a much more massive scale and let us create this great end-grain panel on the tabletop. The individual beams were heavily sanded so that they would blend nicely with one another, yet retain some circle saw marks and some original flowing shape from the tree. The posts demonstrate the great variance colors that come naturally on the old white oak. And here's what the client says, "I love the table! It is exactly what I envisioned and what I wanted.It was a challenge getting it off the delivery truck but we did it.... Thanks for creating such a beautiful piece." More information on this table is available in the farm tables section of the site. Labels: farm tables
4x11 Oak Farm Table
 What a thing of beauty! A 4-foot by 11-foot white oak harvest table. This one will seat about 14 people comfortably at your next holiday party. (This table is heavy enough, those 14 people could probably dance on it too). For the tabletop, we started out with 12x12x23 foot hand hewn white oak beams from an old 1800s vintage granary in Glencoe, Minnesota. Yes, 12x12x23. These beams were less than perfect  -- rounded edges, some heavily rotten faces, tapering, and other challenges. We skinned the beams to get 2.5" thick boards with the best patina. Then, we then slowly planned each board about a half-a-dozen times to get just the right look -- functionally smooth, but with shadows of old hand hewn marks, cracks, and bug trails. You'll notice the "live" edges with the rounding and knots that were once just under the bark of the tree. The base is made from rafter beams from an old log barn in Ellsworth, Wisconsin. They turned out to be just the right size to balance out the massive table top. Original hand hewn marks were sanded down a great deal, but left  in tact for the added character. Go ahead and browse through the complete set of pictures. (including ones in a messy finishing booth and more original granary pics). Note, the pictures were taken while the table was still on the cart to move this 500 pounder around! Labels: farm tables
Reclaimed Wood Tables
 There's just something about these tables that drives the impulse to touch and feel. If you see it; you'll want to touch it. (kinda like at the museum, but here you can get away with it.) I'm not sure if it's the genuine authenticity, the history, or just the look, but none-the-less, it draws people in. The one shown was made from hand hewn beams from an 1870's Wisconsin log cabin. It's a great piece. Check 'em out on the website for more information. We have several varieties in the works. Labels: farm tables

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Millwork Facilities in Gaylord, Minnesota (MN) and Office located in Norwood, Minnesota (MN)
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Farm Table, Wood Countertops, Fireplace Mantels, Antique Wood Flooring, Harvest Table
Contact us at: 888-350-4790 or info@antiquewoodworks.com
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