Choosing a Wood
The eight woods we build with, from least to most expensive
The wood you choose sets the color, grain and feel of your piece, and it affects the price. We buy from suppliers in Southern Wisconsin, Washington State and Pennsylvania, and from our local supplier, who sources a lot of material from Missouri. Below is a general guide — the best way to decide is to see samples, so ask us about the woods you’re considering.
Related: custom dining tables
1. Ash
A light, creamy wood with bold, open grain similar to oak. Ash is hard and tough — it has long been used for tool handles and baseball bats — and it takes stains and oils well. It ambers (yellows) slightly over time.
2. Cherry
Smooth, fine grain with a warm pinkish-tan color when freshly cut. Cherry is moderately hard and is known for darkening noticeably to a rich reddish brown with exposure to light — most of that change happens in the first months.
3. Maple
Pale and fine-grained, with a clean, even look. Hard maple is one of the hardest domestic woods and stands up well to daily use. It ambers gently over time.
4. Oak
Strong, hard and familiar, with pronounced grain. White oak has a golden-brown tone; red oak leans pinkish. Oak is durable for tables that see a lot of use and ambers slightly over time.
5. Walnut
Rich chocolate-brown heartwood, sometimes with purple or gray streaks and lighter sapwood near the edges. Walnut is moderately hard and works beautifully. Unlike most woods, it tends to lighten slightly and turn warmer over the years.
Related: walnut Andreen Dining Table
6. Curly Maple
Maple with a rippled “tiger stripe” figure that shimmers as the light and viewing angle change. It shares maple’s pale color and gentle ambering; boards with strong, even figure are less common, which is why it costs more.
Related: curly maple Grabowski Coffee Table
7. Wenge
An imported African hardwood that is very dark brown, nearly black, with fine lighter streaks. Wenge is very hard and heavy. It is coarse-textured and splintery to work, which adds to its cost.
8. Zebrawood
An imported African hardwood with dramatic dark stripes on a light tan background. Zebrawood is hard, with interlocking grain that takes extra care to machine and finish. It can darken somewhat over time.
Live edge and natural character
Live edge tops keep the natural edge of the tree. We offer them for clients who want that look. Cracks, voids and soft spots are part of what makes live edge and figured wood beautiful. We stabilize them with inlays such as bowties, black-dyed epoxy, black CA glue for small cracks and pinholes, and thin CA glue to stiffen punky (soft) wood before we continue stabilizing it.
Wood moves
Our lumber is typically dried to 6–8% moisture. It acclimates in our shop before we start milling, and we build with your home in mind — accounting for the difference between our shop and where the piece will live — to minimize issues as it settles into its new home.
Wood is natural and keeps moving with humidity, temperature and the seasons. We walk every client through what to expect.
See these woods in our pieces
Our store shows each design with the woods it’s offered in. Want something different? Ask us.