Let's Talk About Wood

I'm a woodworker. I love the feel, smell, and look of wood in my shop, and I love seeing beautiful pieces of furniture, made from beautiful pieces of wood, sitting in someone's home.

Today I'm going to show you some wonderful examples of the woodworker's art. Keep these in mind the next time you decide to purchase furniture for your home or someone else's.

First on the list is a piece by an old favorite of mine, Black Mountain Furniture. This is a Farm Table and Bench Set, which includes a Tapered Leg Farm Table with 2 matching Benches. It would look beautiful in so many homes here in Texas, and in millions of homes across the U.S., Mexico or Canada. It's not a formal dining room set, but I'm not really interested in formal dining, and neither are lots of other people these days. For me, this table with two benches is the perfect solution, the perfect centerpiece for the perfect dining room.

This is a mood light, a "Naturalight" from Tuavus Design. This is a piece of functional art for your living room, den, study, library, whatever. It is made of Bocote, an exotic hardwood harvested somewhere in the tropical regions of the Americas. It features brass inlays and blue LED illumination. The lights are turned off by laying the piece over on one side, turned back on by standing it up on end as you see it here.

The Naturalight is stunning from any angle, daytime or nighttime, and will serve as the perfect starting point around which your room's deçor is designed.

Next I'd like to show you this wonderful mirror, suitable for your bedroom, livingroom, or over the mantel of your fireplace. It was designed and built by Ed Arts and Crafts Mission Style Handcrafted Furniture, and is made of Quartersawn White Oak with Walnut dowels. Not only does this piece shine on its own, but it will show off your beauty as well, as you gaze into the 30" x 24" mirror mounted in this gorgeous wooden frame.

I can't help but put one of my own creations into this group. I built this small Candle Holder out of Spalted Pecan I picked up from my local sawyer. I built two of these and my wife immediately claimed one of them as her own. The other one is presented here.

This candle holder will provide intimate, flickering light at your table as you enjoy a bottle of your favorite vintage, or illuminate your master bath whilst you indulge yourself with a tub full of bubbles.

The possible uses for beautiful pieces of wood are nearly endless. The love and care our woodworkers here at Design Style Guide pour into their products is palpable. And the woodworking choices you, as a homeowner or interior designer, have available to you here are numerous and exciting. It inspires me to see these items. Take a look through all our woodworking offerings, all our furniture, and see what inspires you.

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Candles

The Latin word "candere" means to flicker.

According to Wikipedia, a candle is a source of light and sometimes a source of heat consisting of a solid block of fuel (commonly wax) and an embedded wick.

As the mass of solid fuel is melted and consumed, the candle grows shorter. Portions of the wick that are not evaporating the liquid fuel are consumed in the flame. The incineration of the wick limits the exposed length of the wick, thus maintaining a constant burning temperature and rate of fuel consumption.

OK, that’s the information bit now let’s see what we can find with the Interior Design Team!

Votive Candle Holder by Nonnie’s Treasures

This lovely candle holder is constructed of four 3" beveled glass pieces, and sits on a plain glass base.

Stained Glass Frog and Lily Candle Holder by Glassnwood

Ideal for scented candle, or to create a romantic atmosphere. This table piece is 8.5 inches high and 8.5 inches wide.

Raku Dragonfly Candle Holder by Fehustoneware

Wheel thrown Stoneware clay raku fired.
Flashes of copper blue and green.

Unity Wedding Candles – Bird of Paradise by Pleasant Ridge Candles

Unity Wedding Candle White 3”X 9” pillar, 12" tapers, Bird of Paradise Flowers with Leaves.

Fresh Cut Roses Type Jar Candle by Bliss Candles

FRAGRANCE: Fresh Cut Roses ~ A beautiful interpretation of the YC favorite. This smells just like real roses.

Don’t just take my word! Go on, search Etsy.com using the word ‘interiordesignteam’ . You will be blown away by the products you will find. Enjoy!

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Why Things Are the Way Things Are

Have you ever wondered why a thing looks the way it does? Operates the way it does? Maybe not. Maybe I'm the only one who ever thought about this stuff, but I doubt it.

Anyway, I'm going to explain why one of my designs was, well... designed the way it was, and then I'm going to attempt to explain someone else's designs without asking them about it. I may be crawling out on an exceptionally fragile limb, here, but I figure I can control the danger somewhat by sticking to my own field of expertise: woodworking.

So, here's my own design. It's a candle holder made out of bird's eye maple. It holds seven candles and sells for $110.00. It's a one-of-a-kind piece.

This project is an outgrowth of my original candle holder design, made of bird’s eye maple instead of pine. It's rectangular instead of square, and it holds seven candles instead of four, but it is otherwise identical in construction. The idea was to make a little fire-pit to be used indoors. The idea was to show off the wood, not my joinery skills.

Like the original the table top is made by laminating two pieces. The bottom piece lacked much of that feature most prized in bird’s eye maple, so I didn’t mind hiding it.

When I made this piece my old drill press had just died on me. These holes were actually drilled out by hand with a drill-driver and a 1 7/8” Forstner bit. That took two days. They really aren’t kidding when they say bird’s eye maple is a hardwood.

The point is that it was worth the effort. I love this piece. The wood just sings, begs to be touched. I've had several people ask about it, three or four get excited about buying it, but no one has pulled the trigger on the deal yet. And I'm not concerned. There is a home for this little indoor fire-pit. After it sells I will probably build something similar because I think it's a pretty cool idea.

And now let's look at "Black Limba" by Henderson Wood Craft. This is a wall hanging, and Henderson Wood Craft has this to say about it:

"This set of wall panels are made from a combination of African Black Limba, Yellow Heart, Ebony Alowood and Bloodwood. Each panel measures 17 x 17 in. They are finished in a polyurethane semi-gloss. The set is designed to hang vertical or horizontal with a 3/4 in. standoff."

On Saturday, May 9, 2009, my wife and I visited the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. This museum is known for it's wonderful collection of Remington and Russell paintings and sculptures, but one piece that jumped out at me was by... well, someone who's name isn't jumping out at me right now. It was a collage, made entirely of reclaimed wood. I'm certain I've never seen another one like it. If you're ever in the area, this piece is hanging in the lobby near the gift shop.

The point of that piece, I'm sure, is to show off the beauty of the weather-beaten wood. In that respect the piece is a enormous success. The point of this piece by Henderson Wood Craft, I'm certain, is to do the same thing, and it is just as successful as the piece I saw in the museum.

I try to show off the wood I use -- even when it's a lowly slab of pine -- in every candle holder or wine rest or whatever that I build. Henderson Wood Craft does the same thing with their tables, wall hangings and everything else I've seen from this designer. They let the beauty of the wood shine. Good design is sometimes the design you don't notice right away. Good design in woodworking is the design that puts the wonderful figure of maple, red heart, black walnut, bubinga, cherry, bloodwood and African Black Limba in the best light, showing off what Mother Nature has already done for us. These designs deserve to be seen and purchased and displayed prominently across the globe.

Here are some other pieces from Henderson Wood Craft. The beauty of the best natural material on Earth shines in these two furniture selections and one more wall hanging.

 

I sincerely hope I have done justice to Henderson Wood Craft in this article. I would love to hear from someone there, either father or son (both?). And I'd love to hear from everyone who reads this. What do you think about the pieces on display here? And what do you think of my evaluation of them?

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If you like this blog entry you'll love my blog, jn3 Hand Crafted Woodworks. Check it out. I'll be glad you did.

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A Little Bit of Old and A Little Bit of New

Anyone who has even been to my house can see that it is full of an eclectic array of hand-me-downs, rescued items, thrift store pieces, new items and even a few antiques. I think, and I've been told by others who are maybe just being nice to me, that my house is a perfect mixture of old and new. And after spending all week refinishing two old pieces of furniture to fit in with a few new pieces I recently purchased, I thought I would see what some of the members of Design Style Guide had to offer in the furniture department. I was not disappointed.

Here are a few of my favorite finds.

I love the lines on this Havana Lounge Chair and Ottoman by Lunar Lounge Design. And it would add a perfect punch of color to the room.



And these wonderful, vintage Hollywood Regency chairs by KLUpholstery would look perfect flanking a cafe table in a corner of your house.




I love all of Mad Tea Party Furniture's items. This Age of Innocence Hand Painted Clock is one of my favorites. It would make such a fun statement in your house.




I love this Girtz Plasma TV Stand by Shaka Studios. The primitive finish adds a softness to the room that provides a nice counterpoint to the harsh lines of your plasma TV.




Everyone needs a small stool to reach the top-shelve items in your cupboards and closets. Why not use one with a little personality like this Pullman-Type stool from Wislancraft.




And accent your room decor with these Art Deco-style candle holders from Arzu Musa.




And don't forget the puppy! These Uniquely Handcrafted Doggie Beds by Jakeybb are perfect for your pampered pet.



To find more fabulous, hand-crafted furniture finds, be sure to search "designstlyeguide" on etsy. Or visit the Design Style Guide website.

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Create Ambiance with Candles

Soy Candle - Handcrafted Ceramic - Wild Berry Musk Scented by Madhatterspottery


When you think candles, many images come to mind. Warmth, romance, scent, glowing decor. Candles can add a richness to any room, especially during the holiday season. They also make wonderful gifts, for friends, hair stylists, teachers or housewarmings. Spectacular candles and candle holders can be found from our DesignStyleGuide members and here are just a few.
Enchanting Amazon Candle Holder by vsilcoxdesigns

Purple Votive Candle Holder- Stained Glass- With Black Antique Patina by DianasStainedGlass

Lantern for Tealight by ArzuMusa

So when you are trying to get the perfect touches when adding to your home's decor, don't forget to add some beautiful candles.

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