New people, places & directions

This afternoon I spent a couple hours squaring the edges of several planks of hackberry that I brought back from my most recent visit to Silver Creek Sawmill in Iowa. These boards, along with legs cut from the thickest plank of walnut I've ever seen, will eventually come together as a conference table for my new friend Jessica, owner of Birdhouse Interior Design. I had the pleasure of meeting Jessica a couple months ago, having followed her and the development of her business on Twitter for a while. Our ideas about design and affordability seem to mesh pretty well and I'm excited to work with her as she takes her business to the next level.

Jessica's new digs - and the conference table's new home - will be a beautifully lit parcel in the space formerly occupied by the Mastercraft Furniture Company, and which also houses the new CAMP Coworking Space. Am I jealous? Um, yes. It's exciting to see so many creative people working around each other, moving their ideas and passions forward.

Here's a simple drawing of the basic table design, sans an element that will add some additional color, contrast and life to the piece to tie it all together.

This table is particularly exciting for me because it is a shift in direction and technique. The planks that make up the top will join to one another a various angles. The legs will be tapered and rounded by hand on one corner to match the contour of the top.  I'm also trying a new technique that will include using cast resin. More on that later.