Here is one of my favorite pieces.  I had the assistance of my right hand man and voice of reason, my dad.  If it was not for him this would have turned out upside down and backward.  For anyone who knows me, my dad and I are similar but also very different.  I am someone who never reads directions and always very eager to finish the project even if there are several pieces left over.  My father and I could not be more different in this regard.  He will read directions over and over, then start to work, then go back and read again if something feels a bit off.  I think this is why we make a good team when it comes to our carpentry projects.  One thing that works in my favor is, there are no directions.  They are all in my head.

  

This piece follows suit with using reclaimed material.  The material used for this table, which currently resides in my own house, hits very close to home.  This entire table was built from my parents old deck that was replaced this past spring.  I originally had plans, in my head, to build a four poster bed from the reclaimed material.  While that still may be a reality I am very happy with the way the dining table turned out. 

After building the frame with 2x4s I cut the reclaimed deck railing at 45 degree angles to frame in the table top.  This was then filled with the remaining wood which created the full top.

This is the completed table top that was awaiting its legs.  The legs were also salvaged from the deck and were made from the 30 year old deck posts.  These 6x6 legs completed the rustic look and required no detailing.  This table turned out great but provided many challenges that have helped me develop my carpentry skills. 

Starting material

This table was commissioned by a friend of mine who is an interior decorator.  With no plans or material in mind she sent me a few photos of tables her client liked.  I could have easily gone to Home Depot or Lowes and purchased a stack of wood and made something as close to a reclaimed wood table as brand new wood allowed.  Instead, while driving home from work I noticed that a barn was being refinished just down the street from my parents.  On a whim I stopped in to see if they would be interested in selling the wood.  To my delight they were actually paying their son to haul the wood to the dump one trip at a time.  Lucky for me, my dad had just bought a pickup truck and I was going to take advantage of the opportunity to acquire some rustic, free wood.  Like any normal person I spent the next 30 minutes, in a shirt and tie, loading up as much wood as I could before returning to work.  Before I left, the owner showed up and was very impressed that I was going to re-purpose the wood and that it was not merely going to the trash.  During the conversation it also came up that I had previously lived in Oxford, MS and his son had recently graduated from there.  The irony is that this now finished table is for a customer in Oxford.  It truly is a small world.  Rustic materials are wonderful to work with.  You get a unique finish that can never be duplicated.  The furniture also comes with a story of it own only to be added to by you and your family.

Another view of the table to show off the rustic metal brackets.

The top and frame were both built with rustic barn wood reclaimed from a barn in Brentwood, TN.  The challenge was getting table legs to match the the table top aged by mother nature.

These legs were purchased new from the local home improvement store.  This was an opportunity to try something I saw on HGTV.  After building an outdoor table the torched and sanded the wood to create a Tuscan look.  I knew that I would be painting the wood but I wanted an aged look to sand through.

This is the pile of material that I started with.  I couldn't be happier with the finished product.  Next I will be attempting a headboard and matching bedside tables made from the same barn wood material.

The beginning

I created this blog to show the entire process of the furniture I have been making.  Many of the items I make are very easy for anyone to build and I hope this helps people tackle some of these one day.  This is a picture of my recent table I made for an interior designer who has a client in Oxford, MS.  It all started by stopping by a random house that was remodeling their barn.  The entire story and material from start to finish will be posted soon.