Month: December 2023

Fulfilling a long time dream

I finally fulfilled a long standing desire to design and make a Greene and Greene inspired coffee table using only traditional joinery. I’ve always admired the ebony splines and “ cloud lift” features of Greene and Greene furniture. The reverse tapered legs really show off the quarter sawn white oak and the oil finish gives the whole piece a stunningly warm luster.

The project took several months to complete as I figured out how to accomplish the joinery and not ruin over $600 worth of quarter sawn white oak. There were lots of sketchbook sketches and head scratching!

Cultist plan and profile sketch

Focusing on form

For the first time in a while I resisted the temptation to use color to highlight the wood grain. Instead, I relied on the natural contrasts between walnut and maple to differentiate between linear geometry and organic curves.