Dining Table
Tables bring people together. I designed and built this table as a wedding gift and to act as a family gathering place for my brother, his wife, and their future children. Six comfortably sit around this table, making it perfect for a young couple looking to entertain friends or seat a large family.
Made from white oak, the grain of this table is decidedly American. The design marries contemporary Scandinavian and Korean styles with a thin, radiused top sitting on an orthogonal grid of solid, linear supports. The top is finished with a clear-finish lacquer that offers low sheen, minimal color change from the natural wood, and lasting protection. The frame and legs are finished with a danish soap finish, which provides a soft and minimal finish that appears very similar to natural wood.
Design decisions that make up a table are all important, but no detail is more important than the surface. This is the part of the piece every user will interact with the most. It will hold the feasts, drinks, game boards, and crafts. To ensure the best surface possible, I laid out plain-sawn white oak planks in all imaginable configurations. At the end of this exercise, I decided on using light sapwood and dark knots and marks as accents to create an understated but feature-rich surface.
Part of the beauty of a dining table is the way it can become personal. Seen here is the dining table in the Carter home in Pittsburgh, PA.
