Every maker has that one project that stands out in their minds. For me, it’s a black walnut entryway table I made a few years back for a client. Rustic accent tables are especially popular right now in home decor, but this particular client chose to elevate the rustic design by having me add a glass inlay to mimic the look of a natural lake.
She loved the thought of bringing in natural elements and allowing the wood to speak for itself and wanted it to be the centerpiece of her entryway.
Here’s everything that went on behind the scenes of this client’s entryway table and a few things you should consider if you decide to commission your own rustic accent tables.
The Project
I met this client through one of the interior designers I work for. After speaking, I learned she loved the look of handmade across the entire project. So, we decided on a black walnut entryway table with a glass inlay.
Walnut is a popular wood for woodworking projects, known for its rich purplish-brown hue and defined grainlines. Its durability, adaptability, and water resistance make it ideal for anything from rustic accent tables and other furniture to musical instruments and even shotgun and rifle stocks, according to WOOD magazine.
The wood you choose for a project is as important as the actual skills you need to build it. You need to consider the purpose and location of your project (for outdoor furniture, for example, you’d opt for a weather-resistant wood like teak), as well as the look you’re going for.
I harvested the black walnut myself from Scipio in Central Utah. Two walnut trees needed to come down because of distress and disease, so before they started to decay, we removed them.
The Process
We processed the slabs at my uncle’s sawmill and then stacked them, banded them tight, and air dried them before putting them into our kiln for two months to get rid of any residual moisture or insects.
Kiln drying is a beneficial part of a project because a kiln allows you to control the airflow, humidity levels, and temperature, thus speeding up the drying process and removing as much moisture as possible. Residual moisture is what causes twisting and warping in wood — which people tend to not want in costly wood pieces like rustic accent tables.
Once the wood was dry, I supplied the client with samples of the finished lumber to make sure it fit perfectly in her space. I wanted to use traditional joinery in the legs and top, so for the legs, I made two 4×4 square posts and a 2×4 cross support — called a reach — with real through tenons in the legs. I made heavy feet with the same walnut.
We chose a piece of wood for the top with a natural opening in the middle. Then, to create a natural water look, I traced the pattern on the wood and used my small router to make the recess where I’d use clear silicone to adhere it in the walnut.
Because the natural opening was thinner than we typically want for entryway or rustic accent tables, I created a border using more walnut from the same tree and made lap joints at the end to join them in a functional but decorative way.
Finally, a friend’s local company supplied the glass and cut it to create a natural-looking lake that was eventually routed into the walnut top; he used his water jet to get the exact shape we wanted. I finished up by sanding the edges of the glass to get the perfect clear beveled edge.
The Final Piece
Throughout the process, I sent my client photos and videos to see how pieces were shaped and secured. I find that clients feel more connected to their pieces and more excited to see the final product when they get to see the behind-the-scenes of all the work that goes into them along the way.
When delivery day came, my client and her husband were truly ecstatic with the result — so much so that they later commissioned two more rustic accent tables: a dining and a coffee table.
From small rustic accent tables to oversized pieces like conference tables and live-edge dining tables, being able to watch the process from start to finish is a special part of commissioning custom work.
Contact me to discuss the project you’ve been dreaming of.
