I started at my warehouse (in other words, dad’s horse barn loft) where I keep a lot of my finds and came across this 1 1/2″ thick board (part of a stack of 15 or so). They were originally in the Wannville Post Office, which I was able to salvage sometime around 2003 or so after I purchase my farm. To be honest I had forgotten about having them.
The interesting thing was that the darker color was actually from many years of use as a shelf and the fact that the heart wood had a green tint to it. In fact there was only about 2 inches along the side that were not heart wood, which was probably due to the size and age of the tree. Also, I’m not sure what the holes in the side were used for, but I definitely like the way they look. And once I cross-cut the piece to make two tops, it left me with 2 tops measuring 14×18″.
Everything worked out great on these two tables. I really like the way each piece reveals some history for how they were once used. I also like how I was able to keep the little round-over detail on the stiles (in the pic above you can see it on the red stile). Its little details like this that I think add a lot to a piece of furniture. They both measure 18″x14″, stand roughly 22″ high, and will fit in nicely with our living room furniture. Plus they are solid enough that we no longer have to worry about “Destructo Boy” turning them over!