Project Information
I am so happy to have finished this project. It is my first big piece of furniture and it came out exactly as I wanted. My wife and I were looking for a style that was rustic and humble, yet elegant. With that in mind I settled on a mission style along with alder (instead of oak). The alder, when stained, blotches in a wonderful way that adds to the charm of the table. It's not for everybody, but it's what we wanted.
The chairs were provided by a1Jim who did a great job (see previous project posted by him). I finished them with wipe on stain and water-borne polycrylic sprayed on with a HVLP sprayer (another first for me). The table top itself is finished with oil-based poly since I understand it is more heat tolerant. There is a scuff on the side near the window that I will need to fix. I got a little aggressive with the 0000 steel wool trying to remove a hair that hand landed in the poly while drying.
Alder, if you haven't worked with it, is a wonderful wood. It has good character and is easy to work. It is, however, somewhat soft, so I'm going to have to relax when dings occur. Hey, the distressed look is in, right? Let's hope it's still in ten years from now.
The project isn't perfect, but I'm not a master craftsman. If you go to my projects you can see the mason jar chandelier that hangs above. I'm honored to host my entire family for Easter this weekend and we will be sure to say a blessing on the wood that we will always find love, hope, faith, and joy around it.
The chairs were provided by a1Jim who did a great job (see previous project posted by him). I finished them with wipe on stain and water-borne polycrylic sprayed on with a HVLP sprayer (another first for me). The table top itself is finished with oil-based poly since I understand it is more heat tolerant. There is a scuff on the side near the window that I will need to fix. I got a little aggressive with the 0000 steel wool trying to remove a hair that hand landed in the poly while drying.
Alder, if you haven't worked with it, is a wonderful wood. It has good character and is easy to work. It is, however, somewhat soft, so I'm going to have to relax when dings occur. Hey, the distressed look is in, right? Let's hope it's still in ten years from now.
The project isn't perfect, but I'm not a master craftsman. If you go to my projects you can see the mason jar chandelier that hangs above. I'm honored to host my entire family for Easter this weekend and we will be sure to say a blessing on the wood that we will always find love, hope, faith, and joy around it.