# Wine cellar display table, heavily distressed



## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

Hello everyone!
I have been enjoying my time here on the forum and am enjoying all of the helpful and humble attitudes of just about everyone I have seen so far. This is my first thread here and I thought I'd share what I do. 

I do some conventional woodworking and cabinetry when I have a reason to, but I get a lot of enjoyment out of working with old weathered wood. I have mentioned it a few times here and there so I figured it might be a good idea to show something I've done.

This project started out being a cigar table for a man that had seen my work but had decided not to get it due to the strain of the recent recession. After finishing the top, I decided to make it into a wine cellar table due to the higher demand here in the hill country.

The top is made from reclaimed fence wood that had been pulled from an estate, the sides are reclaimed cedar that was pulled from a deck and the front back and legs were reclaimed from construction debris that I had acclimatized in my garage for about a year. 

I use minimal jointing on any of the wood and make almost all cuts using my Japanese pull saw. I make the cuts a little bit sloppy and never joint or plain the faces of the wood because I like it to look old and distressed. I never distress the wood myself, I just find pieces that are already beat up. I do hand rasp the edges and do a LOT of sanding. I take out all of the rusted nails and never put in anymore metal. Just old fashioned joinery.

Almost all of the wood I use is cupped and twisted making every project a challenge but i guess that is what gives it the character I like.

This one has 7 flat dovetails several lap joints and 30 hand cut square dowels. I know its not conventional but I hope everyone likes it.

Wayne


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## no1hustler (Nov 17, 2010)

Wow, that is beautiful, I love it!


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## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

Thanks no1. Glad you like it!


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## b00kemdano (Feb 10, 2009)

Absolutely gorgeous. I want a room full of this furniture!


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## H. A. S. (Sep 23, 2010)

Great job! Love that furniture.


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## me109a (Nov 8, 2010)

Square peg in a round hole - awsome!:hammer:


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## joesdad (Nov 1, 2007)

Very nice piece...I love making that type of furniture. After a couple of months of trying to build and finish things to the decimal point, it's fun to relax and do something a little more loose, yet still be a great design and have the same wow factor as the tight stuff..:thumbsup:


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Totally awesome!*

I guess we can ditch our dovetail jigs and SCMS and ROS and all that precision stuff, won't be needin' it now....:no: bill


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## Hendo446 (Nov 25, 2009)

I like it! Did you stain it or was the color the wood was when you got it?


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## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

WOW!
Thanks Everybody!:icon_cheesygrin:

Joes dad, You got it! Its so nice to be able to get more creative and away from all the super square corners. I build stuff like this almost completely with hand tools minus my ROsander which, I think, makes me more intimate with what I'm creating. Glad to hear you find enjoyment doing the same thing.

Bill, :laughing:, I'm LMAO right now. I don't think I'll be throwing my angle finder, precision square or anything else out any time soon but I do find that I love the "character" of these pieces that just aren't so perfect. I also find that they are equally challenging to those that are. Strange, but working with warped, twisted, cracked and cupped wood brings it's own set of difficulties. Thanks for the comment.

As for the stain question, Yes it is Walnut stain over pine and cedar with a satin polyurethane finish.

Thanks again everyone for the comments!
Wayne


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## cheese9988 (Jan 4, 2010)

now that's cool. Different and rustic.


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

That is very cool. I love the look of it and the joinery is amazing. I mean, this piece has some serious character that would look good in any home. Thanks for sharing this one and keep up the great work.


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## MastersHand (Nov 28, 2010)

Nice work distressing looks very authentic Just right


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

I'm not generally a fan of "distressed" woods, but this looks very natural and the rough joinery looks fantastic with it. Very well done.


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## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

Hey, Thanks again guys!

I appreciate all of the encouraging comments.

Kenbo, I briefly looked through your projects and saw your dome clock! WOW! That's some serious skill!

Thanks FrankP and MastersHand, I didn't do any of the surface distressing. I just chose pieces that were already distressed. That's how it looks so natural. Even the hammer marks in the top and the claw marks on the side. They were already there. I did pull all of the nails out of the original wood and I like to show off the nail holes. Also I do distress the edges myself with a hand rasp.

Thanks again everyone! Best wishes with all of your projects!
Wayne


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

I like it, and it looks great. I can see your efforts. Reminds me of the craze years ago for the "spool" and "barrel" tables.












 









.


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

I don't normally like this style either but this is very appealing. Nice job. 




.


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## Chad (May 10, 2009)

Very cool piece, I can see it in any house (like was already said). Nice job!


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## custom_c10 (Nov 26, 2010)

What grit did you go up to when sanding?


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## Joeg679 (Dec 13, 2010)

Awesome table. Where did u get the wood?


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## red (Sep 30, 2008)

Awesome job on the table.

Red


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## skymonkey (Apr 12, 2010)

I really like it! Nice job.


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## MastersHand (Nov 28, 2010)

skymonkey said:


> I really like it! Nice job.


There goes this post


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Dead Thread*

Quote:
Originally Posted by *skymonkey* 
_I really like it! Nice job._

QUOTE above:
"There goes this post"........:smile: :laughing:


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## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

Thanks guys y'all are awesome!

Joe and Custom, generally I use 100, 150, 220 then #00 steel wool but on projects like this I stop at 220 and only use the ROS so that I don't take out too much of the distress. I don't punch holes in the paper at any grit. Doing so will leave swirl patterns in the grain but if you choose to do this with only the 150 and 220 it will be fine. I should also note that I do my sanding outside. Not punching the holes will prohibit dust collection.

I use dilapidated fence wood as the staple for these projects. The extreme weather conditions here are brutal on the wood and give it the character I'm looking for. Lots of cracks and dried or slightly rotten edges. I also like the carelessness that goes into the erection of the fence. Lots of. Random nail holes hammer marks and deep gouges.

Take care,
Wayne


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## jaxonquad (Jan 26, 2011)

*from the past....*

This is a pretty neat table! :thumbsup:


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## renovatio (Jul 4, 2011)

Really cool, I'm not showing it to my wife because my other projects would have to go on hold. Looks awesome.


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## Stilts (Dec 2, 2010)

Really great looking. This is just the kind of thread I was looking for. I resurfaced a dock this week. The old cedar boards have some good character to them. I have never worked with reclaimed lumber but I think I might give it a shot with this wood. Maybe I can hit you up for some tips later. The biggest question I have at this point is how to deal with cut ends that expose new end grain?


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## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

Hey! Thanks for the compliments guys!
As for the exposed end grain I haven't had many issues as far as splitting or anything like that, but honestly, if it did, it would just be more character in my opinion.
Hit me up with questions anytime.
I didn't treat the ends before staining either. Dryer wood soaks up more and harder growth rings soak up less. Trying to achieve uniformity in a project like this would just take away from it. Try not to sand too much and you'll get a look like it really is old. Rasp the edges and they'll take less stain and add to the worn used effect. Don't want to sand too little either, it'll turn out looking like something from a craft show that someone threw together in an hour. I also like using contrasting woods at the joints to make them stand out a little more. And ofcourse try avoiding screws or brads. That's just tacky in my opinion.
good luck with your project! And let me know if I can help!


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## MikeS (Dec 31, 2009)

The dovetails and wooden pegs are a great idea.


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## Stilts (Dec 2, 2010)

I was more wondering if the cut edges would look too smooth or different because they wouldn't be worn like the faces of the boards.


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## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

Oh, gotcha.
I hand rasp all of the edges including all the new cuts then sand them.


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## Warnock (Apr 4, 2011)

Very nice. Love the old look to it. Well done.


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## Stilts (Dec 2, 2010)

Ok. Will give it a try. Ok if I send you a message later on if need advice with it?


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## snmhanson (May 23, 2011)

Table looks great! I wish I had the skills for the distressed look, but I am overly anal so everything I build has to be flush, square and straight.

By the way, is that speaker in your sig a Mini Statement? I build a pair of Statement Monitors and a 2RCC center. Great speakers! How bout some pics of your speaker projects?

Matt


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## 4skinz80 (Aug 16, 2011)

That's a really nice table... Looks like you've had it for years.


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## Fudwrecker (Jan 27, 2011)

renovatio said:


> Really cool, I'm not showing it to my wife because my other projects would have to go on hold. Looks awesome.


 
Ha ha I was thinkng this same thing as I was going through the string
Will not be showing my wife this! There is no chance I come even close to creating something like this - work of art really

love it!


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## wwinsauer (Dec 7, 2010)

Hey guys!
I really appreciate all the compliments! Y'all are the best!
Stilts, message me anytime, and post here when you get a build thread going so I can go look! My time has been hectic the last several months so I'm not signed in as much but every 3-4 posts I get an email on my phone and check in.

I've been thinking about building this kind of furniture full time and selling it here in Dallas, (just moved) think there will be a good market. If any of you guys have some words of wisdom in that area I'd really appreciate it. 

Hey Matt! Yes those are minis. I modified them quite a bit. Double baffle with solid front walnut and cherry. Stretched cabinet for volume so I could keep quarter wave tube same length for mid and extra bracing. Ported out back instead of bottom. Completely redesigned panel sizes to hide exposed edges better. Sides are maple veneer, top and bottom are cherry veneer. Used tighbond and iron method. Front baffle is hand planed. I'll have to make a thread with pics when I get more time. 

Thanks again guys! Talk to you soon!
Wayne


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## Ted Tolstad (Feb 20, 2011)

Very cool. I can just imagine the amount of time it took you to put this together. Looks awesome!


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## mn pete (Dec 10, 2010)

I really like this! Great design, and I really like all the small details.


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## snav (Jan 24, 2010)

a bump - mind if I borrow this idea in my future? It looks fab - very inspiring.


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## Stilts (Dec 2, 2010)

Wwinsauer, I tried to reply back to your personal message but not sure if it worked. Did you happen to get a response from me?


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Wwinesaur,

That's a good looking table. So much of the time "rustic" is just another way to spell j-u-n-k. You've given the term some respectability. Nice job!

Bret


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