I originally wrote this post for my friend Jamie Goldberg who maintains the kitchen design site “Gold Notes“
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When I was asked to contribute to Jamie’s series on “Three Favorite …” I said yes immediately, even though I knew that I would have a hard time coming up with my three favorite versions of anything. Because I fall squarely into the camp that thinks the better the problem, the better the solution, having carte blanche to pick whatever I want to focus on is just about the hardest thing someone could ask from me… Three Favorite Buildings? Three Favorite Architects? Three Favorite Cities? Three Favorite (ways to embarrass myself…)???
Ughhhh … it’s too hard for me to select an answer to any of these questions. As a result, this post has sat empty for weeks as I beat myself up trying to respond to my friend’s request. Then it hit me – literally. Recently arriving in the mail were samples I had ordered from one of my wood vendors of three different wood species. Holy Gorilla’s Armpit!! Did someone say three?
So, in no particular order of preference, I give you my Three Favorite Species of Wood:
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Walnut is, for some reason unknown to me, the one species of wood that is most commonly associated with modern style architecture and design. The difference between the lighter brown summer growth and the much darker bands of winter growth give this wood an extremely pleasing striation. The walnut tree can reach up to 130 feet tall, which provides for some large veneers – making walnut an excellent choice for paneling and cabinetry.
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White Oak is native in many parts of the United States, one of them being East Texas. Since my architectural practice is based out of Dallas, this is a very cost effective and readily available species of wood. Of the three listed here, I probably use rift cut white oak the most often because it fits into the soft modern aesthetic that people hire us to produce. Warm in tone with distinct bands of summer and winter growth – just enough variation to be interesting but not so much as to be overwhelming visually in any space. One of my favorite ways to use rift cut white oak is to run the grain horizontally – the effect is rather striking.
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Pecan is a species of hickory and is also readily available in the United States. I like to use pecan for special custom cabinetry despite the fact that it’s more commonly used for flooring. Pecan wood has a very active grain and as a result, it can be is visually busy. As a result, applying a stain to help even out the tones between the summer and winter growth will help regularize the patterns. Another reason I really enjoy using pecan is the incredibly warm brown tones that you can get from it – and since it isn’t a wood that you typically run across, people respond to the way it looks as if they are seeing it for the first time in their lives … which they probably are.
Cheers
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