Greene & Greene inspired tall dresser finally complete.

[Chris Walls]

Dennis
Very nice, I always liked butternut , it ages very well. I have a butternut kitchen table made for my great grandmother as a wedding gift in 1878 , in Smiths Falls , Ontario Canada. Dated with a pencil on the bottom of the table by the hand that made it. I had to make a new set of extension slides years ago , made them out of maple to wear better that the original ones made from poplar. It's still a good looking table after all these years.
Chris

[Dennis Hawkins]

Chris
How about a photo of that table.?
As you know butternut is not the most durable wood choice for a kitchen table top so I'd be interested to see how it has held up.
D.

[Chris Walls]

Dennis
I will contact my brother and have him send me a photo ( it's at his house currently ) and then post it here.

Chris

[Gus Dundon]

What a fantastic table! You did an incredible job with the design, wood selection, finishing, joinery and execution

[Pat Meeuwissen]

Dennis, been doing some searching on the forum for G&G pieces and just came across your beauty. I really like the proportions and details very much. I have never seen the type of drawer pull style you used, is it an original design? Or inspired one of the original GG pieces? Thanks so much for allowing me to see it.

[glenn bradley]

I have never seen the type of drawer pull style you used

Pat, check out the Gamble House and Thorsen House. These are my two favorites to draw from for Greene and Greene elements. The fun thing about G&G is that you can put your own spin on them. Very fun and rewarding to build.

[glenn bradley]

Glen
Indeed the through tenon on the lower shelf of the coffee table has a reverse cloud lift.


Butternut has a color tone and grain pattern that I really like. The hard part is finding some quartersawn stock to get some straight-grained material.

Butternut is very lightweight and soft for a hardwood so it is low on the durability scale. I choose Waterlox sealer/finish as my only product for finishing butternut. I sand to 180 grit. Then soak the project with the first coat of Waterlox. Use a good natural brush for application.
On horizontal surfaces you can lay it on heavier for subsequent coats. I usually apply 4 coats with 24/48 hrs in between with lots of cross-ventilation for curing. I then wet sand with mineral spirits with 400 grit wet-dry paper.One more final coat then after 4 days if I'm happy I knock-down the gloss with red Scotch-Brite. I then use Briwax as my final step.
I probably have more than 20 hours in the finish step of that dresser project.

I never got back to issue a 'thank you' for the finishing schedule Dennis so, thank you. The California Thought-Police make getting Waterlox a bit of a challenge so I have bumbled my way into a phenolic modified and alkyd resin blend (not near as sophisticated as it sounds) that has been working well for me. If I ever luck into some nice butternut I would definitely get my hands on some Waterlox after seeing these examples. Again, love your work and I enjoy your take on the G&G feel. Thanks again.

[Pat Meeuwissen]

Thanks these are some great avenues for me to research. Do you know on the large thru finger joints is there a ratio to how thick the piece to how far it protrudes or is it another thing thats up to the individual? Any tips for online how to's would be very helpful if you have any. Pat

[Kent A Bathurst]

Dennis -

I dig it.

Could you post a photo or 2 showing the top? I'd like to get some images of the breadboard ends and the joinery there.

[Dennis Hawkins]

Dennis, been doing some searching on the forum for G&G pieces and just came across your beauty. I really like the proportions and details very much. I have never seen the type of drawer pull style you used, is it an original design? Or inspired one of the original GG pieces? Thanks so much for allowing me to see it.

Pat
The basic concept of the pull is taken from what was used on the Thorsen sideboard. See page 84 of Darrell Peart's book "Design Elements for the Workshop". Just as Glen pointed out the fun thing about all the Greene & Greene elements is "putting your own spin on them".

[Dennis Hawkins]

Kent
Here are the only two photos I have of the top not installed on the dresser.G&G top.jpgG&G top 2.jpg

[Kent A Bathurst]

Kent
Here are the only two photos I have of the top not installed on the dresser.

That answers my questions - you have the breadboard proud of the top all around.

Thnx. Me Likey !!

[Pat Meeuwissen]

Dennis, thanks so much for the reply I just ordered the book and will be looking forward to getting it real soon. I like that there are no "set" rules just a style to work to. I'm still a lover of the darker colored plugs but yours shows a really nice alternative. Pat