Last fall the fine folks from Pioneer Millworks awarded me with 100 bdft of "wine vat white oak" from the Widmer Wineries in the Finger Lakes region of NY State.
Some of it has been transformed into a hope chest for my daughter's HS graduation gift. There was alot of character in this wood between the wine stains, wear marks, and other discoloration from use. I was thrilled to see that much of it was quartersawn. The inside edge of every original board was stained burgundy from use as vats.... I considered featuring that stain, but I wasn't sure my 18 YO daughter would appreciate it like wood afficianados do, plus it was difficult to control the consistency of the color, so I settled for using it inside. In the spirit of wood reclaimation, the bottom is cedar salvaged from a neighbor's timely curbside reject.
The original plan was to build a keepsake box to store inside the chest. Hopefully that'll come eventually...
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