Hello Gents -
This is my first post and i hope you'll welcome someone like myself who is truly a neophite to the ranks. I have pretty much no relevant woodworking experience outside of my college days in the studio using a bandsaw and tablesaw when needed for my found object pieces. My experience with wood since then has been refinishing and recaning some old chairs and other such odd projects around the house. I am about to take on a project which i hope you can help me out with. I am making a console table for my great room from a large cherry slab i got from a gent in PA.
What follows are pics of the slab itself (before planing and sanding) and a few reference pics. I have some turned legs (also cherry) that i was going to insert in the same manner as the two examples of Mr Nakashima's work below. Is there anything i should be wary of here (wood expansion issues e.g.)? It appears that he inserted his turned legs with the grain perpindicular to that of the the top pieces. Also, i have searched and searched the archives here with enumerable reccomendations on what to use when finishing cherry and once i think i am set on something, my mind is changed again. The folks i spoke with at Nakashima in new hope say they use tung oil varnish (a mixture of the two it seems) on all of their work. The finish i am looking for is what was accomplished on the triangular bench below. Any suggestions? Sorry for the ridiculously long post - i appreciate your help guys and hope you don't mind if i ask a few silly questions as i find my way.
Thanks a heap.
JD