To get decent grain matching and to allow for mistakes and mid project improvements it helps to obtain a little extra wood for a project. There are offcuts and extra, and some wood just arrives unsought. I have some wood that has inhabited my shop for over 30 years, but there is one piece from my grandfather, a truly ugly and useless old piece of Hemlock that must be at least 80 years old. It's 9 ft long, 5 x 5 at one end tapering to 3 x 3 at the other. Knots make it structurally unsound and it's warped and very rough sawn. My brother found it in the barn a few years ago and it followed me home. It'll make a nice fire someday.