What is your favorite piece of wood furniture you made or own?

[Mike Chance in Iowa]

I have been working on restoring an antique banker chair that was in rough, but solid condition. While admiring the curves and comfortable contours, I started thinking about all you woodworkers on the forum who have had some impressive projects.

What is your favorite piece of wood furniture you have in your own home whether you made it, or bought it?

My favorite is an antique church pew roughly 4' in size. Years ago, I stopped into an antique store as a favor for a friend and walked past the pew. I have never seen one like this and sat on it. Wow. VERY comfortable. The curves of the arms and subtle curve of the seat & back seemed so unique to other benches I have sat on. A week later, I was still thinking about it and told my LOML I had to have it. Luckily I rarely "have to have" something and was given the okay to buy it. It's currently in our vacant front room until we focus on moving more furniture around.


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[Malcolm Schweizer]

What a great idea for a thread. I am anxious to see the replies.

I have two, if I may. One is a four poster bed. My father bought the posts in England after WWII and flew them back to the states in a B-26. (He was a somewhat high-ranking officer- he could do things.) My grandfather built the rest of the bed to match. I am allowing my 8-year-old to use it and she knows the history and knows not to jump on it or write on it!

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The other is the cradle boat I built for Petra when she was born. It has 198 hand-hammered copper rivets. The name is “Nod” and it is inlaid in abalone. There is an inscription in the bottom for future generations to know it was made by me for Petra.
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[Mike Chance in Iowa]

I LOVE the cradle boat! How unique and functional!

After dealing with my dear friend's massive estate, knowing the stories behind furniture and items is so much more meaningful and adds to the value. I love how you thought to put an inscription on the bottom.

[Bill Carey]

What a great cradle Malcolm.

Mine would be my Stickley table / desk.

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[Myk Rian]

My Cherry tool chest.

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[Rob Luter]

That’s a tough choice. I’m 40 years deep into a love affair with Arts and Crafts furniture. We’ve been fortunate to collect a number of pieces of Stickley (all from the Audi years) and a number of vintage A&C pieces from turn of the century Stickley contemporaries. I’ve made a few myself. I’m a sucker for QSWO. I’ll try to pick a favorite and post a photo.

[Rob Luter]

That’s a tough choice. I’m 40 years deep into a love affair with Arts and Crafts furniture. We’ve been fortunate to collect a number of pieces of Stickley (all from the Audi years) and a number of vintage A&C pieces from turn of the century Stickley contemporaries. I’ve made a few myself. I’m a sucker for QSWO. I’ll try to pick a favorite and post a photo.

Tough decisions made.......

For the one I own, a 1910 Cron-Kills (Piqua, OH) Slant Front Desk, aka Ladies Desk. Catalogue #1010. All QSWO, hammered solid bronze hardware, and original finish. This crappy photo doesn't do it justice. We found it in an antique shop near Lake Michigan and brought it home upside down in the backseat of a VW Beetle Convertible. It was quite an adventure






For the one I made, this 2009 original hall table I made to kill time while out of work when the economy tanked. All QSWO with pegged through tenons.

[Tom M King]

A late 17th, or very early 18th Century six board chest, built from Santa Domingan Mahogany. Quite possibly a ship's Captain's chest, which is pretty fitting, because my 7th, and 8th GGF's were ships captains. One brought Smallpox to Jamestown.

It is dovetailed, with mitered ends. Specific gravity is close to 1, as close as it could be measured, and weighed. It's Very heavy, even just the top.

There are only tiny remnants of the corroded original hardware. The second hinges were made from Coopers nails. Then a worn out pair of cast iron, late 18th Century hinges. Other than one corner of the protruding base being broken off, it's in pretty remarkable shape.

The only pictures I have, currently, are buried in a drawer with other 35mm pictures, and slides. It's in our bedroom though, so I'll try to remember to take some.

Our furniture it mostly all old antiques, but if there was a fire, this would be the first piece I'd drag out. It takes two Strong people to carry it.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

A late 17th, or very early 18th Century six board chest, built from Santa Domingan Mahogany. Quite possibly a ship's Captain's chest, which is pretty fitting, because my 7th, and 8th GGF's were ships captains. One brought Smallpox to Jamestown.

It is dovetailed, with mitered ends. Specific gravity is close to 1, as close as it could be measured, and weighed. It's Very heavy, even just the top.

There are only tiny remnants of the corroded original hardware. The second hinges were made from Coopers nails. Then a worn out pair of cast iron, late 18th Century hinges. Other than one corner of the protruding base being broken off, it's in pretty remarkable shape.

The only pictures I have, currently, are buried in a drawer with other 35mm pictures, and slides. It's in our bedroom though, so I'll try to remember to take some.

Our furniture it mostly all old antiques, but if there was a fire, this would be the first piece I'd drag out. It takes two Strong people to carry it.

I would really like to see that piece. Do you think it was made in the West Indies?

[Mel Fulks]

The 6 board mahogany chest sounds like a fine piece. That mahogany is the other ; and rarer one. Most of it was cut by 1820’s . Not as much
figure as the other one, but about 20 percent heavier. Was usually polished not coated. The trees are smaller than the more common
stuff.

[Tom M King]

Here's a poor picture of that chest. We're kind of crowded up, in that room with furniture shoved in it for now, with my 105 year old Mother moved in with us, so I don't have much room to get to it. Sorry for the iphone rotation.

[Tom M King]

This desk belonged to my Grandfather. The roll top still works like a new one. It's probably from the turn of the 20th Century, and one of the newer pieces of furniture in our house. The dog is one of our stud dogs, who believes he owns the world-he does.

[Larry Frank]

My favorite is the Maloof style rocker. I enjoyed working with Bill Kappel who taught me how to do it. It was a long process and work but very rewarding.

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[John K Jordan]

Mine favorite is simple and functional. It's my favorite since we've used it daily in two houses for over 40 years, the center point of the kitchen.

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No fancy joinery. Made from hard maple, legs, shelf, top glued up. Built this when my shop consisted of a radial arm saw, a drill, two clamps, a hand plane, cabinet scrapers, and some sandpaper wrapped around a block of wood. Indestructible.

In this house it's in the middle of the kitchen central to fridge, microwave, convection oven, coffee pot, sink, counters, silverware drawer, range top, pantry, toaster oven, dish cabinets. Grandkids eat breakfast there, play with legos, used for rolling out pie dough, staging for salads, drinks, and leftovers, surface for chopping things, pounding chicken, setting down groceries before putting them away, making vanilla extract and limoncello, surface for emptying the dishwasher, great for sorting medicines, filling out birthday cards, browsing through cookbooks.

JKJ

[Mark Rainey]

Mine favorite is simple and functional. It's my favorite since we've used it daily in two houses for over 40 years, the center point of the kitchen.

kitchen-island.jpg

No fancy joinery. Made from hard maple, legs, shelf, top glued up. Built this when my shop consisted of a radial arm saw, a drill, two clamps, a hand plane, cabinet scrapers, and some sandpaper wrapped around a block of wood. Indestructible.

In this house it's in the middle of the kitchen central to fridge, microwave, convection oven, coffee pot, sink, counters, silverware drawer, range top, pantry, toaster oven, dish cabinets. Grandkids eat breakfast there, play with legos, used for rolling out pie dough, staging for salads, drinks, and leftovers, surface for chopping things, pounding chicken, setting down groceries before putting them away, making vanilla extract and limoncello, surface for emptying the dishwasher, great for sorting medicines, filling out birthday cards, browsing through cookbooks.

JKJ

Solid table John. Functioning for 40 years and still doing it's job.