Finally Pictures! Craft Desk I Built

[JohnsonMBrandon]

These are pictures of the Craft Desk I built back around Christmas time. I'll only include links to the photos since they are a little large. This desk was requested to be a desk, that could be worked on standing up or sitting on a stool. Here are a couple pics. Its just simple dado case construction. The cases were made with maple ply. Ended up staining it after the recipient changed her mind on color. And as you can see was edged in both maple and cherry edging with cherry molding. Also the desk top was constructed out of cherry. I used a general finishes gel stain, and the waterlox to finish everything off.
http://ncwoodworker.net/gallery/files/1/5/2/Desk1.JPGhttp://ncwoodworker.net/gallery/files/1/5/2/Desk1.JPG
http://ncwoodworker.net/gallery/files/1/5/2/Desk2.JPG
http://ncwoodworker.net/gallery/files/1/5/2/Desk3.JPG

Let me know what you think. I welcome constructive criticism as well. Let me know what you guys think!

 

[erasmussen]

Thats great looking:eusa_clap

Whats it made out of?

 

[JohnsonMBrandon]

The desktop is out of Cherry. The stained part of the cases are maple ply that was stained. It was edged in both cherry and maple, and the molding is cherry.

 

[sapwood]

Brandon they are striking. :icon_thum
The wood contrast, fit, and finish are great :mrgreen:

Sapwood

 

[clowman]

Sharp looking Brandon. How did you finish it? That is one mirror like finish.

 

[Canuck]

Brandon,

That finish is great! (Just like a piece of glass was sitting on the top!) That cherry ply and molding look fabulous:eusa_clap :eusa_clap The contrast in finishes I must also say is great!

I am sure that the owner will display it with pride!

Wayne

 

[cskipper]

Brandon, you did a wonderful job! The choice of wood is excellent, the lines are great and the finish is amazing! :icon_thum

 

[JohnsonMBrandon]

The top is about 4-5 coats of waterlox original, topped off with 2 coats of waterlox gloss. I had a lot of trouble with waterlox gloss bubbling up, so I ended up rubbing it out, and bringing the final finish up with micromesh. FYI waterlox original is glossy as well, there probably wasn't a need for waterlox gloss, but I was following their reccomendations. The top is slick as glass as well.

 

[D L Ames]

Great looking craft desk Brandon. I love the contrast in colors and your stain and finish job looks top notch.:icon_thum

D L

 

[Monty]

Fantastic job. Looks like it will stand up to a lifetime of use!

 

[stoneskippers]

Excellent work and something that needs to be shown off.

 

[MarkW]

How could you criticize that. I love the design and the finish is excellent. I bet the customer was thrilled.

 

[Steve D]

Brandon,

That came out awesome. :icon_thum

 

[Travis Porter]

Overall I like it. How do you like gloss finishes on your furniture? I have historically used satin, as I thought that was supposed to be the "standard" with a few exceptions. Would you use gloss again on a desk?

 

[NCPete]

apologies to Michael Garner, that is SAAAAAA - WEEEEEEEET!

 

[RandyJ]

Beautiful job Brandon... Excellent choice of wood and finish.
Randy

 

[cpowell]

Brandon that is a very beautiful desk that will serve the generations proudly. It will be interesting to see how the look changes gradually as the cherry darkens.

I'm curious about the construction. The top is very large. How did you fasten to allow for seasonal movement?

Beautiful work!

Chuck

 

[skeeter]

Great looking desk. I like the whole concept: design, construction, wood contrast, and finish. Great job!

 

[JohnsonMBrandon]

Travis,

I doubt I would use waterlox gloss again. I normally don't like gloss either, but it just looked right with this desk. I thought about rubbing it out, but the grain just didn't pop the same. The cases were more of a satin look. I didn't put gloss on them. I was going to rub it out to a satin, but it just seemed right to leave it the way it was.

 

[4yanks]

Your desk looks great. I often see work that looks good, but not something I would like in my home. I would love to have that desk. Great work!!! As far as gloss finishes go; I think I read somewhere once that no matter what level of sheen you are looking to wind up with you should use a gloss. In order to produce satin or flat sheens (If have my facts straight) manufacturers put agents in the finish to retard drying. This means that slower drying finishes will have more time to collect airborne dust. When I want to flatten out the sheen I wax the surface with #0000 steel wool. How much sheen I loose is a matter of how much effort I put in with the steel wool. My opinion though is that desk looks great the way it is.