Practical Hint for Parts Replacement

Often a client will come into the shop with the remnants of an old spindle or somesuch part and say "Can you make one of these for my 'insert item here'? Sure....no problem! Would you like that in mahogany? "No, no, nooooooo! It needs to be in walnut to match the original!" I understand, I reply to a face that is now showning signs of not being sure if they picked the right 'wood guy' to tackle Aunt Bessie's heirloom. The cartoon thought balloon is now directly overhead and it clearly reads, "I'm trusting this family treasure to a moron who doesn't know his woods???" Wood Guy quickly jumps in seamlessly with a lesson for the common man. Most people tend to think that all woods will generally age or discolor in the same fashion. This is not usually the case. While many species of woods have similar aging characteristics, others are contrary by nature. A good example of this is the fact that while a wood such as mahogany (or mahoganogany as oldtimers will joke) tends to darken with age, walnut comparitively starts life in a rather purplely-brown state and mellows to a soft golden, caramel tone the older it gets. Often a freshly milled piece of mahogany will blend seamleesly with an old piece of walnut and conversely a new piece of walnut will be right at home in the middle of a mohagany antique. Most new, classically traditional designed, executive office furniture today is constructed to look like the original mahogany pieces of yesteryear but in fact are constructed of walnut with the red mahognay stain being the only traditional element. Always remember that Grain Structure & Appearance can go a long way in duplicating an original look even if you are 'mixing it up' when it comes to actual materials.