David Laird, Spade handle tables (TABLES, CHAIRS, DESKS 2022)

Photos:

Richard Lord

This pair of side tables are carbon negative by design. Made from locally sourced English walnut that had been standing dead for a decade & 140 year old wind thrown elm. The table tops have been shaped from a crotch slab of a walnut tree to showcase the story the grain has to tell & the timber determines the shape of each unique piece. The legs on these table have been inspired by timber steam bent spade handles. I have made them firstly from careful grain selection, then the legs have been turned on the lathe green & split on the band saw part way. The legs were then steam bent on to a form & dried. Ash dowels were drilled & fitted in the opposite direction to the split. Twin tapered tenon's are formed on each elm leg. The walnut crotch slab top is fitted with matching through, tapered mortices at the two different leg angles for each leg, wedged & glued in place using hide glue to allow for repair to provide a longer service life for the end user & to sequester Carbon. The tables are finished in Osmo PolyX-Oil.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.