Custom Cypress Table From the Bottom of the Withlacoochee River

In this recent project, a client had obtained a large quantity of cypress that was pulled out of the Withlacoochee river about 40 years ago located in northern Polk county, Florida. The river runs north then west into the Gulf of Mexico. Old wood such as cypress and pitch pine are often obtained from these sources, wood that did not make it to its original destination, and sank to the bottom of the rivers or bodies of water that saturated it.

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 Cypress is a Florida tree common to this area, much of the wood had been milled into planks some about 1 inch thick and some 2 inches thick of various widths. These rough lumber pieces were cut and planed further to obtain nicer pieces to glue up into larger pieces to make the parts of the table.

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The table is approximately 40 inches wide and 30 inches tall, and has a beam under the center running lengthwise about 8 inches wide and 1 1/2 inches thick with a flat piece about this rabbited into the two end legs which are approximately 24 inches wide by 1 1/2 inches thick.

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The table length is 14 feet divided into two sections joined together at 7 feet long. A lacquer finish has been applied without any stain to reveal the true colors of the cypress wood which has much character and grain patterns to enjoy.

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The top section is planed to 7/8 inches thick and the outside edge is rounded slightly to make the table more user friendly. L brackets are added to the ends just inside the legs at the outside edge to add stability.

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Custom Cabinets Over AC Return with Mantel Effect

The following cabinets were designed for an old house in South Tampa which had an air conditioning return vent off center in the wall. The photo below, taken with my phone (will be updated later with finished pictures) shows the cabinets in place with a coat of primer, sanded, and some caulking done. The air conditioner return is in the middle section right behind the double doors which have a decorative grating panel that is also painted, which allows the air to return through the doors back to the air conditioner unit which is behind the wall in a storage room.

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The base cabinets are about 16 and 18 inches deep center section extended. Adjustable shelves in all cabinets except air return. A TV will be mounted above the mantel shelf center. Once cabinet is finished painted, additional photos will be posted here.

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Cabinet doors are inset to reflect an older style that is actually a higher quality looking design than overlay doors today. Unfortunately, the photos are not as good as my other camera, so looking forward to taking better pics.

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The center section is extended with a pilaster effect at corners as a method to create the mantel effect while adding decorative vertical pieces under shelf, and making shelf thicker with a moulding on the face as similarly at the top of upper cabinets. The baseboard was milled to match existing.

More pictures will be posted when ready.