Luís is a Story Teller with a very determined aesthetic sense. He loves elegance combined with the complexity of textures and depth of layers. He wanted a small end table that was fully functional and that would allow him to work on his couch in his living room. Yet he didn't want just a laptop pillow or something generic, he wanted something that would add beauty to his space not just function.
Luis sent me this as a reference. I liked the idea a lot. It was simple in a sophisticated way and it had great functionality. It could be an end table when needed but also a coffee table or even a small bench. The size was perfect for a waterfall table. I built a prototype out of pine for Luis showcasing what I meant by waterfall. I also knew I wanted a mix of a live edge with a sharp 90-degree edge. Luis was gracious enough to let me play with the idea. The prototype turned out nice, and Luis liked it although it was a little small.
Luis is also a maker, he makes connections, companies, he likes to improve people's lives. Naturally, this combination of characteristics plus his innate creativity meant he wasn't going to find what he was looking for just doing online shopping. It also meant he wanted to be an active part of the process of creation. This all was music to my ears so it started by him and me going to the lumber store and buying the wood together. Luck had it that when we arrived there was this gorgeous slab of Canary Wood (Amarillo). We looked for other woods out of curiosity, but we both knew what we wanted right away. Later on, I would discover that this wood came all the way from Colombia, where I am from and where Yami, Luis's wife, is also from.
The slab was so well planned and milled that it just needed some smoothing and cutting. This presented a problem because Luis had told me how the use of epoxy on wood was catching his attention. I wanted to shape something with epoxy for him, but the wood had very few defects and it didn’t need it. UNTIL IT DID! When I was cutting through the straight edge, a hidden knot came up and broke. Usually, a problem, but this was a wonderful moment - I had my epoxy hole. It was hard to fit and it required patience and lots of sanding, but it turned out great and I knew it would make a nice surprise for Luis. After that, it was all cutting and smoothing. I ploughed through that process with love and care and speed. I used a card scraper to minimize my impact on the wood while bringing out its natural luster. I used a still brush to clean the live edge, retaining its natural flow and removing all the dead bark. I inserted 9 dowels on each join and glued that thing together while smiling with pride. I knew the angles were square and the table was strong enough to hold all we wanted.
The magic started when I added the finish. I chose Odie's oil; it requires more elbow grease, but it is non-toxic and gives depth to the colors and a solid protection. When I applied it on the side, the waterfall effect came in full effect and I was in love with the thing. The leftover scraps were so gorgeous I knew I couldn’t just burn them, so I cut them and made some coasters that turned out just beautiful. I knew Yami would be happy as she would see that the patterns created by the wood were the ones we both grew up seeing in the clothes and mochilas of our beautiful country.
Luis took his mesoncito to his house and our objective was achieved; it elevated his space and gave him new working space that is inspiring and beautiful
