A client's comment about their old kitchen table really stuck with me

I was finishing up a maple vanity install for a couple in their 70s. The wife pointed to their old, beat-up kitchen table and said, 'My dad built that for my mom in 1959. It's been through three houses and four kids. That's the kind of thing I want from you.' It wasn't about the fancy finish or the perfect joint, it was about building something that lasts a life. I've been thinking about that 'life' part ever since. How do you all approach building for longevity versus just building to a spec?

3 comments

3 Comments

casey2681d agoProlific Poster

Construction matters more than the materials.

jesse_smith101d ago

Wow, that story hits hard. So when you're picking materials now, does that comment actually change what you use? Like, do you go for a more expensive hardwood over something cheaper because you're thinking about that table in 2060, or is it more about the construction methods?

rose_clark811d ago

Wait, isn't the material choice part of the construction though? Like, you can dovetail a drawer perfectly, but if you use particle board for the main box, it's gonna swell and fail with the first spill. That old table was solid maple, not veneer over something else. So for me, longevity has to be both. The right wood joined the right way.