What We Do

In an attempt to minimize our impact on the environment and to encourage others to do the same Artisan Lumber advocates for a rediscovery and celebration of domestic hardwoods, especially those harvested in an environmentally responsible way. Are floors made using the tropical hardwood ipe beautiful? Yes, if done right. Are typical harvesting practices for these and other tropical hardwoods sustainable? No, they are not. Considerations of the environmental impact of shipping these woods alone are enough to bring into question the value of using these woods in good conscience. North America is home to some of the most sought after hardwoods in the world today, and they grow right here in our backyard! Consider a floor in black walnut, zero sapwood, long tight-grained boards, or old growth red oak, no defects, quartersawn, tight grained with fine-lined subtle flaming. For most any unsustainably harvested tropical hardwood there is a corresponding appropriate domestic alternative, and arguably more suitable in many cases, regard for culture and tradition notwithstanding.

Tree and Log Selection

Our method of selecting trees and logs is a careful one involving a number of important considerations including the age of the tree vs. its girth, where the first branches show up along the trunk, what kind of crotch wood might be produced, and indicators of figure ascertainable by way of a close inspection of the bark (and in the case of logs a look at the end grain). The quality of wood we provide is determined largely by the quality of the logs we start with.

In wood working the term "old growth" conjures a sense of tradition and enduring. For our purposes the term indicates a function of the age of the tree versus its girth. Ironically some of the best "old growth" trees in the country are to be found in courtyards and town and city parks throughout the country, having grown under less than ideal conditions for the health of the tree (shorter seasons, salt water run-off from melting snow in spring, lawns running under a tree's canopy, etc.). The further away from optimal growing conditions for a given tree one moves the slower that tree grows; the slower the tree grows the tighter the growth rings will be, thus producing wood with greater structural integrity and in most cases better figure. In this way the "old growth" we are looking for is actually "slow growth". Tight growth rings, and tightly spaced grain, makes wood more stable, which means less expansion and contractions with changes in humidity. Such wood can be a true pleasure to with.

Old growth means virgin timber, ie. nobody has ever cut trees and re-planted, so you can get very large logs yet with tight growth rings. Many of the trees come from residential (old New England farms) and even urban sources, which yield old-growth quality wood in an environmentally friendly manner that does not require large-scale destruction of forests or other wildlife habitat. Again, we do not buy logs from clear-cutting operations or logging firms.

Cutting Method

You can't make good lumber from bad logs, but you can make bad lumber from good logs. So in addition to selecting the best wood, they must be cut properly. How we cut our logs depends upon what kind of lumber we are aiming to produce. Here are the categories:

Flitch Set

A log whose boards are kept in the original order in which they were sawn. Flitch sets are unique and are ideal in applications where book matching or slip matching are desired or where for purposes of continuity and consistency wood from the same log is required for an entire project such as a library or kitchen.

Boule Set

Wood deriving from the same log but the boards are in no particular order. Slightly less expensive, but lacking the ease of bookmatching, boules are ideal for pieces or projects where similar grain and color are desired throughout.

Lumber

Wood cut into any number of thicknesses and/or widths and lengths. Knowing an application in advance can be helpful in determining the best cuts to make for a given log.

Quartersawn

The log is first quartered (hence the name 'quartersawn'), then cut such that the annual rings on any given board form at least a 45 degree angle when viewing the face.

Riftsawn

Logs that are sawed radially such that broader side of the board is roughly perpendicular to the annual rings.

Plainsawn

The simplest way to slice a log: once canted the log is sliced into boards from top to bottom resulting in a range from riftsawn to quartersawn (where the quartersawn boards are actually two in one board bisected by the center of the log)

Stickering and Drying (air and kiln)

Drying stickers, uniformly thin strips of wood used to separate layers of boards in the drying process, are utilized in order to ensure an even airflow when drying. Stickered lumber is bundled with blocks and stored in a clean, dry and shady spot where the breeze can flow through the various layers.

Green (freshly cut) wood has a high moisture content (MC) and must be dried before being suitable for many uses. Optimal drying conditions vary depending on the species. Uneven drying can cause checking and splitting, and so we often start by sealing the ends of freshly cut logs. Once a log has been cut and the boards stickered and bundled, the air drying continues. Depending on the thickness of the boards, the species, and the prevailing weather conditions, this can go for anywhere from a few days to several years. When we need more elaborate control over the rates at which MC is reduced, we use a kiln. Through careful placement of board loads and use of air flow baffles and fans, we can control the drying rate over the duration of the kiln phase.

Grading

We generally only acquire and cut logs that yield the highest grade of lumber, and we grade on the conservative side of industry standard meaning that our customers are always thrilled with the quality of wood they receive. We do not deal in lower grade lumber.

Milling

We offer a series of lumber milling services including edge jointing, sanding, and surfacing as well as various profile cuts. We are happy to discuss the possibilities with you--just pick up the phone and call today!

Cataloging

After a flitch set is stickered, it is ready to be recorded into our inventory. We measure each board, taking care to note any special qualities or, in some cases, defects. Then we assign an inventory number, take some photographs, and enter this information into our online database. The items are then available on our website for public viewing. When an item is purchased or reserved, it is marked as no longer available, but the catalog entry is preserved for posterity.