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NOLA Tables


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Introduction
We've recently completed a suite of tables for NOLA Brunch & Beignets, a new San Antonio restaurant run by Pieter and Susan Kaars-Sypestyn of Cookhouse fame.  These tables were designed especially for the restaurant.  The food and atmosphere at the Cookhouse and NOLA draw from deep sources of inspiration: the blend of cultures in New Orleans, the specific and complex climate and local resources, and the distinct foodways of the region.  The architecture, interiors, and furnishings of the new restaurant draw from the same inspiration.  We have blended the historic with the new, and reworked what some would see as discards into centerpieces.
Longleaf Pine
The tables all feature reclaimed longleaf pine, salvaged from a hundred-year-old demolished house a bit south of the new restaurant, on Elmira Street.  Longleaf pine forests once covered millions of acres of the southern United States.  This availability translated into tremendous commercial value once power harvesting equipment was invented, and huge logging operations transformed the old-growth forests into billions of cubic feet of lumber.  The prime period for these operations started in 1880 or so, working gradually west from the East Coast into Texas.  Old-growth longleaf pine was logged out by 1930.  
 
The shipping capabilities of the railroads, combined with the relative proximity of early 1900s pine logging operations to San Antonio, mean that most houses built in the first part of the 20th century in the city feature longleaf pine.  Everything from framing lumber to siding to flooring was produced.  Tobin Hill, the neighborhood in which NOLA is located, was built out in exactly this time period.  Longleaf pine was used extensively in these homes.

Below: the historic range of longleaf pine (gray) with remaining and replanted stands in the 1970s (red dots).  Image from "History and Current Condition of Longleaf Pine in the Southern United States," published by the US Forest Service.
Longleaf Fabrication
The longleaf in the tables was fabricated from salvaged boards.  Before the common use of gypsum board (and in homes where plaster was out of reach due to its expense), 1x6 or 1x8 boards were nailed to studs to serve as a backing to wallpaper.  Paperhanger's canvas (a lightweight cotton gauze) was tacked to the boards, then wallpaper hung on the fabric.  It's these boards that we used, and we've left the tacks, nail holes, and bits of cotton fabric in place as a sort of palimpsest of the wood's history.
 
We ripped (that is, cut lengthwise into strips) the longleaf to expose its dramatic grain with alternating light and dark growth rings.  In some of the tables, the longleaf strips are laminated together with both cut grain faces and weathered board faces showing.  In others, radiata pine makes up the body of the table, contrasting with the darker, weathered (oxidized) longleaf.
 
The scent of cut longleaf is intoxicating.  It blends piney aromas with the sharper scent of turpentine.  Our wood stock came from different spots in the house, so as the boards were run through the table saw, other smells were released: memories of thousands of meals prepared in the kitchen, or the close, musty smell of clothes in the back of a closet.
Table Assembly
New radiata pine was used as a contrast to the darker, grainier longleaf.  Radiata is a much lighter, blond wood with tight grain.  Radiata is a trade name referring to plantation-grown, selectively-bred Monterey pine.  Its production is an interesting commentary on the modern timber industry.  Whereas the first generations of timber harvesting in this country were characterized by cutting old-growth trees, this new generation is almost entirely farmed products -- plantation-grown trees selected for a combination of fast growth and good physical characteristics.  It is cultivated across the world, and much of the United States' supply of radiata comes from other nations: Australia, New Zealand, and Chile.  Radiata is every bit as much a manufactured product as is your cellphone.
 
The laminated pine assemblies are fastened to plywood bases for strength and stability.  For NOLA, the tops are attached to standard restaurant table central pedestal bases, though we build custom bases for other applications.  The tops are finished with a matte water-based polyurethane for some stain resistance while keeping the character of the wood.  We avoided glossy finishes -- which are sometimes more durable -- because the history of the wood is the story of these tables.  Gloss would detract from that character, hiding the depth behind shiny glare.
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Want Your Own?
We fabricate limited numbers of the fixtures and furnishings we produce for individual sale.  Contact us if you're interested in a piece for your own home or business at [email protected].