01
The Tenon Stool
White Oak / Natural Oil
Three legs, three through-tenons, wedged from above. Nothing holds it together but its own geometry.
Est. Workshop — Commissions Only
Bespoke furniture
for the patient soul.
Solid hardwood, hand-cut joinery, and a finish you can feel. Each piece is drawn, built, and signed by one pair of hands.
Commission a piece- Material
- Solid domestic hardwood
- Joinery
- Cut by hand, no fasteners
- Lead time
- 12 – 16 weeks
Selected Works
(01 — 02)
02
Field Credenza
American Cherry / Aged Brass
Book-matched figured cherry across four drawers and two doors. Cherry darkens for decades; this one has only started.
The Timbers
(01 — 04)Four species carry most of the work. Each is chosen for how it ages, moves, and takes a finish — not for fashion. Other domestic and exotic hardwoods are available for custom commissions.
01
Walnut
American Black / Oil Finish
Deep chocolate heartwood that deepens with age. Quiet, rich, and the first choice for a piece meant to anchor a room.
02
Hard Maple
Sugar Maple / Natural
Pale, almost luminous, with a tight, even grain. Reads as light and architectural where walnut reads as warmth.
03
White Oak
Quarter-sawn / Fumed or Oil
Rift and quarter-sawn for medullary fleck. Hard, stable, and the most honest expression of grain we work with.
04
Hickory
Shagbark / Hand-rubbed
Unapologetically bold — dramatic contrast between sapwood and heartwood. The strongest domestic hardwood we use.
Beyond these — cherry, ash, elm, and select exotic hardwoods are available by request for one-off custom pieces.
The Method
The slow way is the only way we know.
Step 01
Design Consultation
We begin with the room, not the catalogue. Proportions, species, and the way the piece will be lived with for the next fifty years.
Step 02
Honest Construction
Mortise and tenon, dovetail, wedge. Each joint is cut to fit by hand and allowed to move with the timber. No hidden fasteners, no shortcuts.
Step 03
Hand-Rubbed Finish
Four coats of a house-blended oil and wax, burnished between each. Silky, breathable, and repairable by hand for generations.
Start a conversation.
A handful of commissions are taken each year, one at a time. Tell us about the room, the use, and the wood you have in mind — the rest we work out together.
luke@greatplainswoodworks.orgWrite to the studioCurrent lead time 12 – 16 weeks