» American Black Walnut (Juglans Nigra)

American black walnut is native to the USA it is the most valuable and desirable sustainable timber. Black walnut is a true walnut unlike African walnut (sometimes cunningly just called walnut) which is a tropical rainforest tree and part of the mahogany family (since our beginning in 1986 Chris Sharp Cabinets have refused to buy tropical timber). Our walnut selection policy at Chris Sharp Cabinets is based on colour, grain variety, and character, lack of sapwood, environmental integrity and seasoning.

» Colour of walnut in our furniture

The colour of the walnut we use in our furniture is vital to the look we are striving to achieve. What we aim for is a rich chocolate brown, with only a minimum of the paler brown steamed sap wood included on the face side, more sap may be included on the underside of tops and shelves and backs of doors provided it is brown steamed. This is achieved by using only certain sawmills and careful timber selection during manufacture in our workshop. However even within our boundaries there is still scope for some variation.

» Colour - General information.

American black walnut can vary in colour considerably from creamy white to grey in the sapwood and from pale brown to almost black in the heartwood. Prior to finishing the heartwood generally is a mid brown with a violet tint, but with a clear finish it is transformed dramatically to a much darker purely brown, over the following weeks with exposure to UV light the blue tones fade to become the classic rich chocolate brown with black grain.

» Grain and the different cuts - The Silvergrain.

American black walnut has a very pronounced grain, however unlike oak this is due to colour rather than texture. As previously stated walnut is brown with dark brown/black grain (annual rings) and a smooth silky texture.
Almost all American walnut is sawn tangentially (flat sawn, plain sawn, crown cut etc) this and the prevalence of large branches gives walnut a very wild and decorative grain.

» Grain variety in our furniture.

The walnut we use does not have any burr type figuring as in car dash-boards but can occasionally because of the reflective nature of the grain exhibit beautiful features such as ripple grain (similar to the grain on the back of a violin) or flame figuring (the confused grain at the junction of a cleft or very large branch). The overall look we're trying for is a rich exotic dark brown with a good variety of grain and occasional features where possible.

» How our walnut furniture is made.

Firstly our citrus and eight ranges are completely made here in Lincolnshire by our own team of local craftspeople. Our construction technique uses best practice based on 35 years experience in the furniture trade and a family cabinet making heritage going back four generations. We utilize virtually every joint in the book including mortise and tenon. Dovetail, dowel and high precision butt joints. Our use of materials is based on beauty strength stability and longevity and not on cost or ease, All of our tables. chairs and beds are made completely with the above mentioned American black walnut, our cabinets are constructed using the same solid walnut and where necessary very carefully selected Black walnut veneers. Every piece of furniture is made to order especially for each individual customer, work usually commences within a few days of order and may take up to two weeks from raw material to finished piece, our cycle of delivery is usually less than a week and a half

» How our walnut furniture is finished.

We offer two different finishes, our personal favourite is a clear lacquer, this is a durable, water resistant and maintenance free surface coating. the two part lacquer we use is a 20% sheen so should be considered between matt and eggshell and is baked on in an oven. This finish emphasises the beauty of the walnut whilst maintaining a natural appearance. The wax oil is as the name implies a mixture of organic (as opposed to mineral based) oils and waxes, as this oil soaks into rather than coats the walnut, the effect is to slightly dull down the grain and give an attractive matt finish. Many people do like the idea of furniture that will patinate with age and enjoy the maintenance process (a twice yearly buff with Danish oil), if this is you and particularly if you have a high traffic environment (kids) then wax oil is ideal.