Since we first started foraging trees downed from Sandy for various home design applications, we’ve been seeing salvaged tree furniture everywhere. We have trees in our heads!
We love the cubist desk, above made from massive hunks or redwood and eucalyptus. (If we had a crane to haul that 3-foot in diameter oak in the park home + a chain saw to cut it, we’d make one). But we’ll file the elegant idea in our minds for some future use.
…Then we came across these painted logs (if they’re even real), about which we have mixed feelings. It could be cool to paint our downed-by-Sanndy oak tree trunk stool a color, but we can’t bear to yet: we’re so enjoying its pure surprising treeness.
…then, of course, there are the thinner trees and branches that we’ve had our eye on.
…So many possibilities…
via Remodelista and French by Design
photos courtesy Mimi Giboin and Louise Desrosiers
Related posts: simple stacked salvaged wood side table
d-i-y asymmetrical plank bench
salvaged-wood bathtub, headboard, island, floor…
minimalist timber bed + trompe l’oeil bath
foraging fallen trees for diy’s
hurricane sandy: strange beauty amidst destruction
And then there’s the great recognition scene between Odysseus and Penelope, when she refuses to acknowledge that it is really her husband who has returned, until he uses their “secret sign” — the knowledge that years earlier he had personally built their bedroom around a growing tree, and turned the tree itself into one of the bedposts.
It’s great to use what Mother Nature has given you, however, I have to caution against bringing stumps, rounds and logs into your home. Quite often here in the West, the trees most susceptible to coming down in a storm have beetles or termites in them. They may look perfectly sound on the outside. Because of their nature of burrowing deep into a tree for the winter, you may not see any evidence until you bring that log into your house and it has a chance to warm up. Once inside, the stump warms up and the bug thinks spring has arrived and it’s time to burrow back out and into your home environment.
I had that happen with a lovely stump turned coffee table. Woke up one morning to find termites flying around the house. A way around that is to wrap the log in a large plastic trash bag and bring it inside for a few weeks. This will encourage the critters to leave the log and make their removal from your home a little more controllable.
Best wishes on your recovery from your readers in the West,
Cathy Koos Breazeal, Wildland Fire Forestry
GREAT. Thank you.
YIKES! Since I didn’t see any evidence of infestation, I just assumed the trees are fine. I really appreciate your info (and experience). So a question: If you let the tree dry in a plastic bag, will that not trap all the trees moisture and cause it to mildew or rot? AND…how long did it take for the termites to ‘wake up’ in your house?