Monday, January 9, 2012

Beauty in the Rough: Reclaimed Barnwood





This was the old barn...it had to go because it became very dangerous.  


It was very sad to us, but we saved the wood siding and a few of the beautiful beams that were hand-hewn--before we pulled it down.


But now, we can see it repurposed, reused!  




The guys are working behind the new barn we put up to take the place of the old one.  None of the character, but it's bigger, has power, and the stuff in it sure stays much more dry!  :0)





Recently, I've been sifting through my photo files and I've found several stories I never told you.


And this is one of them.


Taking this big pile of old barnwood siding and making it into usable wood for projects for us is my son and husband tackled one really, really, really hot summer afternoon.  (In fact, it was so hot, when I took the camera outside from the central air in the house, the lens immediately fogged over and I had to wait several minutes to warm it up!)


He'd bought a new planer and wanted to try it out.  









He set up his work area and got busy.


I had to watch!







I loved watching the wood smooth out and clean up.
























Even Luke got in on the action!







Isn't it beautiful!!?  


So much potential!








The top layers of the wood are very dry, and very splintery, it's difficult to use that way.  


Getting at the beauty underneath the dried out surface is where we want to go.


I love the smell of the fresh layer of wood coming out.








The places where the animals chewed up or rubbed are especially wonderful to me.  The wormholes, the knots, all of the marks are beautiful!  


The piece above here is obviously from a stall inside the barn, and is in very good shape for the barn being at least 115.  I love that.








I have uses in mind for this wood, and can't wait until we can see some of it put to use.  


We've done one project so far, just a small one; a picture rail.  














I can see a beautiful farmhouse kitchen table out of this.  I've found some projects online.  


(Pinterest is a wonderful place for keeping track of project like this--so you can find them when you need them; have you discovered this crack cocaine of the internet?!  WOW!)













Below is the first project we want to do:

Toddler bed 
(For Levi when he graduates from his crib!)



And....here are the tables I'm looking at.  


Simple and yet beautiful, and even more special because it would have come from our old barns.



















These are such exciting possibilities!!


I hope to soon be able to show you the results of our work...which table would you choose?




12 comments:

Sister Number Five said...

I like the 1st one; the table that has a border; it has room to expand & contract and will be more stable with the border (although that wood is very dry; it sure will doak up the finish!). It's fun to re-make old things into new. The bed would be an awesome project and keep the cowboy theme going for Levi. Good luck & keep us posted!

Unknown said...

Joni, it is wonderful to see this precious wood being used once again. It now brings premium $$ for those that see the potential uses of it. I love all the designs but the toddler bed is just darling.

Have a beautiful week ~
TTFN ~
Hugs,
Marydon

Dairy Air said...

The kitchen table with the mix-match chairs says LOVE before you even set a dish on it.

Great pictoral and I liked seeing your chick-chicks.

Shirley said...

Beautiful! I like the first table best, but that is just my opinion. They are all beautiful and I look forward to seeing your finished product.

camp and cottage living said...

Joni
I love all your table choices.
I can't wait to see what you do with all that wonderful wood!

Cousin B said...

Ohhh! You are sooo lucky to have that wood! There are SOOO many things to do with reclaimed barn wood now. I love all of your ideas too. Those will be very special pieces.

Becka said...

Love the wood!
Levi's bed will be adorable too.
I like the first picture you posted of the Farm Tables.
Oh - if only we were neighbors what fun we could have...
:) Becka

Brenda Evans said...

I like the first one because I love the look that it has a border and the wood is darker. All of them are quite beautiful tho. I love the smell of fresh wood - I can smell it from here. I didn't even know they made those type of planers - wow!

lil red hen said...

The first table resembles my Attic Heirlooms table by Broyhill, and I have a bench and four chairs also.

We made kitchen cabinets from oak harvested from our farm with little worm tunnels, etc.; the process of planing the wood, sawing, glueing them up, was so exciting.

~Christine~ said...

I LOVE old barn wood. What a great treasure you have! Good luck with all the future projects!

Becca's Dirt said...

I love that old barn and I would definately find uses for all that beautiful wood. I have just been introduced to Pinterest and am trying to feel my way around on it. I can see that I am going to love the website. Can't wait to see your projects.

Judy said...

Table #1. We have lots of barn wood stored at The Farm--my sister plans on using it when they renovate--she would love a table made of it I am sure--I will pass this post along to her.