What Happened to King’s Fine Woodworking: A Closer Look at Its Journey

A Tale of Kings and Wood

So, grab your coffee, and let me tell you about a little adventure I had with my friend Jake over at King’s Fine Woodworking. Now, I’ve always known Jake to be a bit of a craftsman. I mean, the man can make a table look like a piece of art. We’d hang out, and he’d tell me about the joy he gets from swirling sawdust around, the hum of his band saw, and the smell of fresh cedar. And that’s how I got sucked into this whole thing—I thought, “How hard can it be?”

It all started with a project Jake wanted to tackle: a custom wood bench for his front porch. It sounded innocent enough. The kind of thing that’d make you smile every time you walk up to the house. Breakfast on the porch? Check. Relaxing with a good book? You bet. Well, like all things in life, it wasn’t that simple.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ply

Jake had this bright idea to use a mix of different types of wood—he’s always raving about how walnut pairs well with maple. I was all in, thinking how cool it would look, but we quickly learned that things don’t always mesh well in woodworking. We headed down to the local lumber yard, and I swear to you, the smell of fresh-cut wood is one of the best scents in the world. We decided on gorgeous dark walnut for the tabletop and some light maple for the legs. There’s something almost magical when you pick out the wood. I’ll never forget the way Jake held each piece up to the light, inspecting them like fine wine.

But here’s my first lesson learned: always double-check your measurements. Just before we got started, I was confident we could whip this thing up in a couple of evenings. I mean, how hard could it be to cut a few pieces and slap them together? Famous last words, right?

Cutting Corners (Literally)

We got to his garage, and man, it was like entering the holy land of woodworking. The sound of the table saw, the sweep of the sander, I was buzzing just standing there. But then—I don’t know if it was the coffee we had or the excitement—but I mismeasured the tabletop by, like, three inches. And when I went to cut the walnut, it felt like a sitcom moment. The blade snagged, and I looked down to see this poor, beautiful walnut board basically crying out, “What have you done?” I almost gave up right then and there. A small part of me thought about just running back to the lumber yard and buying a pre-made bench.

But Jake, being the optimist that he is, just chuckled and said, “Well, better to learn now than when we’re deep into staining it!” I have to say, that popped me back into the moment. So it turned into a bit of a puzzle; we ended up adjusting our cuts, and thank goodness for wood glue.

Gluing Is the Real Art

Can I just say? Gluing wood is like mixing a potion. When we slathered that wood glue on and clamped it down, it felt like something out of an alchemist’s book. I remember watching the two pieces of walnut fit together snugly, and there was this moment where the pieces just seemed to merge. Ah, the promise of what it could be! The orange-yellow of the glue creeping out the edges didn’t help much, though.

Then came sanding, and let me tell ya, I’ve never been happier to see sawdust in my life. There’s something about that soft feeling under your fingertips, the wood’s grain revealing itself like a secret. As I was sanding down the tabletop, the smoothness started to come through, and I laughed out loud when it actually worked. I felt like a maestro, conducting an orchestra of grains and finishes.

The Comeback Kid

We finally got to the finish stage, and here’s where patience really tested my resolve. I chose a waterproof varnish, because I figured out the hard way that nature has its own plans. The first coat went on smoothly, but Jake gave me the talk about how we needed to sand between coats. “More work? Are you kidding me?” I’ll confess, my commitment wavered a bit.

But sure enough, after the fourth coat, it glistened. Seriously, it was gorgeous. The deep browns and soft creams started to look alive. I nearly danced around the garage, and let’s be honest, we had a small celebration with some beers after that!

A Kings’ Welcome

When Jake finally pulled it to the porch, I felt like we were unveiling some epic masterpiece. The bench, with its character and imperfections, told the story of our weekends spent in that garage.

Here’s the kicker: I learned so much more than wood types and tools. I discovered the joy of collaboration, the thrill of overcoming mistakes, and the sheer satisfaction of building something by hand. I can hardly remember the specifics of the hours I spent on it—every mistake, every moment of doubt—it all blended into a rich flavor of experience.

Wrapping It Up

So, if you’re thinking about diving into woodworking, or any hands-on project, just go for it. Don’t let fear of mess-ups define your journey. Embrace the mistakes, enjoy the process, and who knows, you just might end up with something beautiful in the end. At the very least, you’ll have a story to tell over coffee, just like this one.