Reclaimed Rustics received a request for a custom wine glass rack/shelf. The size and stain color (dark walnut) were absolutes but the wood to be used was left up to me. I knew I could go to the local big box home store to find the exact, different sizes and type of wood that would make this project very simple (searching diligently for straight wood at these stores gets old real fast, by the way) but fine wine and old, reclaimed wood just seem to go together so I knew barn wood was the way to go. Not to mention perfection lacks character in this wood workers opinion. (Who hasn't been to a friends perfectly decorated house and felt uncomfortable (like little kids in a museum) to sit on the furniture, let alone step foot on the floor? I often wonder where they hide the "KEEP OFF, STAY OUT and DON'T TOUCH" signs. Anyway, being a Realtor (insert trademark sign here), I can tell you that there is a big difference between a house and a home). Having said that, reclaimed barn wood is very difficult to work with as it is usually twisted, cupped, warped, splintered and/or all of the above. Being that all the pieces making up this beautiful rustic wine rack were short, I was able to salvage decent pieces but that came at the expense of cutting into some of my longer stock.
One huge benefit came by shaving down cupped, 3/4' pine T&G in the table saw. I was able to achieve a natural sloping of the wood holding the wine glass bases that will allow for a thicker, longer flute. All the pieces were cut, sanded, torched, sanded, stained, sanded, sealed, sanded, sealed, sanded, sealed, sanded and waxed (whew).
Here's the cool thing about this Rustic Wine Rack...It's brand new and over 100 years old! I reclaimed the wood from an old wood hut built in the early 1900's, I am not a wine connoisseur but I do understand that some wines do get better with age. I believe the same to be true about wood.
