Understated

I realize that the weekly featured item has not actually been very “weekly,” but trust me when I say there is good reason for that. We have a great deal of “finished product” pictures from our customers, but a good number of them are of legs that are already popular. That is certainly nothing to complain about. It is good to have pictures of legs that are much requested, because then you can send pictures to customers who want to give their customers ideas of what can be done with a certain piece.

However, I very much want to highlight legs that are more understated when they are not seen “in context.” I think there are a lot of very good items which provide “that certain something” for a piece, but often you cannot really tell that is the case until the piece is finished. While that is all well and good for the more adventurous woodworker, some of us want to know what a piece is going to look like before we get started!

However, this week we are going to look at a leg that is, indeed, already popular. There is also a very good reason for that. Friday marks Jason’s last day here at Osborne Wood Products, Inc. Jason and his family are off to the mission field (so please keep them in your prayers); and so he will not be working here with us anymore. We will greatly miss him, his lovely wife, and their two children.

To get ideas on what products to star the weekly series with, I asked everyone in the office what their favorite leg or product was, and one of Jason’s (because, really, how can you have only one?) is the 1450 – The Islander. Already a very popular leg, it was a tough job to pick only a few pictures to show you.

The Islander is substantial, yet graceful. It has a strong appearance as a two-square leg (A two-square leg is a leg with both a top block and a bottom block, or – in some cases – a stretcher block), and yet the vasing effect on the turning provides a certain elegance. It is easy to see why many have considered this leg a must-have for their kitchen island. Which brings me to how I chose pictures. One of our customers, a Mr. Levi Mize, has a website displaying some very high-quality pictures of our legs, which he has often used for various jobs. Well, one of these pictures is of the Islander leg being used for a bathroom vanity! The Islander does much to add to the stately appearance of this vanity!

Below you’ll find another Mize picture of a more typical application of The Islander. Again, the word that comes to mind is stately; even regal.

And, just because it is so very hard to choose, one more picture by Mr. Mize, just for effect.

I think it is plain to see why this leg is so well loved: It is not only strong and elegant, but also quite versatile, as well!