• Add to a desk or eat-in bar. Another creative option is to integrate a wood countertop or butcher block into a raised or lower desk or eat-in bar area. By integrating wood into a granite surface, you break up long lengths of stone and add not just warmth and texture, but a custom feel that won’t look like every other kitchen on the block.

CUSTOMIZE TO THE HOMEOWNER’S LIFESTYLE

A kitchen that is truly a custom creation is one that reflects the homeowner’s lifestyle and personality. If you’re incorporating wood countertops, consider where and how they would best complement your clients’ functional needs.

• For cooks. For instance, a homeowner who loves to cook would benefit from adding a butcher-block portion to the countertop that has been finished with a food-safe penetrating oil. It can be used to prepare food and chop vegetables.

• For wine lovers. Wine enthusiasts may want to replace the granite by their wet bar with wood that uses a penetrating crosslinked tung oil finish. This tough, durable finish will repel wine spills and gives the area a look you’ll find at an upscale winery or a high-end wine cellar.

• For coffee lovers. Similarly, for coffee lovers—whether they have their own cappuccino machine or a single-serve coffee maker—a wood countertop can be used to articulate their own coffee bar and make it stand out.

EXPERIMENT

Once the location of the wood countertop is decided, it’s time to choose the wood species—and there are a lot of choices.

Domestic species abound, ranging from cherry, maple, hickory to black walnut. In addition, woods come in a variety of exotic species, including zebrawood, wenge and teak, all of which will add color, texture and warmth to a kitchen. Can’t decide on just one wood? Consider a checkerboard wood countertop that combines two different species for a unique punch of color.

Like a rustic appearance? Specify a distressed wood top, a process done by hand that adds age and patina to the wood from the get-go. There are also green wood options, like bamboo and lyptus, or reclaimed wood that has been repurposed as a countertop from an old barn, warehouse or home that has been torn down.

Avoid matching your clients’ wood countertops to their wood cabinets, hardwood floor or even an existing granite countertop. Pick a color that will accent the kitchen and coordinate with the other colors. You may also want to keep your use of woods to the same color family by sticking, for example, with browns, red tones, gray-green tones or light woods, such as heart pine or maple.

Here’s an example. In a kitchen with antique heart pine floors that are a pale gold color, you may want to choose cabinets that are stained a dark mahogany and a reclaimed beech wood countertop with an overall golden background and fairly dark knots. This will allow the floor, counter and cabinets blend together nicely.

By Brad Baker

Like fashion, kitchen design is cyclical. Ten years ago, granite was all the rage and everyone wanted it. It was prestigious to have granite counters in your home. Today, everyone has them, and wood may be the surface homeowners aspire to own. Europe, which often leads the U.S. in trends, is moving toward wood countertops. For instance, in Scandinavia, wood countertops represent 40 percent of the market share, whereas here in the U.S., wood currently holds about seven percent market share.

But that may be changing, as designers and homeowners look for different materials to create a kitchen that is distinct, fresh and current, both visually and functionally. This has become even more critical, as kitchens are increasingly the focal point of most homes and, as such, a showpiece.

CUES & FACTORS

As a designer, you may know all the benefits of wood countertops—warmth, durability, beauty, longevity—but how do you convey this to a homeowner? Some homeowners, of course, may be more inclined than others to entertain the idea of incorporating wood into their kitchen, but how do you find that all out? Following is a list of key words or phrases that could serve as tip-offs:

• “I want something different.”

• “I want my kitchen to be a centerpiece.”

• “I’m only looking to spruce up my kitchen.”

• “I only want my countertop replaced.”

• “I only want my island replaced.”

• “I want an island.”

You may also want to consider:

• What else is in their kitchen? Another way to identify the ideal wood customer is by the other products in their kitchen. If they are buying custom cabinets and commercial-grade appliances, they are definitely prospects for wood surfaces. They may not be happy with a cookie-cutter kitchen surface and would be open to, say, mixing materials for a more individualized look.

Homeowners who opt for custom cabinetry are the perfect prospects for a solid wood countertop.

• What is their kitchen budget? When you walk into their kitchen, what do you see? Appliances, countertops, cabinet faces, backsplash, hardware and fixtures. Those are the areas where homeowners spend the majority of their budget. As their advisor, look at the total amount of money budgeted and break down the amount to own a wood surface as a percentage of the entire project. For example, someone buying granite perimeter countertops could upgrade the centerpiece of their kitchen—their island—to a solid wood top starting at roughly 10 percent more than that they would spend on, for example, their granite island alone.

MYTHS & ADVANTAGES

Cite the advantages of wood. There are a lot of myths in the marketplace about wood. Now is the time to debunk them.

• Contrary to popular belief, wood is enduring. In the 1800s, wood countertops were used in the very best kitchens and remained the first choice in countertop materials until shortly after World War II when laminate and ceramic tile became two other options for kitchen countertops.

• There are numerous practical benefits. In addition to being durable, it is waterproof and food-safe. And depending upon the finish chosen, wood countertops provide a maintenance-free, worry-free surface.

• Wood is warm to the touch, as well as the eye, which is a plus, as today’s kitchens often serve as the hub of family life and more consumers are spending more time at home.

• It is a green option. In addition to those made from species that are harvested from certified forests, there are also rapidly renewable options, such as bamboo and lyptus, as well as reclaimed wood alternatives. These surfaces are made of wood repurposed from old warehouses, homes or barns that are being torn down into a new countertop—the epitome of recycling.

Green options include lyptus, which can be mixed with granite for a richer look in any kitchen.

• Wood tops can be ordered with special hand distressing as well. This gives the surface a naturally aged patina from the outset.

Expertise creates loyalty. Honing your knowledge of specialty products, such as wood, and the confidence to present/sell them can help you create a niche that will protect you and your business. Currently, there are only a handful of specialty wood surface experts in the marketplace; you can be their singular expert.

Having a thorough knowledge of selling wood surfaces, gives you one more tool in your bag that will help you distinguish your customer and give them the kitchen of their dreams. Check back for the final installment of this four-part series, which will offer tips on how to design a kitchen with wood.

—Brad Baker is the director of sales for Craft-Art, Inc., a manufacturer of fine wood countertops.

By Craft-Art, Inc.

Specifying wood for a kitchen countertop, island or butcher block provides homeowners with plenty of opportunities to customize their kitchen surface to suit their individual tastes, personalities and lifestyles. The variety of species is broad, ranging from domestic and exotic woods to sustainable and reclaimed wood options—offering something for just about everyone. Once a decision has been made, the next step is selecting a construction style.

THREE STYLES

There are three different construction styles from which to choose.

• Plank style is a design-driven construction that is chosen to show off the wood’s grain and beauty. Plank style refers to a piece of wood that is laid flat to show off its grain characteristics and pattern. You’ll see all the nuances of the wood and the wavy grain patterns contribute to make plank style the most visual choice of all the construction styles. It is usually chosen to complement warm, rustic and vintage décors.

• Edge grain provides a harder, stronger construction that makes it the best choice for overhangs that are typically found in an island seating area. It can bear more weight without supports than any of the other construction styles. Historically, edge grain was the choice for butcher-block food prep areas. In this construction, the wood is laid on its edge, providing a very strong surface with a clean, linear appearance. The wood surface tends to have a uniform color without a lot of visible wood grain. Often homeowners will choose this style if they desire a contemporary, classic look.

• End grain is yet another construction style that is very popular for butcher blocks, chopping blocks or food preparation areas. Here, a piece of wood is stood on its end and many 2-in. x 2-in. ends become the surface, which gives the look of a checkerboard. Some end-grain construction countertops are subtle, using the same wood species to form a tone-on-tone offset checkerboard, while others are more dramatic and use contrasting dark and light woods to form a very visual checkerboard.

Of the three construction styles, end grain lends itself to smaller areas of the kitchen as a focal point, such as a food prep area or coffee bar. It is durable and can easily be fitted with an undermount sink but is not recommended for overhangs. If you’re looking for an edgy design, this is it. Whether constructed from the same wood species or contrasting woods, this surface option is very distinctive and eye-catching.

STYLE AND FINISHES

Although finishes were covered in Part 1 of this series, they do bear repeating, as choosing the right one can be critical to the health of your wood surface and its user. • Crosslinked penetrating tung oil finish can be used with all three styles can be finished with to seal and protect the wood. A penetrating tung oil finish will give each style the look of upscale fine wood furniture. Plank-style construction islands will have a slightly satin finish. Edge- and end-grain styles will have a slightly more matte finish.

Choose this finish if you plan to use a cutting board whenever you prepare food. The finish is durable and cleans up easily. Spills bead up, making it a low-maintenance, low-worry finish.

• Food safe penetrating oil finishes are ideal for use on edge and end grain constructions if they are to be used as butcher block food prep stations or chopping blocks. You can cut on the surface and any scratches can be easily sanded out.

This finish requires more maintenance than a tung oil finish and should be re-oiled every three to four weeks to maintain its beauty. Spills should be wiped up immediately. This matte finish would not be recommended for an island that uses plank-style construction.

Polyurethane and lacquer finishes should be avoided. Polyurethane and lacquer are not oil finishes that penetrate the wood but, rather, are put on in layers that sit atop the wood surface. Furniture makers use polyurethane to finish the wood because it is inexpensive and easily put into mass production. The problem with these finishes is that moisture can get underneath the layers and cause the dreaded white rings that often occur when a glass sits on a surface without a coaster. In addition, both polyurethane and lacquer can chip or flake off. Penetrating oil finishes will not do that.

Part three of this four-part series will look at how to sell wood countertops.

— Craft-Art, Inc., is a manufacturer of fine wood countertops and islands.

By Brad Baker

Suggest a butcher block, wood countertop or wood island to a homeowner and those born after 1940 may never have seen one, yet it used to be the cornerstone of the best homes. Today, wood countertops are making a comeback.

In Europe, which typically runs ahead of the U.S. in design trends, wood countertops are very popular. In Scandinavia alone, wood tops have better than 40 percent of the market share compared to the United States, where they hold about 7 percent currently. For kitchen and bath dealers, that figure alone represents a huge opportunity, provided they know the basic selling points of wood countertops.

CHOOSING A WOOD SPECIES

There are a number of wood species to choose from for a kitchen island or butcher block. Domestic and exotic wood species range in color from the palest beige to nearly black and everything in between. You can also choose from a broad range of thicknesses. For example, depending upon the construction style, a single piece of wood can be as thick as 6 in. There are also dozens of construction styles and edge profiles to choose from to complement the design styling of the kitchen.

Homeowners can choose from dozens of wood species and edge profile to make their wood countertop unique to their home and lifestyle.

If you’re price shopping, start at domestic hardwoods. They will be the most affordable. Some popular choices are maple, hickory and oak. If you’re in the market for something a little exotic and are prepared to pay—on average—60 to 120 percent more, wood species, such as teak, zebrawood and wenge, work well as countertops.

CHOOSING A FINISH

In addition to wood species, you’ll want to make sure that the countertop is properly finished. Three types of wood finishes are available:

1. Polyurethane finish. Typically, polyurethane is sprayed on and can turn brittle over time. Once the film is damaged by something falling on it or denting it, moisture can get underneath, which can look unsightly. When the finish fails, the moisture lifts the finish off the wood. Some vendors still use variants of this today.

2. Natural oil finishes, such as mineral oil, walnut oil or other natural oils, do not harden or seal the wood, but protect it. When using this finish, homeowners must routinely (every three to four weeks) re-oil their wood top to maintain its functionality and beauty. The benefit of this matte finish is that homeowners can use the entire surface as a chopping block and any scratches can be easily sanded out by the homeowner with a sheet of sandpaper.

3. Penetrating tung oil finish is very durable. It is the finish that was used originally to seal ocean-going ships. Today, it dries fast and flexible, so the finish won’t chip or break off around the corners. Because it penetrates into the wood, moisture can’t get underneath the surface, which prevents water rings. It is highly durable, resists most household chemicals and is highly moisture-resistant. This mid-gloss satin finish is typically chosen by the homeowners who use a separate cutting board and do not use sharp objects on the countertop without surface protection.

A penetrating tung oil finish will give a wood island the look of fine furniture that is still durable, easy to clean and warms up any room.

Most countertop scratches occur when a homeowner drags an unfinished ceramic plate, bowl or flower vase across the surface. Doing this will not only scratch wood, but may also scratch granite, slate, limestone and solid surface countertops. If scratching is a problem, consider a butcher block countertop or a distressed wood, which comes with a natural aged patina.

Likewise, the finish chosen will also have a lot to do with stain resistance. A penetrating tung oil finish will resist stains. Just wipe up stains or water as you would on any other surface.

Finally, any surface, whether it is wood, glass, tile or granite can retain bacteria. The real issue is whether homeowners disinfect their tops. No matter what surface you have, if you don’t disinfect it, bacteria will grow on it.

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY CHOICES

If you’re concerned about the environment (and who isn’t these days?), there are a number of green options available. You can choose domestic wood from a managed forest; fast-growing woods, such as bamboo or Lyptus; recycled sugar maple; and reclaimed wood from old barns and homes that are being torn down. Taking the wood from homes, businesses, warehouses or barns that are to be torn down and giving it new life as a countertop is perhaps the greenest option going.

Interested in learning more about wood countertops? Check back for Part 2, which will discuss the different construction styles available.

— Brad Baker is director of sales for Craft-Art, Inc., a manufacturer of fine wood countertops and islands.