NO LIMITS Live Edge Customs
Slab to FAB (Functional Art Bed)
Background
The main bedroom is undergoing a number of changes (new floors, paint, etc.) and rather than replace the existing furniture with a traditional bed suite I imagined the bed being the focal point of the room with texture, dimension and weight to compliment the space. In short the bed would be functional art with a live edge design as the natural choice.
Why Live Edge
For me there are two flavours of live edge: Rustic almost primitive pieces that highlight the wood in its very natural state, beautiful but not what this project needed. The second uses more refined techniques (custom epoxy, wire wheeling, enhanced sanding and a ton of other things I will no doubt learn in later stages) to preserve the wildness of the wood while enhancing its unique characteristics – basically making bold art from the wood itself.
Musings of a Project
While I had some work to do selecting the overall look for bed, choosing the designer and builder was easy: Nathan from NO LIMITS Live Edge Customs was my choice out of the gate. We have worked together before (full disclosure, he did the work and I provided input) on a live edge appliance bench that is beautiful, refined and functional.
Looking at a number of sample beds online I was able to see “the art of the possible” and with a bit of digging found a few examples that captured my vision. I then shared my “picks” with Nathan so he had an idea of what I was looking for.
The Slab
The slab is the raw piece of wood that is the canvas for the project. My requirement for a king size bed with a substantial headboard and a footboard along with lighter coloured wood helped narrow down the search in the showroom. Nathan found a Manitoba maple slab that was the right size and colour however I couldn’t see any of the character (except a tiny bit of bug damage) I was expecting until he sprinkled some water on it. Boom! Feathers, bird beaks (there is a technical term that I can’t remember) and a ton of other characteristics that were hiding under the surface waiting to be drawn out and highlighted. Slab selected. Huge win.
The slab was acclimatized for three weeks before it was sent to the mill.
Off to the Mill
The slab is too big to be planed at the shop so it was sent offsite to a mill. Planing reduces the thickness of the slab making it easier to work with and also smooths out the wood (which was originally cut with an Alaskan chainsaw mill).
Bertha (as the slab is now called) came back from the mill and the transformation is amazing. It was smoothed and while the features I saw during the initial selection have changed, they are just as striking, there are now far more of them and they will stay and be enhanced.
Bertha Speaks!
Sounds crazy but it’s true and I finally heard her! During a consultation with Nathan, he began revealing the crevices that were hiding in the rotted areas of the slab. It was amazing! Initially I thought there would be one hole that would pass through the slab but instead there are actually three! They are topographic with curves, bumps and even peaks! During an earlier meeting we had agreed on 2 epoxy samples (one a pearlized grey and the second a deep pearlized copper) to stabilize the wood but it became apparent (to me anyway) that so much texture and interest was contained in the holes, along with a couple of the surface markings and some of the rot on the edge of the slab it made no sense to hide these treasures. He suggested filling those with a clear epoxy and backlighting the holes to make them stand out once the headboard is installed. The smaller marks on the wood will be filled with the copper epoxy that is the dominant colour nearby.
The second major change (thank goodness Nathan is such an experienced, accommodating and gifted artist!!) will be to skip cutting Bertha into a head and footboard. Instead the whole slab (approximately 139” of her) will be a headboard. This poses a challenge in that one end of the board has a straight edge cut (in the world of live edge – boring) and so Nathan will mimic a live edge cut to “funk up” the edge. The footboard (and side rails) will be made of 100+ year old maple boards that were dredged out of a local lake adding some more character and history to the piece. That is a whole different project.
The live edge of the slab will be wire wheel (as opposed to sanded) to give it amazing texture.
A very productive meeting with many important decisions made. I can’t wait to see the slab as the work progresses!
Patience – which I don’t have an abundance of….
I was hoping the epoxy would be poured shortly after the meeting however Bertha had other ideas: As the rot was removed and the areas dried, sometimes more loose materials appeared. To ensure the epoxy has a strong surface to bond with, Nathan continued to dig, let the surroundings dry and test the stability of the areas for a couple of weeks. A time consuming but absolutely necessary step to ensure the slab stays stable.
It’s Epoxy Time!
After many hours of digging, Bertha is stable and ready for epoxy! I marked the colour (or not) of every hole and divot that was to receive epoxy. Lines to mimic a live edge were drawn where there were dimensional cuts. A saw was used to cut the lines.
Epoxy Time (con't)
Bertha was flipped (which is no easy feat) and all openings and edges were taped. Nathan mixed a batch of copper epoxy and the moment of truth was here! Using a plastic syringe, the openings where injected with epoxy. Several passes were required in some cases as the epoxy ran into and filled the crevices. Bertha was left to cure over the weekend.
Four days later, Bertha was flipped to her “right side” for the final pours (yes there will be more than one). Nathan then mixed two batches of epoxy: one clear and one copper and poured the epoxy as per the markings made earlier. Some of the crevices were huge and couldn’t be filled at one time but a base was established and the epoxy will set for a couple of days before being topped up.
The First Reveal
After a third epoxy pour, Bertha was left over the weekend to cure. The tape identifying the pour colours was removed, she was flipped and the tape preventing the epoxy from running through any holes was also removed. Even though this is the non-visible side of the slab it will be sanded so the finish/stabilizing oil is fully absorbed. The sanding is going to take many hours and tremendous patience on Nathan’s part.
A Beautiful View Few Will Ever See
After the non-visible side was sanded, Nathan applied a liberal coat of sealing and stabilizing oil. The character drawn out is breathtaking., the sheen is gorgeous and sadly very few people will ever see it. If this is the less showy side I can hardly image what the visible side will look like!!!!
Her Beauty Shines!
Bertha was flipped to her “good” side. Once again Nathan was on sanding duty and each sanding uncovered new and more interesting colours and patterns! Several new gold hues were uncovered that are absolutely breathtaking. Wherever possible Nathan avoided sanding over the epoxy to keep it perfectly clear, however if the epoxy was sanded it became cloudy. While I was concerned (more than once) Nathan pointed out it would clear up when oiled. Whew!
After the final sand and clean, Nathan applied the stabilizing oil to the edge and then the whole exposed slab. Bertha drank up the oil and she looks incredible. She is going to sit overnight and will get her second and final oiling tomorrow!
The Final Oiling!!!
Nathan prepped Bertha for her final oiling by wiping off the excess that had accumulated in the epoxy pockets and applied a second coat. Once again she drank up the oil. The contrast and colours are epic. When I looked at pictures of the original slab and compare them to this gorgeous work of art I can hardly believe it! She is going to sit over the weekend before she is transported and final preparations are made to install her.
The Install and we’re done (well kind of)….
Getting Bertha to my house, then through my house to my bedroom was an incredible feat of strength! I can hardly believe the two guys were able to get it from the driveway to the bedroom without incident but they did!!! Bertha was put facedown on my mattress so the top half of the fastener could be applied. There was a ton of measuring, stud finding and drilling that took place to make sure she was positioned perfectly the first time as she is far too heavy to move around.
The Final Product
The string of LED lights was fastened to the slab and the moment of truth arrived. The guys hoisted Bertha up on the wall and she was rock steady. I heaved a sigh of relief and shed a few tears of happiness. She is home and unbelievably beautiful, far more striking than I had ever expected. My vision has been exceeded. Next up the bedframe and nightstands…..