A friend has been redoing his master bath, as his time and energy allows.
I've been helping him. He's good company, a wealth of knowledge, and has
been a really good fellow for the 35 years or so I've known his family.
His wife got it into her head she wants a wooden vanity top. The base is
red oak, which Stan has finished to within an inch of it's life.
(Stanley's hobby has been making stringed instruments, for the fun of it.)
So he asked about oak - could I help him put something together?
I hemmed and hawed about the materials, and suggested we find something
more suitable. I've seen mahogany vanity tops, and teak, but I think that
might just break whatever budget there is, and may not give the look they
want.
Has anyone done ipe in this, or a similar application? Or another
tropical? Something darkish, and not $15/bf?
Tooling isn't a problem, and we can get almost anything in the SF Bay Area,
if we bring enough money. I'd like not to have to redo this one. That
bathroom has been 'in progress' for 18 months, at least.
Patriarch


A fellow attendee in the adult ed. class recently made a circular table top out
of ipe decking, all surfaced down to 5/8" thick from 3/4" original and for
the first time I could really see what it looks like as a color and a grain. It is
kinda ugly. Small grain structures of varying colors from browns to reddish
dark browns to yellows to greens, all tattered and somewhat "attacking"
designs in the grain, from subtle to bright. I was lucky to get some good
scraps of it. $2.70/LN locally = (2x 5-1/2" wide) $5/BF (or so), cheap
enough.

So, I would say ebonize to a very dark brown if it can be done. I am no expert
but it is the best decking there is that is not a composite board, to the tune of
lasting 25 years outside. Hard as h*** and heavy. It would work well for a
lady if colored right, merely as a "surface".

--
Alex
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/