How to read a wood grain

Stand at the short end of any solid-wood table and look down its length. The lines you see — some tight, some wandering — are annual rings met at an angle, and they tell you almost everything about the piece.

Tight, parallel lines mean slow growth and hard timber; the tree took its time and the table will too. Wide, swooping figures mean the cut passed near a branch or through tension wood — more dramatic to look at, slightly more restless through the seasons.

At the atelier we match grain the way a tailor matches stripes across a seam. On a Longford, the slab decides; our only job is not to interrupt it. When your piece arrives, find the tightest lines and lay the table so they catch the morning light. You'll see why we kept that log.