PREFINISHED AMERICAN WALNUT

These are some prefinished black walnut stairs. For these stairs, I custom built nosings and stained and finished walnut plywood for the risers and stringers. I also supplied raw walnut stock which I shaped, stained and finished to match the flooring to build custom stringer capping from. I also installed the baseboards on the winder treads after to complete the job.


This is the bottom half of the set of walnut stairs. Here you can better see the profile of the custom built nosings as well as the walnut plywood risers. Also you can see how nicely the custom made stringer capping finishes off the sides of the steps.

This is a #1 American or Black Walnut. In this grade it has a very nice variance of light and dark wood. With a higher select grade it would be more consistently dark brown. As attractive as it is, walnut is not a practical choice for flooring for most people. This is due to it being very soft. It rates at almost 30% softer than standard red oak.

PREFINISHED TIGERWOOD

This is Tigerwood. It has a unique appearance. With it's varrying red/brown undertones and bold dark striping it is unlike any other hardwood. It is another wood that will "ripen" over time. The body (red/brown) areas will darken over time, especially with sun exposure. Tigerwood wears very well as it is almost twice as hard as standard red oak.

PREFINISHED RED OAK

These are prefinished red oak stairs. The treads were made out of hardwood with custom finished nosings. The risers and stringers were made out of custom finished1/4" red oak plywood.

This is called a picture frame. It helps to provide a clean finish to a fireplace.

This is a red oak flushmount. It has been finished to match the hardwood.

This is 2 1/4" red oak. Notice how the step to the lowered family room is curved. For this I had to join, shape, sand and finish raw red oak to custom fit and match the curve and the hardwood.

This is standard 2 1/4" #1 red oak.

PREFINISHED MERBAU

Merbau is a wood from SouthEast Asia. It comes in a range of shades of browns and appears to have tiny gold flecks throughout it. It is said to be one of the most environmentally stable woods (it resists the expansion and contraction of the seasons very well). It is also very hard, about 1.5 times as hard as standard red oak.

PREFINISHED MAPLE

This is a #1 3.25" maple. The #1 refers to the grade or consistency of the wood, not the actual quality. The grades are clear, select, #1, #2 and rustic. The further from clear you go, the more color variation you get.

This is select maple. It has slight bit of variation but still very consistent. It was done in an expanding box pattern to replicate the shape of a dining room table. It brings a custom element to a formal dining room. Notice how the corners are all square butt joins, this was upon the clients request. It can also be done with mitred corners at 45 degrees.

This was done with 3.25" #1 maple as well. The floor was laid at 45 degrees for an added custom look. This is also usefull if the house has multiple joist directions. For this pattern I selected some of the darker boards to build the insets. I then filled the insets with selected lighter boards to help contrast the borders and make them a focal point.

PREFINISHED BRAZILLIAN CHERRY

3.25" Prefinished Brazillian Cherry is a very nice wood. It has a rich red color that will darken over time . It rates very hard (over twice as hard as standard red oak).

Here is a set of brazillian cherry stairs. For these I had to stain 1/4" brazillian cherry plywood and nosings to match.

This shows how the staircase is open on one side. For these I miter the corners of the nosings to turn and follow the step, then to turn again back into the drywall. This is called a return end and finishes the stair off with a complete and custom look.

This is a flush-mount heatvent. It is made out of raw brazillian cherry and then I custom finish it.

PREFINISHED BAMBOO STAIRS

For these stairs I use prefinished bamboo hardwood and nosings to make the steps. To form the risers and stringers I custom stain 1/4" bamboo plywood. These are in the carbonized color. Bamboo also comes in a much lighter, natural color.