Bow Front Console Tables
I had made quite a few straight console tables (aka "Sofa Tables" or "Hall Tables"), and I was really pining for a chance to do a curved or bow front version. I finally quit waiting for a "need" and just started making a mock-up.
I knew that it was going to typically consume too much time as I would make prototypes and work out the curve. As it turned out, I nailed it on the first full size mock up.
The top has a nice subtle bow front, and maybe less noticeable, the front apron is bowed out too, by means of a bent lamination, (as well as having the usual gentle arch).
The combination of the three understated curves creates a beautiful blend that reaches out just enough, but not so much that it would be called protruding. Without the apron being bowed out too, it looks like a huge design error. (Trust me, I had to confirm my suspicion.)
Since the beading on the bottom of the front apron needs to curve two ways and stay put, it requires some steam bending, which is always an amusing process.
The first one is exactly like the second in size and type of wood, except there's the added "Molten" finish to hit it out of the park. (I had to take this picture in front of my studio really fast. There's yet another "Why did the table cross the road" joke in there somewhere.)
The third was a custom order, a shortened version, which required a new curve on the top and on the apron in order to keep it all proportional.
All three pieces are curly sycamore veneer with solid cherry. They're sanded to a near polish, so the grain of the curly sycamore has a holographic effect as you walk by. Really nice.
Oh, and on the second one... yes that's a fly on the top. Sigh.
