Like snowflakes, no two pieces of wood are exactly alike. And you never know what you’ll find inside a piece of wood until you actually open it. Read on for more information on bookmatched slabs!
What is bookmatched lumber?
Like the look of an open book, bookmatching is the process of matching two wood surfaces. The trick is to find and reveal perfectly matched—or mirrored—patterns on each piece.
Carpenters and woodworkers often use bookmatching for higher-end furniture projects or for crafting beautiful wooden musical instruments like violins and guitars. Luxury car makers may also use bookmatching for their interior work.
To create bookmatched lumber pieces, you’ll need the right wood slab, a good saw, a good eye, and some patience and technique. When you open up a new piece of wood, you’ll be astounded at the variety of grains and patterns. Wood grains may range from delicate to dramatic and may include tiger striping, quilting, or bird’s eye markings.
No matter what project you have in mind, the wood experts at The Lumber Shack can help you find the perfect slab. We’re a family owned and operated business and are passionate about providing high-quality lumber and delivering superior customer service.
Our experienced sawyers hand select every piece of lumber we sell. We like to provide natural and untouched slabs so that the sky’s the limit when you create your own wooden masterpieces.
At the Lumber Shack, we specialize in black walnut and spalted maple slabs, so we always recommend those pieces for bookmatching. But a quick visit to our website will show a wide variety of wood types, price points, sizes and wood characteristics.
We have hundreds of bookmatched slabs for sale right now, but our selection grows every day. You can choose slabs ranging in price from under $25 up to $300 and more based on size, wood type, and characteristics.
Available Bookmatched Slabs
With our easy-to-navigate site and our simple filter, we make it a snap to select and sort by wood type and dimensions too. Any log can be bookmatched, but it takes a special eye and skill set to find the perfect logs as well as keep the flitches in order to be able to offer them as a log set. Some of the types of woods we have available in bookmatched stock include: Ash, Cedar, Hackberry, Maple, Oak, Walnut.
Once you find a piece that interests you, make sure to check out the detailed description to make sure it is a match for your project. For each specific piece of wood, you’ll find high-resolution pictures and incredibly detailed information ranging from width to length, color to characteristics, and live edges to imperfections. You can trust The Lumber Shack to provide all the information you need to select the perfect bookmatched slab.
Our experts would love to help with your next project. Check out our photo gallery for inspirational pieces or contact us through our online form, by calling 515-832-8733, through our Live Chat on our website, or by connecting with us on social media.
Happy building and happy bookmatching!