Collection: Natural Flats

Kernels: Bill & Wahneta Haywood

Bill was a self-employed Management Forester for the majority of his professional career. He worked with private landowners in Iowa writing management plans for the purpose of growing their timber. Bill did the work in the timber which would entail
all or any of the following: crop tree selection and release, weed tree eradication, logging, and tree planting. During 36 years of working in the woods, he planted 2.2 million trees across the state of Iowa.

All Natural Flats wood was salvaged after completion of sustainable harvest operations conducted in Iowa woodlands. Damaged tree segments and tree forks are rejected by lumber mills and left to be burned or rot in the timber.

Because the waste wood had unique characteristics and an intense grain, Bill selectively reclaimed discarded forks. He cut them into slabs and completed the preservation process by first, air-drying and then kiln-drying over a three-year period. After retirement, he was able to transform the dried  flats into beautiful, functional pieces for the home.

Each flat is carefully worked to reveal the intense and art-like characteristics nature painted into the grain. It is hand-surfaced, sanded, and treated to produce a beautiful and durable finish. Each flat is unique. They are made into accent tables, coffee tables, benches, or a small work-space desks. Small end pieces are used to make cribbage boards.