Rubio Monocoat, Festool combine for furniture and charity
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Team 1 in the Rubio Monocoat event designed and built Dominoes by the Beech, a couch made from two live edge beech slabs.

Makers from around the country came to Rubio Monocoat’s facility in Austin, Texas for a two-day furniture-making workshop that produced four furniture pieces for a charity auction.

Held in conjunction with a Rubio Monocoat Woodworking Sand & Finish School co-sponsored by Festool, the event brought a dozen craftspeople to Austin to learn how to build with tools and expertise from Festool and how to finish the furniture they made with materials and expertise from Rubio Monocoat.

Team 2 built the Bosco Side Table, a striped cherry and walnut side table that features a built-in wireless charger.

Four pieces of unique custom furniture resulted from the collaborative effort. Those pieces are being auctioned off with all proceeds going to the local charity Tree Folks. This charity has engaged thousands of volunteers to plant more than 2.8 million trees in Central Texas. According to a spokesman, “Planting trees is a powerful means of connecting people with their community . Trees clean the air and water, provide habitat for wildlife, produce fresh fruit for neighbors, and shelter us from the hot Texas sun.”

Participants in the event were divided into two teams. Team 1 included, Justin Cunana of Justin Woodworks, Jeremy Hill of Jericho Home, Stephen Michutka of The Wood Pastor, Sarah Listi of Tool Girls Garage, James Wesley of James Wesley Furniture, and Ethan Abramson of The Build With Ethan.

Team 2 consisted of Jeff Himstedt of J. Him Woodworking, Doc Wright of The Wright Edge, Matt Moore of Matt Moore Designs, Andrew Grehl of Designable Co., Claire Baldwin of Polish and Power Tools, and Jesse Hoover of JH Craftsman.

Team 1 also produced the Side Split Table, a white oak modern side table featuring walnut accents.

The furniture made during the event was designed by the participants and took on the individual flavor of each team. Team 1 designed and built Dominoes by the Beech, a couch made from two live edge beech slabs. It features a wooden seating surface that has been hand shaped and colored to appear like an upholstered cushion. The same team also produced the Side Split Table, a white oak modern side table featuring walnut accents.

Team 2 built their Chaise-Stanza lounger with white oak and cherry plus walnut accents.

Team 2 built their Chaise-Stanza lounger with white oak and cherry plus walnut accents. They also built the Bosco Side Table, a striped cherry and walnut side table that features a built-in wireless charger. You can place a wireless-charging-compatible device on the LED light and it will automatically begin charging.

Anyone with a shipping address in the United States can bid on the furniture by participating in an online auction at https://www.rubiomonocoatonline.com/product-category/auction-items/ The auction is open until November 30th at 12 a.m.

 

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William Sampson

William Sampson is a lifelong woodworker, and he has been an advocate for small-scale entrepreneurs and lean manufacturing since the 1980s. He was the editor of Fine Woodworking magazine in the early 1990s and founded WoodshopBusiness magazine, which he eventually sold and merged with CabinetMaker magazine. He helped found the Cabinet Makers Association in 1998 and was its first executive director. Today, as editorial director of Woodworking Network and FDMC magazine he has more than 20 years experience covering the professional woodworking industry. His popular "In the Shop" tool reviews and videos appear monthly in FDMC.