Live Edge Desk

We wanted to incorporate a natural looking desk in our bus and buying live edge tabletops can be pretty pricey so we decided to make our own. After measuring to see what dimensions we needed and plenty of research at the YouTube academy we set out looking for our piece of wood.

Our slab of wood came from a local lumber mill, Kokinda and Sons LLC in Sykesville Md. Joshua, who owns the mill was extremely knowledgeable about the different types of wood and their characteristics. We were able to look through numerous types of wood in varying widths and lengths but overall it was a cedar piece that struck us as “the one”. It was about 9’ long and roughly 16’’ wide whereas we only needed about 7’ long and 14’’ wide but we decided we’d just cut it to size at home.

When we got it home and cut to size it was time to sand it. We went from 80 grit discs on an orbital sander to 220 over the course of an afternoon and were pleasantly surprised with how elegant the wood already looked. The bark from the live edge was cleaned up and sanded a bit to smooth it out and luckily there were no major holes or cracks to worry about prior to staining.

Once the desk was sanded to our liking it was time to attach it to the cabinet walls that would support it. Our vision was to have a minimalist style desk without screws or bolts visible from the top so we secured it from the bottom with 5’’ screws.

After we tested our clear stain on a scrap piece of wood it was time to stain the desk itself. Prior to the staining we used a damp cloth to wipe the desk down just to ensure it was clean. Using a roller our clear stain was applied with the direction of the grain and we waited for each coat to dry before applying the next. For the edge and some of the crevices a small brush was used and the overall shine of the desk is the first thing most people see when they step inside the bus!

This small project took a fraction of the time we imagined it would but is one of our favorite parts of the bus!

If you’re in the NOVA/DC/Maryland area and are looking for lumber for your next project we highly recommend reaching out to Kokinda and Sons LLC. We love supporting small businesses when possible and this family’s vibes were amazing!

Materials we used:

9’ x 16’’ Plank of cedar - Kokinda and Sons

Clear polyurethane stain - Amazon

Paint/Stain Roller Kit - Amazon

Tools we used:

Dewalt Orbital Sander - Amazon

Variety pack of sanding discs - Amazon

Ryobi 18v Circular Saw - Amazon