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Excerpted from Dining Tables
Vineyard Table
Complete plans for a trestle table with a twist
by Kim Carleton Graves
The vineyard table is almost as old a design as the trestle table, dating back 300 years or more. Some sources claim these tables were used by grape pickers in French vineyards for working lunches, while others say they were used in wineries for wine tastings. Both stories may be true, since the tables fold easily for storage and transportation. The central "harp" spins around on one set of dowels and the tabletop flips on a second set of dowels to create a remarkably compact package.
Neal White of San Jose, California, designed and built this table as a second table for family gatherings at his house. He found it too useful to stow away between occasions, and it's taken up permanent residence in his living room.
On the vineyard table, hinges replace joints between the legs and cleats, and the tabletop is held level by a beautiful harp-shaped support.
I love the look of the figured white oak in this table, but the original tables were made by carpenters from whatever woods were available locally.
Like all trestle tables, this one is easily modified to suit the builder's taste and talents. Vineyard tabletops are typically round or elliptical, but you can make the top for this table in almost any size or shape as long as the width clears the feet when the table is flipped.
Furniture maker Kim Carleton Graves has been designing and building high-end custom furniture for ten years. His article on duplicating spindles appeared in the May/June 2000 issue of Fine Woodworking (#142). He lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Photos: Richard Bienkowski; drawings: © The Taunton Press
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