"Flashed" oak

[davidmc]

the SWMBO was at an antique show today and saw a piece of furniture that was labeled "flashed oak." She said it was striped, with extremely strong contrast between the light and the dark stripes as if it were zebrawood. Is anyone familiar with this? Why is it called "flashed"? And is it the result of the type of oak used or is it a type of finish (and if the latter, how do you do it?) I haven't seen any references to this by googling the web or this newsgroup.

[Rodney Myrvaagnes]

It might have been quarter-sawn white oak with the medulary rays showing strongly. Could be very nice if that is so.

Rodney Myrvaagnes J36 Gjo/a

Ask not with whom the buck stops . . .

[xrongor]

maybe this is some sort of 'flame' in the wood?

randy

[bridger]

sounds like a marketing gimmick to me.

[Andy Dingley]

Which way did the stripes go ? Along the grain, or across it ?

"Across" is your classic ray figure on white oak, maybe accentuated by finishing. Nice effect, but far from unusual. Most common around 1900.

"Along" sounds like it's poor quality brown oak. Brown oak is a fungal discolouration of white oaks, where the whole log picks up a deep brown colour. If it's consistent, the timber fetches a premium price. Half-browned though (which is pretty common, especially around the edges) is a stripey timber that few people want. I wouldn't be surprised to see someone start using it because it was cheap, then trying to push it as something special.

[George]

Off the top of my head, perhaps it's charred, then sanded, leaving the darker softer areas obvious.

Some of us char wood then wire brush the char away to make it look like barnwood.

[Swingman]

No doubt by the same folks who insist that kwanza and cinco de mayo are "traditional American holidays".

[Fly-by-Night CC]

That's an interesting comment. No, really it is, I'm not baiting or being sarcastic.

Would you consider St. Patrick's Day as a traditional American holiday? When does a religious or ethnic observance become widespread tradition? I'm not that familiar with Kwanza and how long those of African descent in the US have observed it, but as for Cinco de Mayo, it's been long celebrated by the Hispanic community. As that segment of the population nears the point of the majority I'm certain we'll be adding Cinco de Mayo to the calendars of nationally observed holidays on par with St. Paddy's.

[George]

If you think "Hispanic" means Mexican, I guess you have a point. It celebrates the defeat of Maximilian's forces in 1862, by those loyal to Diaz. St Patrick's feast day is more or less the same as any other Saint's day- a religious occasion - which, by the way, Kwanzaa isn't. It was made up as an "in your less than black" face substitute for Christmas or Chanukah, which were considered as "white."

can end your speculation.

[mttt]

1966 for Kwanzaa.

Not long now... Last I heard was 2025... :)

[Swingman]

The point is/was ... there is no shortage of those who have no idea of they are talking about and cover up that ignorance by pretending its display is common knowledge and something you should know.

IOW, bridger likely hit the nail on the head with his surmise that there is no such thing as "flashed oak".

[Swingman]

You might want to watch your quotes ... I did not write that.

Thanks ...

[bridger]

around here (tucson) cinco de mayo is a big deal. really....

[Swingman]

Probably bigger here in Texas ... BUT, it is a Mexican holiday, not an American one, and still only a "marketing gimmick" in the latter ... at least until we start celebrating Bastille day too, out of political correctness.

[Charlie Self]

Well, we've got a start...I'm trying to recall what came in the mail the other day, some kind of small tool or something similar. The box is triple linguistic. English, Spanish, French. WV is not exactly suffering from a major influx of people who speak the latter 2 languages, and I checked and discovered that most entry points to the nearest French speaking area are on the order of

700 miles away, give or take. There are plenty of Hispanics here. One restaurant owner just got locked up for illegal transportation of his co-linguists, plus money laundering. Doesn't seem to have hurt his restaurant business a bit.

Charlie Self "In our civilization, and under our republican form of government, intelligence is so highly honored that it is rewarded by exemption from the cares of office." Ambrose Bierce

[Fly-by-Night CC]

Hahahaha. Name a US holiday that *isn't* a marketing gimmick? About the only ones I can think of are MLK and Veteran's Days - and the later may be slipping into the muck.

As to a Mexican holiday vs. a US holiday, I'd question St. Patrick's again. Didn't happen here; was brought here and observed by Irish Catholic immigrants. Same thing will likely happen with Cinco & Mexican immigrants as well.

[Fly-by-Night CC]

Believe it or not, it's a big thing up here in NW Oregon too. (According to the 2000 census, my community (16,800 pop at the time) 35mi. SW of Portland has roughly 10% Hispanic population.)

[Fly-by-Night CC]

Someone of Spanish descent recently explained that in general terms, Hispanic refers to Mexican decent or origin while Latino generally refers to all of the primarily Spanish speaking countries of North, Central and South America. I don't know if that's a universal generality but it sorta made sense to me.

[Swingman]

Yep ... it seems that somehow my daughters have the idea that they must give me flowers on Veteran's Day now. Where on earth that came from ... never mind, I can guess.

Wasn't/isn't Valentines Day a religious celebration, besides being the epitome of a "marketing gimmick"?

... Madison Ave loves it when they can kill multiple birds with one guilt trip.

[mttt]

Oops! Apologies! [ OK if I blame Outlook??? ]