The Beauty of Walnut Dining Tables

A dining table is the centerpiece of any home. It’s somewhere you can enjoy a slow, Saturday morning coffee. 

Somewhere your family comes together to eat after a busy weekday, and somewhere that you can bring all your friends together - for a board game night, for a dinner party, for a casual catch up. Whatever you use it for, a dining table should never be an afterthought - but you know that. That’s why you’re here, right?

At The Bespoke Carpentry Co., we believe that furniture should be functional, beautiful, and personal. That’s why we specialise in crafting handmade reclaimed wood dining tables that are built to last, made to be used, and designed to suit your home - not someone else’s catalogue. One of the beautiful reclaimed woods we work with is walnut, a hardy hardwood that’s as striking as it is durable. 

If you’re considering investing, here’s why a walnut dining table is one of the best materials you can choose.

The Beauty of Walnut

Walnut is a popular wood, famous for its deep tones that make the wood stand out from species like ash and pine. The trees are deciduous - which is what puts this wood in the hardwood category - and grow slow and tall, taking anywhere between 40 and 60 years to reach their full height. This puts the wood on the expensive side, and makes it even more of a shame to see it end up in landfill, never to be used again. This is why we use reclaimed walnut - we choose high-quality walnut planks steeped in history and give them a new lease of life.

Though English Walnut, despite the name, is a non-native species, it’s been around in the UK since the Romans introduced it, valuing its nuts. Black Walnut - native to North America - is also found here after being introduced in 1629. The wood has a rich history of use in fine furniture, with beautiful natural tones ranging from warm browns to deeper, chocolatey hues, sometimes with lighter sapwood streaks running through the grain. Like fingerprints, no two planks of walnut will have identical grain patterns, ranging from undulating curls to twisted burls. The grain itself is tight and elegant, offering a surface that’s smooth to the touch but visually dynamic. It works equally well in both traditional and contemporary interiors - whether you’re after a rustic farmhouse feel or a more refined, modern look.

Other timbers, such as oak and pine, take well to stains which enhance their natural hues. However, we believe walnut looks best when left close to its natural state. A clear finish brings out the beauty of the grain without masking its organic charm. This is especially true in our handmade walnut dining tables, where the wood is the star of the show.

The Strength and Durability of Walnut Wood

Looks aside, walnut is also an incredibly robust material. It’s naturally hard and dense, meaning it can take the knocks and bumps that come with daily life. A walnut dining table can easily withstand heavy use, whether you’re serving up midweek meals, working from home, or hosting a house full of guests.

Compared to other woods, walnut also performs well over time. It’s less prone to warping and shrinking, which makes it particularly well-suited to the UK’s ever-changing, often wet and humid weather. Thanks to its stability, you won’t have to worry about joints loosening or the surface becoming uneven - something you can’t always count on with cheaper, mass-produced alternatives.

We finish all our walnut dining tables with a reclaimed wood polishing wax, which fills the open wood pores and makes them UV-resistant and even water-resistant, making them suitable for outdoor furniture as well. This finishing wax increases the overall durability of the walnut whilst still allowing the natural grain to shine through. So even as your table ages, it will continue to look better - not worse. We recommend a reapplication every six months (use-dependent) to maintain the quality and finish of the piece.

The natural durability and resilience of walnut dining tables means they require minimal upkeep to stay in excellent condition. Small imperfections can be easily sanded out and treated with a wood touch-up kit. This is thanks to the dense grain found in walnut - it makes it a lot more forgiving than many other materials. After a few decades, should your walnut dining table have incurred more significant damage, it can be refinished and repaired to make it look as good as new.

Regular dusting with a soft cloth and occasional polishing with a wood polish will keep your reclaimed walnut dining table at its best. We also have a full reclaimed wood maintenance kit available which includes a hard wax oil that provides exceptional durability and resistance for furniture, even when subjected to a high degree of wear. The kit also includes the polishing wax we use.

Reclaimed Walnut Dining Tables

On its own, fresh walnut wood is beautiful and visually intriguing. But reclaimed walnut planks take this to another level: our reclaimed walnut dining tables offer a piece of history as well as craftsmanship. Made from salvaged walnut wood, these tables retain the unique markings, knots, and colour variations that come from decades of previous use.

Every reclaimed table has a story. The wood might have once been part of an old structure or salvaged from another piece of furniture. These tables carry a sense of authenticity that’s hard to replicate with new materials. They’re ideal for those who want a piece as sustainable as it is striking. By repurposing timber that would otherwise go to waste, you're helping reduce the demand for newly harvested wood and decreasing the methane emissions that come from wood decomposing in landfill whilst gaining a table with unmatched charm and individuality.

Handmade in the UK, built for real life

At The Bespoke Carpentry Co., we handcraft every dining table in our UK workshop. Nothing is mass-produced. We work directly with clients to understand their needs and build pieces that are both functional and personal.

Want a long table that can seat ten for Sunday roasts? Need a compact round table to fit into a kitchen nook? Prefer an X-frame or stylish hairpin legs? Every table is made to order, with a wide choice of designs, sizes and details for you to choose from. 

Our handmade walnut dining tables are designed with real life in mind. Whether you're a family of four who eat together every night, a couple who hosts elaborate dinner parties, or someone who simply wants a quiet spot to enjoy a coffee in the morning - we’ll create a table that fits seamlessly into your routine and your home.

Handmade Walnut Dining Tables at The Bespoke Carpentry Co.

Here at The Bespoke Carpentry Co. we offer a beautiful range of handmade hardwood furniture that celebrates the beauty and uniqueness of reclaimed wood. Each piece is meticulously handcrafted by skilled artisans who take pride in their work, ensuring you get a product that not only looks stunning but also stands the test of time.

To get started, browse our range of pre-designed reclaimed hardwood furniture online, give us a call on 01305 849386 or fill out our online contact form.