I had my heart set on using reclaimed lumber for the shelving, something with some soul and still a bit wild. Finally I decided I would use live-edge wood with the tree's profile still intact, but then that seemed to rule out the reclaimed aspect -- until I found Tyler and his amazing and project: Urban Hardwood Recovery. Tyler hauls diseased, threatened (or threatening!), or fallen trees in the Portland area; mills them himself; kiln dries them for upwards of 16 weeks in a kiln he's constructed in his backyard; and sells the wood out of his garage. It's a tremendous service, given that so much hardwood is shipped in from half way across the world. After much hemming and hawing over which pieces to get, I decided on two slabs of pear from a 150 year-old pear tree in Gresham and 3 planks of Myrtle.
