It’s not an Instagram Reel, it’s certainly not on TikTok or YouTube . . .
Nope, it’s a good ol’ classic photo gallery!
Check out some snaps capturing our most recent bed build, a Willard Bed Frame in American Walnut with a custom 49” tall headboard.
Enjoy!
Curious about our process? Want to learn more about our furniture and how it’s made? Then checkout our latest build video crafting The Willard Nightstands!
We’re all about celebrating small artists and makers, partnering with other local small businesses, and encouraging others to use whatever space and tools they’ve got to make great things. To us there’s nothing at all “common” about being common! And our build videos are an effort to pull back the curtain and show others that well crafted, polished goods can be made with humble means.
Please enjoy!
Checkout the latest iteration of our bedside tables, The Willard Nightstand!
Designed to match our popular Willard Bed Frame, they carry forward details like mitered case construction for a continuous “waterfall” grain wrap cabinet, and a subtle inner case chamfer to give them dimension. But now they feature rounded details to match the bed, as well as come stock with dovetail drawers, and most important of all, integrate the legs into the side of the cabinet, a design detail inspired by mid-century modern furniture legend Sam Maloof himself!
We hope the new design does you justice, Sam!
Check out the new Lark Dresser!
It’s a variation on our Stark Dresser, with an updated base design to match other pieces in our collection; namely The Willard Bed Frame, The Laurelhurst Nightstands, and The Lark Nightstands.
It’s pictured in our new favorite finish, raw white oak. The drawer pulls are smooth-on-the-fingers cresent moons, and dovetail joined drawers complete the package.
Kyle D’Auria 👉👉👉 Commoner Goods
Maybe you’ve heard, but in case not, earlier this year I changed my woodworking business name to Commoner Goods!
Commoner Goods celebrates the culmination of all my professional woodworking experience; starting back in 2014 when I first established Deoria Made, supplying kitchen goods to chefs and boutiques alike, then, as my passion grew, moving into furniture in 2017, taking on commissions that allowed me to grow a diverse portfolio of work, all under my own name.
The 2023 version of things is Commoner Goods - a furniture studio here in SE Portland that makes small batches of goods designed in-house, honoring the humble maker movement I came up in, where having an itsy-bitsy business that embraces traditional processes and timeless craftsmanship of a bygone era is the bee’s knees.
Check us out on Instagram @commoner.goods!
I’d wanted to re-brand with a new name for a long time, following through with my intent to reclaim my name for the art I also do. At the beginning of the year I wasn’t exactly sure how this transition would work, but what has emerged seven months in is small-batch production. I’ve done two bed frame batches this year, one in spring, and another this summer. It’s allowed me to build an inventory of The Willard Bed frame (available in popular sizes and finishes), but also tend to folks requests for made-to-order versions, which I’ve been able to slide into the batch as well. I’ve also built up an inventory of cutting boards destined for shops around town, so keep CG for the next gift-giving opportunity!
Moving forward, I plan to continue to offer seasonal batch pre-orders like this, and with time, hope to expand what’s included in those batches.
From here on out, dispatches like this one will be coming instead from Commoner Goods - You may hear my writing voice change, and me referring to the business as “we” instead of “me.” But rest assured, it’s still me here behind the scenes.
If you’d like to follow my art journey, that can now be found at www.kyledauria.com, or on Instagram @kyledauria. And if you’d to be a newsletter list either in addition to that of Commoner Goods, or instead of, please drop me an email saying so, and I’ll update your newsletter preferences.
Thanks always for your patronage and interest,
Kyle, Commoner Goods
New cutting board flavors are up!
Just in time for the holidays I've got some new cutting boards in stock! This years new additions are...
~ Quarter Sawn White Oak: a strong, heavy & hearty wood, made from surplus material from furniture making
~ Cherry: A lovely salmon colored wood that will darken over time, also made from surplus material from furniture making
~ Big Leaf Maple: I salvaged this wood from a fellow Portlander's felled tree a few years back. Often has gorgeous figure!
~ Ailanthus: I salvaged this too from a felled tree in Portland. Lightweight but hard, and looks a lot like ash with a twinge of yellow
Of course the old standards are available too in walnut. 7"x12", 11"x15", 12" round, and in sets too!
Until next time, be well!
Kyle
If you’ve lusted after walnut furniture before, Black Walnut is likely what you’ve come to expect. Visually it’s dark brown like coffee with a splash of cream, and its physical properties make great, strong furniture. It’s grown and harvested in the Eastern United States and is more of an industrial product. Because of this it’s predictably consistent batch to batch, so much so that when I source it I’m not sure if any two pieces of timber came from the same tree. Likely not. It’s ‘the standard’ and what people come pounding at my workshop door for, panting with cold sweats complaining of walnut fever. It’s scientific name is Junglans nigra.
The Willard Bed Frame in Black Walnut
The Willard Bed Frame in Claro Walnut
Junglans hindsii on the other hand, common name Claro Walnut, is a specialty in its own right and particularly fawned over by us in the Pacific Northwest where it natively grows. It’s a shade or two darker than black walnut, and often has hues that skew red or purple depending on the tree. It’s not farmed, instead coming from urban and rural settings as more of a salvage. Because these trees have grown naturally and in different settings, timber looks different tree to tree. I generally source mine from Goby Walnut who are world renowned for their work, and am generally getting boards all from the same tree, or two that look similar.
The Willard Headboard in Black Walnut
The Willard Headboard in Claro Walnut
I offer my furniture in both Black Walnut and Claro Walnut, in addition to Maple, Cherry, and White Oak. Everyone has their preference and at the end of the day I’ve never met a walnut I don’t like, but if you asked my preference I’d tell you anything local wins my heart. Any time a material or product is local there’s inherently a richer, clearer picture of where it came from, and those stories matter to me while woodworking, but also matter when you’re enjoying your furniture for years to come. If torn, I often suggest Claro Walnut to those who’ve lived, are living, or have a connection to the Pacific Northwest or the West Coast. Black Walnut on the other hand will never let ya down either, and I recommend it to those who are looking to match preexisting walnut furniture, or who have an East Coast connection of their own.
If you’re a wood wonk like me you may be interested in learning more about walnut in general, and if so Shannon’s Lumber Industry Update is a great podcast to start with. Here’s an episode about Black Walnut. And if you’d like to explore the big glorious trees Goby works with, check them out too. Want to follow along in the process? Checkout my IG at the link below.
Until next time, be well!
Kyle
Sometimes there's just no need for words. So instead here's a gallery of a recently completed Stark Nightstand made in rift sawn Oregon white oak. Ah, let that nice straight grain and fleck soothe the soul.
Worked with me in the past and looking for ways to help keep small businesses like mine chugging along in these tough times? Reviews go a long way to helping me find great new clients like yourself! If you're up for it, please share your experience and a positive review here!
Until next time, be well!
Kyle
This week I made a Linden Dining Table for Rachel and … wait for it … Lyndon! I may need to change the spelling to the ‘Lyndon Dining Table’ after this :)
I made this special dinette sized, 60” x 36” version from Eastern walnut and sent it down to their home in San Francisco. The Linden Dining table is always a treat for me to make because it is one of the first pieces of furniture I designed that really felt like me; a table that I’d want myself, that was made with my own artistic eye, and could be made with my own unique processes I’ve build my practice around. Sure, I’d designed other things before, but they were often more derivative and based on things I’d seen before.
(Side note - to be fair derivative is not a bad word and I’m in the camp that basically all art is derivative in some way even if we feel it’s our own. ‘Everything’s a remix!’ That said…)
It marked a transition I made to being more of a studio furniture maker - a description I’ve recently taken on to describe how I work and what I make. The best way to think of studio furniture is to think of studio art. Studio artists like myself (I’m one of those too!) often make work in their studio, then share what they made with the world. It’s in contrast to say, a woodworker for hire, or someone who paints in someone else’s style. For me I don’t work from other designers’ blueprints, or replicate others’ designs anymore. Instead I design furniture and add it to an ever growing catalogue where folx like yourself can then have me remake them for you. I make semi-custom alterations to these, be it size, like in the case of L+R’s dinette sized table, wood species, or other small details to fit a home or patrons’ tastes, but I stop short of a wholesale blueprint redesign. In short, I’m looking for folx who like my work and trust my artistic eye. My version of custom work then, is when is looking to commission something I’ve never made, but I’m able to work my own taste and style into it. I want you to have a piece of me when I’m done with your furniture, not just my skillset!
In the coming weeks I’ll be making a larger version of The Linden Dining Table in cherry, so keep an eye out for it in the next updates!
You can also check out my Instagram for a lager gallery of the build via the link below.
Until next time, be well!
Kyle
This week I got to see some of my favorite customers, A & C. I got to know them last year when I first made them a bed frame, and this year they came down for a matching dresser.
Their bed was pulled right from my catalogue; The Laurelhurst, but with a couple semi-custom modifications. I made the legs longer, and added four large under bed storage drawers. This year was the same thing; The Stark dresser but made to a custom 72" width. We talked over a shorter depth, but settled on the stock depth to allow for the maximum drawer size.
The process started out great, as cherry projects always do. Cherry seems to have a bad rap, I think maybe because it's symbolic of furniture made in, I don't know, the 90's maybe, and is often stained dark cherry red. Personally that look reminds me of an ugly slay bed my sister had growing up. In reality cherry is much lighter in color. It shares a lot of (wood) working qualities with walnut, but is available in much wider boards with far fewer imperfections like knots. It smells nice when cutting, it's cheaper, and what can I say, it's just a treat to work with!
It's always a whirlwind making dressers, and this Stark was no exception with all its details, starting with a continuous grain wrap cabinet. That's where the cabinet parts are cut from one very long glued up panel and mitered to 45 degrees in all corners, so that it looks like a waterfall of wood grain at each edge. It fancy. From there it was solid local big leaf maple drawer boxes with contrasting cherry corner splines, gliding on Blum soft close drawer slides. For the base I dusted off the lathe and hand turned tapered legs. And finally I shaped the drawer fronts with half moon cut outs for finger pulls.
Local pick ups like this one from A & C remind me just how nice it is to connect with people, to learn a bit about their stories, and share a bit of mine. I hope to use this channel to share more with you in the coming months as an effort to stay connected, so if you liked this please do stay in touch!
You can also check out my Instagram for more photos of the build, and also a Reels of me carving half moon drawer pulls. And finally checkout my YouTube to see a long form video of me making a 60" wide walnut version of The Stark dresser last year! Links below.
Until next time, be well!
Kyle
