Oak and walnut are the two hardwoods we mill most, and they suit very different work.
White oak
Pale, straight-grained, and quiet. It recedes, which makes it the right choice for photographs, line drawings, and anything with a lot of white space. Left natural it's cool and grey-blond; oiled it warms to honey.
Black walnut
Deep chocolate brown with occasional purple figure. It has presence, and it flatters warm-toned work - oil paintings, sepia photographs, prints with a cream ground. Against a white wall it draws a firm line around the piece.
- Cool, graphic, or monochrome work: oak.
- Warm, painterly, or vintage work: walnut.
- Unsure: order the samples kit and hold both against the piece in its room.
Both are available in every profile in the designer, with live previews of the real grain.
