I found Google Sketchup a few years back and was impressed with the short learning curve and functionality for a free 3d design software. Did I say it was free? There is a paid version with more punch but the free version has proved to be all I need.
Below is a mantle surround I designed using Sketchup. Mantle surrounds like stairways are a fun way to create “show stoppers” for your interior spaces. There are lots of things in mantel designs that can be done to impress family and friends. This mantel surround wraps around a bump out in the wall presumably as a chase for the fireplace flue.
These columns were contracted by an architect in North Louisiana. They were to replicate the columns on an old Acadian cottage in my area (Baton Rouge). It was convenient for me to cross the Mississippi River and go there. The cottage had been restored and placed on city property as a small museum.
An image of the Acadian Cottage.
Acadian Cottage Columns
You may know from history that the Acadians were the French that were run out of Canada in the 19th century by the English. Many moved to to South Louisiana.
I made these mantel columns for a friend a few years back. He was in the middle of renovating an old house. The fireplace is actually not functioning anymore. It was originally a coal burner. He probably put books or flowers in the fireplace to decorate.
fireplace columns
The columns are 6 inches X 50 inches high and are salvaged cypress (very popular in our area). They are barley twisted left and right handed. FYI cypress is often salvaged from old house and warehouses in the South.
These balusters were actually turned by a friend of mine in Massachusetts. I designed them to replicate those in the Silas Dean Museum – a historical home named after Mr Dean (he was apparently some significant American figure). Staircrafters in Washington State installed the three stairways and graciously sent final pictures (before the painters got to them).
There are actually three different balusters here – a plain, a barley twist and a fluted twist.
The last stairway to the third floor has plain only
The image below is a set of alternating balusters crafted for a customer a year or so back. The profile of the balusters is the same except for the center part.
The twist on these is called a barley twist as opposed to rope twist in the post below.
These are 1 3/4″ at the squares with a 3/4″ pin on top.
Below is a finished project with square top balusters. Thanks Jess for the final pictures – Anera Group
These 5 1/2 inch poplar newels were designed by one of my customers. I really like the way these came out. The closer view below shows the rope pattern. They were probably painted in the end but many folks stain poplar as long as the stain has a little red in it to neutralize the green tint common to poplar. First image without the rope pattern.
These 3inch wood balusters were for a customer whose wife saw them, or something similar, in a Pottery Barn catalog. He asked me to reproduce them from the catalog image. They alternate from one profile to the next. They were crafted from poplar and were painted.
Though this is not really a beginning – more like a second chance -My last blog Architectural wood Designs came under the power of wicked hackers and so I decided to start over. I’ll be adding lots of pictures of current and past projects and invite interested parties to comment, critique or whatever.
This first image is a project I took on for a friend. The unique part is the spiral applied columns. The wood species is cypress – very popular here in S. Louisiana. I used a glaze over an amber shellac for the finish.
