Devos Custom Woodworking Wood Countertops
12 August 2009
“Rarer Than a Day in June”
I’ve written abut wooden countertops before, and I will probably do so again. I’m not sure if I’m doing this because I find the idea that intriguing or because I’m seriously considering making one myself for my own kitchen, which I am. And that is a thought that just hammers the bejabbers out of me from time to time as I’m trying to drift off to sleep. So, then I find myself looking online to see what others have done with the concept, which is something, in turn, that either encourages me no end, or causes me to consider the glories of a solid countertop like, say, granite, that someone else would install. All I’d have to do is pour myself a cool drink and watch the professionals do it. But then I say to myself, “Coward.” So I go back and forth on the subject.
But, obviously, although some of the visitors to this site may one day commission a wooden countertop and have it installed, they would not actually build it for the same reason I don’t do whatever it is my readers do for a living. For these people I do have a suggestion, which is the subject of today’s blog, namely DeVos Custom Woodworking.
Devos is a small family business located near Austin, Texas that has been designing and building custom furniture and counter tops for over eleven years. And, which makes them particularly near and dear to my heart, they do not mass produce their products. 
Everything they do is individually hand crafted, which means that their customers are always getting the absolute best for a home—an original creation. With that in mind, I did want to call your attention to the countertop in the second picture above. It’s made of Jatoba Wood and has a hand carved trash lid over a trash hole. And from the way it follows the grain, it’s pretty clear to me that the lid was cut from the countertop itself.
As I said, they do make furniture, but what particularly interests me, and the reason I decided to write about them, is their countertops. Not long ago I was reading a reader’s forum for kitchen designs—or kitchen design problems, really, as that seems to be the most of their content—and a lady who wrote in said that she had just had a maple countertop installed, but when it arrived, there was no finish on it at all! Her kitchen designer told her it was no problem, just wipe on a coat of mineral oil. Well, the next day the plumber hooked up the sink and dishwasher and left watermarks all over the place, at which point the lady began to worry about the durability of such a finish. Well, in the end, she su
cceeded in having the countertop removed and re-installed, but I rather suspect they used only mineral oil throughout, which will do only an average job of protecting the wood, and will be especially vulnerable around the sink.
I bring that up because DeVos puts their name and their pride on the products they ship, along with many coats of Waterlox, which is one of the premiere finishes for wooden countertops. It’s a finish that is durable, waterproof, resists household chemicals, and is easy to maintain, so what’s not to like? Truthfully, those who use this finish for wood items that are subject to a lot of water, like countertops, absolutely swear by it. All of the countertops that leave the DeVos Shop go out with a minimum of four coats of Waterlox on the visible side of the top and three coats on sides that are not visible. And tops with an integrated sink receive six coats. It gives peace of mind to both user and seller, because DeVos is a rarity in this day and age—they stand behind the products they sell.
Joseph
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2 Responses to “Devos Custom Woodworking Wood Countertops”
January 25th, 2010 at 12:24 AM
Hey, beautiful stuff. Was checking out River City Woodworks (located where I live) some beautiful stuff. Thanks for the great pictures.
April 1st, 2010 at 11:06 PM
Custom woodworking is the best way to give an elegant look to our kitchen, I would always like to have one. But the main problem is price of wood in our country is sky high and people are unable to go for wooden furnitures too. If you have that extra money to spend then you can go for a traditionally looking kitchen.