Quartersawn means the the direction of the cut according to the growth rings in a tree. Basically the board is cut quartering to the grain or an easier way to look at is that the boards are cut out of the log like a piece of pie except it doesn't taper at the center. That is also one of the reasons it is not used much anymore. When you cut a log like that you just dont get as much wood from it.

The hayday of quartersawn oak was during the Arts and Crafts period particularly the mission style furniture. It was chosen by Gustav Stickley because it is stronger, less prone to checking, warping & splitting and it has a more refined grain pattern. This brings us to one of the main reasons quartersawn is sought after- its grain pattern.

As you can see from the picture above it has very distinct stripes or "medullary rays" going across the board. The stripes are a unique feature of oak and why you see quartersawn furniture in red or white oak, in this day and age it's typically white oak. Other woods can be quartersawn but you just dont get the same striking effect that oak has.

Today the Amish are largely responsible for most of the quartersawn furniture produced. They have adopted the Mission style and maintained the same attention to detail that Frank Lloyd Wright and Gustav Stickley insisted upon. To see examples of the Amish attention to detail and the Mission style check out www.amishroundtables.com