Finishing Butcher Block Countertop with Unique Trim and Tung Oil

Finishing our butcher block countertop with unique burned trim and by applying tung oil created the final product.

handcrafted butcher block countertop in small cottage kitchen

This blog is where it all finally comes together. The final product of our custom butcher block countertop! It turned out so good especially for a diy handcrafted build.

The butcher block countertop was custom made from old preserved pine wood we were able to salvage. Nate cut each piece of wood himself for this project. He carefully connected them together making a beautiful tapestry of woven together like wood.

man building handcrafted butcher block countertop

This was definitely a handcrafted labor of love and historic preservation. It’s a lot easier to just buy the butcher block and place in where ever you want to use it. But, to actually build your own butcher block that is a whole other story. One that has taught me a lot about my husband’s patience and skill. Although he is really just an amateur at all of this and not even a schooled carpenter.

UNIQUE BUTCHER BLOCK TRIM

The trim around the butcher block countertop became a unique addition to the build. It tied everything together. Nate spent some time on the final details by sanding it down nicely. Making sure all the edges of the trim were smooth and flat.

Then he added a nice unique detail to the trim by using a router tool to shape the edges. He continued to go deeper until he was satisfied with the results. Not a rocket science project and probably not even a common thing to detail most trim this way.

man using router to finish butcher block trim

I’m glad that he took this extra step as it added a really nice unique detail to the whole countertop. Trim is trim I guess. But, this simple step took it to another level.

BURNING THE WOOD TRIM

If you thought he was done at that point and could move forward with sealing the wood. That did not happen~ yet. Of course he had to take it to another level for even more uniqueness and detail.

man burning butcher block countertop trim using shou sugi ban Japanese wood burning technique

This time by burning the wood trim. I remember seeing videos on YouTube about Japanese wood burning techniques (Shou Sugi Ban) and how people burned the wood siding on their houses for that look and functionality.

When I look up the details of that method it’s very similar to what Nate did to our trim. He used a controlled flame to burn only the wood trim and not the whole butcher block countertop. Then he came through with some brushes to clean it up and reveal the grain of the wood. And then he finally applied the tung oil to the whole countertop including the burned trim.

I read online that the tung oil is a natural way to seal the burned wood. And that the benefits of the burned wood prevent it from water damage, makes it fire resistant, and is low maintenance.

This method was also used to build traditional Japanese homes. It reminds me of when we lived in Hawaii and were caretakers of an old Japanese house (Minka). They literally brought old original wood from Japanese farm houses in Japan and shipped them over to Hawaii and had a knowledgable crew build the minka using that old farmhouse wood.

It was so beautiful and a very unique structure in our neighborhood filled with mostly modern houses. We seem to always find ourselves living in houses with old wood I suppose!

APPLYING TUNG OIL TO BUTCHER BLOCK

The final touch to the butcher block countertop was a sealer. We decided to go with tung oil as it seemed to be the least toxic and food grade. I’m not sure how common it is to use tung oil to seal wood, but we are still glad we went with that approach.

Something we have been learning about for over a decade now that is really important to us is the toxins all around us. Our food, clothing, cleaning supplies, and for our renovations~ construction materials. A lot of it is toxic and so we are trying our best to go the most least toxic route as possible if there is one.

We understand that in our modern buildings and lives that can be hard to manage. But, if we can swap out non-stick pans for cast iron, toxic cleaning supplies for natural ones like baking soda and vinegar, and in this case using tung oil as a sealer instead of something more toxic and not food grade~ we will definitely do our best!

I wish there were more “greener” ways to do renovations. That’s when we’d have to run to the forest and build a log cabin or hanok home in Korea! Those are usually built with perhaps some of the more natural materials.

Side note~ that would be a dream to build a tiny natural hanok home in Korea one day. It would be so nice to age in a toxic free environment.

After several coats of the tung oil, the handmade butcher block countertop was finally done! Nate placed it in our kitchen and it turned out so great. He went with a darker color so that it did not clash with the shiplap wood on the walls and created more of a contrast instead of looking like the same color.

Finishing our butcher block countertop with unique burned trim and by applying tung oil was a huge learning experience that was so worth it.

CHECK OUT OUR VIDEOS

Thanks for joining us on this journey! We hope that you will find inspiration watching us learn as we go while we’re attempting to renovate and rebuild this old small historic cottage mostly on our own~ while working full time jobs! Stay tuned for more progress updates ahead. Read more about us here.

You can also watch a video about this here.