Building a Modern Contemporary Bench

In this episode, I built a Modern Contemporary Bench for a client in Telluride, Colorado.  One of the great things about building custom furniture in Colorado is visiting all the beautiful mountain towns.  This client wanted a custom bench with a mitered corner so the board’s grain flowed along the top and down the side.  The Bench is made from walnut and is about 18″ tall, 14″ deep, and 72″ long.

Summary

Joinery, cutting miters, and Woodworking Glue Techniques Discussed

Brian discussed using dominoes to join boards together, primarily for alignment purposes for the bench top and to add strength to the miter joint. He mentioned the challenges of working with tight tolerances and the need for a deep-cut handheld saw, such as the Ts. 75, to cut through the thick wood. Brian also highlighted the use of West System epoxy glue for its gap-filling and grain-soaking properties.  He used a glue block technique to clamp the miters shut. He concluded the build with a final finish of a wipe-on poly.

Building a Modern Bench with Mitered Legs: A Woodworking Journey

Creating a sleek, modern bench with mitered legs—where the grain flows continuously around the corners—requires careful planning and precision. In this project, I’ll walk you through my process of building an eight-foot-long, two-inch-thick bench with seamless grain matching and sturdy joinery.

Selecting the Right Lumber

Since the bench needed to be thick and long, I chose 12-inch-wide boards to ensure the grain would remain continuous around the miters. The boards were too wide for my jointer, so I spent extra time at the lumber yard hand-selecting the flattest pieces possible.

Flattening and Preparing the Boards

I used the skip plane method to get the surfaces smooth and flat enough for mitering, removing high spots before running them through the planer. Once flattened, I:

1. Jointed one edge of each board.
2. Ripped them to width on the table saw.

Pro Tip: When setting up my shop, I arranged all machines to face the bay door. This allowed long boards to extend outside, making handling much easier.

Edge-Joining the Boards

I used roller stands on both ends of the jointer for edge joining, set slightly lower than the table. This ensured the boards registered flat against the jointer while preventing them from tipping or slipping.

Alignment with Dominos

Since I couldn’t flatten the full width of the boards on the jointer, I relied on Festool Dominos for alignment. They saved me hours of sanding by keeping the joints perfectly flush. However, I may have gone overboard—the tight tolerances made assembly a bit of a struggle!

Cutting and Assembling the Mitered Legs

To achieve the waterfall grain effect, I carefully cut the legs from the ends of the boards, keeping track of their orientation. Cutting the miters required a track saw set to 45°—my only tool capable of handling such thick stock at an angle.

For reinforcement:

• I used multiple dominoes in each joint.
• I used West Systems epoxy for its gap-filling properties and deep grain penetration, ensuring a rock-solid bond.

Challenge: Aligning the mitered edges perfectly was tricky. I ended up using shims under the legs to fine-tune positioning before clamping.

Clamping with Glue Blocks

I used CA glue blocks to clamp the miters tightly—a quick and effective method. The blocks pop off easily, and any residue cleans up without damaging the wood.

Finishing Touches

The final step was applying a wipe-on polyurethane finish, enhancing the natural beauty of the wood while providing durable protection.

Final Thoughts

This project tested patience and precision, but the result—a seamless, modern bench with flowing grain—was well worth the effort. If you’re tackling a similar build, take your time with alignment and don’t shy away from using Dominos or epoxy for extra strength.

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Benches

Contemporary Bench With Mitered Legs

Maple Bench

Craftsman Bench With Storage

Japanese Contemplation Bench

Mountain Contemporary Bench

Stone Meditation Bench