Solid Oak dog crate / cages

Some people frown upon crates but dogs instinctively like to sleep in enclosed spaces, just think where your dog sleeps now....chances are under a table, behind the sofa or in a dark corner...it's just natural protection from predators bred into then over centuries of evolution. Used correctly your dogs new crate will soon become it's safe place, its place of comfort where it feels most relaxed. 

Fully oiled finish 

Toilet training 

It's highly unlikely your new puppy will choose to do its business in its bed area so a crate can be a great aid in the training of a puppy in the etiquette of house training. Left for short periods to start with and then immediately taken out your new puppy will soon get the idea. The key is not to over do it to start with...after all the crate is it aid with training and to increase your dogs safely when left for short periods of time. In an ideal world you shouldn't be closing the door overnight on a puppy under the age of 12 weeks, a puppy under that is unlikely to be able to control its Bowles over night so a play pen with the crate inside is an excellent idea. The crate should be made as comfortable as possible with a blanket etc as a bed and it's usual toys.  Try encouraging your puppy to use the crate while leaving the door open. 

The key is gently gently, starting with you puppy in for short periods with the door open to start with then with the door closed but you still in the room, the crate should start to fell like a place of safety for you dog and definitely not one of punishment....just small steps at a time until the crate is it's go to place.

Choosing a size

Bigger is not always best. Rememmber if you have a puppy he/she will still be growing so try to work from the adult side of the breed. There should be enough room for your dog to stand and stretch out when laying down. However if there is too much room there's a chance it could bed down at one side and use the other side as a toilet while training,  this is going to be a place ultimately for your dog to sleep and not to be shut in 24/7......think about our own bed...we can comfortably sleep in a single bed. 

So it all sound positive, it helps with training....you dog will become to feel safe in its own space....you can shut him/her in for short periods of time to keep them safe form external dangers....so where's the down side. Well the looks...have you seen um? Although you might use it with the door open or ajar the most of the time they still look like a prison cell! That's where I come in....I can supply you not only with the crate but also a hand crafted solid Oak frame, not only improving the looks drastically but turning it into a piece of furniture. My own which I use for a terrier is at the side of the sofa, ideal for a lamp and a cup of coffee.

Each crate is delivered fully assembled and finished either completely in oil or with a painted frame (in Farrow and Ball) and an oiled top. Three standard sizes (cage size) of 24, 30 and 36inch with 42inch being available at special request.

Painted frame and oil top finish

See here for our sales page and if you have any question please feel free to drop me an email...there's a contact for on the website

Handcrafted solid Oak shelves

Are you looking for some solid Oak shelving...look no further.

At The Oak Shop I've been producing solid Oak shelves for over 10 years now and sold 1000's with many happy and returning customers.

Need bespoke or made to measure sizes.....not a problem...in fact the bulk of what I make has some form of customer requirements attached to the order...be that simply a bespoke length or edge profiles....or even cutouts for pipe works, boxing in or wires.....if you have a request just ask when ordering. 

All shelves are delivered free within the UK and come complete with the adjustable brackets....I have a quick online how-to video to aim fitting if required. 

Pop along to www.thesolidoakshop.co.uk and see what we can do for you

Painted dog crates

Hi guys...just a very quick update on our very popular dog crates...

As pictured now a viable with a painted frame and an oiled top....obviously still solid oak throughout

Available to order here in any Farrow and Ball colour you choose.... http://ebay.to/2iWHF78

of course also available from our website at www.thesolidoakshop.co.uk

A new twist to pallet upcycling projects.

Everyone and their dog is on with busting a few pallets and upcycling them in the name of furniture production....a quick internet search and you will find a whole range of products....some are well made and forward thinking while other should have really stayed as pallets.

Here's our twist...this was a tired old looking oak table...and now its a beautiful Oak pallet with a massive mug sat on it.

Solid Oak upcycled pallet project

What do you think...will they catch on ;-)

1/10th scale oak euro pallet

Lets help keep furniture standards high and save the pallets ;-) Unless we act and bring the plight of the pallet to the forefront of peoples minds they will soon become extinct...and that's before we start thinking about poaching and over hunting. Act now and have your pallet furniture turned back into pallets and set free back into the wild....future generations will thank you for it..

http://ebay.to/1ST6Cv3

Solid Oak Dog Crates/cages

Most dog owners will tell you what a fantastic training tool a crate can be, not only on toilet training but also for keeping your dog safe while you are out. The draw back is that they can be quite unsightly......well not any more.

Solid Oak  handcrafted dog cages

Our solid Oak Dog crates are built to the same high standard as any piece of furniture that you'll find on our website, after all you are going to put it in your home with other items of furniture so why shouldn't it be of the same standard? Built front solid American White Oak and delivered fully assembled. Each joint has a small mortise and tenon for added strength.

There two options for purchasing...either our eBay shop or the website.

Available in three sizes, each one complete with the cage. To aid with cleaning the oak frame can be lifted off the cage. 

Oak dog crates

American Black Walnut cutlery trays

Here's something a little different from "The Oak Shop"...solid American Black Walnut!

Yes not everything I produce is Oak, these were a pair of bespoke cutlery trays produced in a beautiful timber that is American Black Walnut.

 It's been a while since I used ABW and to be honest I'd forgot just how stunning this timber is....if somewhat a touch expensive. The pictures really don't show it's stunning grain structure...clearly this is nothing I can take credit for...mother nature did the hard work!

Each one had tapered sides to fit snugly into their drawers with finger holes to aid lifting in and out and was produced to customer spec, right down to the size of each individual compartment.

These Walnut ones are clearly special order but in American White Oak they can be built to meet your requirements and ordered from the website.

Bespoke Oak Room Divider

Most days in the workshop it's just the same as any other job....same old, same old...but every now and then some thing different comes along.

This was just one such job, a stunning bespoke wall display unit come room divider, the customer is going to have the wall removed that it's currently stood up against so that items placed on the unit can be viewed from either side.  As such we needed to ensure that it had two good faces and were unable to hide any fixings on the back face...it simply didn't have a back face.

Normally a job such as this would start with with getting a detailed brief from the customer but that wasn't required in this case, the customer knew just what they wanted and had produced a detailed drawing to work from...first hurdle over!

Production was at times challenging ensuring that all fixings were firmly out of sight once finished. 600 biscuits along with their 1200 slots, around 300 pocket hole screws and no end of dowels were just some of the fixings...none of which were visible once finished.

At over 2 meters tall and having used up 15 cubic ft of prime grade American white Oak  it was no light weight and one of the final challenges was a logistical one. After partly dismantling the works van so the unit fit in we had to contend with 175kg down quite a narrow access ally to get the unit to it's final resting place. The end result was one very happy client with myself and assistant somewhat out of breath!

Have you an idea that you'd like making reality then drop us an email or pop along to the website. Many people think that a one off commission might be out of their budget but you'd be surprised and until you ask you'll never know!