Bear Trail Lodge Table

• Decorative oval coffee table with birch frame and heat colored, engraved steel top.

I never tire of the variety I can achieve using different abrasives, grinding patterns, and heat colors.

I use a tilting, rotating, adjustable height stand when I’m doing the engraving and grinding. It’s made from an orthodontic chair mechanism that I can raise and lower with a switch. I’ve got another outside with a flame-proof top.

It allows me to support the metal at an angle in front of me while I’m doing the heat coloring. This works better in most cases than working with the steel flat on the fire brick, as I can get the reflections just right to best see the colors as they begin to change.

I made this decorative coffee table for Bear Trail Lodge in the Bristol Bay area of Alaska. The clients chose the design for the top from four different designs. The original title, ‘Daydreams along the Naknek’ was changed to ‘Bear Trails and Tall Tales’ as it was particularly fitting for the lodge.

I’m looking forward to hearing some of those tall tales…

You can read more about how I got started making metal wall art here. And if you’d like to learn how to make heat colored steel engravings, check out my free guide.