All photos copyright The Naked Table Project.

Please contact us if you would like to use any of these photographs.

Trees for the tables are selected from wood local to each project’s area

Charles Shackleton (project creator) and Forester Pat Bartlett walk the woods to designate trees

Farmer Tom Debevoise on his land, where the trees from the inaugural Naked Table Project were forested

The trees are chainsawed for logging

Charles Shackleton and Forester Pat Bartlett

The logs are then transported for milling by trucker Mark Biegun.

Students from the Montessori School watch the logging process

The logs are transported to Richard Wright’s sawmill in White River Junction, Vermont on his 250 year-old farm.

Charlie at the sawmill

Table plans, drafted by Charles Shackleton and ShackletonThomas

The trees are milled into boards and stacked ready for drying.

Richard Wright (center) with father and son, comprising three generations on his Vermont farm, in front of their kiln where the boards will dry.

Dave Dugdale of Windsor, Vermont machines the newly dried boards

Each table is etched with a sugar maple leaf, to remind its owners of the tree from which it came.

Participants assemble to build their tables, pictured here at the ShackletonThomas workshops in a historic woolen mill in Bridgewater, Vermont.

Furniture maker Chip Ogg prepares participants for table making.

Furniture maker Chris Ogg demonstrates table assembly

Assembly begins

At lunch, participants are led on a walk in the woods with the local forester to learn where there own table originated.

Forester Pat Bartlett educates participants about the life cycle of the trees

Naked Table Project happens sun or snow!

Participants see where their tree has been cut

Each table-maker designates a replacement tree, whose coordinates they receive in their completion certificate, as a reminder of the tree cut to make their table

Participants befriend their tree

After lunch, table making resumes.

Participants come from local communities, distant towns, and often schools or organizations.  Here, students from Woodstock Union High School build a table with their teacher.

Anyone, young or old, can participate.

Each table is signed with the coordinates of its tree.

The tables are finished with Vermont Natural Coatings, a PolyWhey recycled finish that meets the highest professional and environmental standards.

A finished table at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH

Once completed, the tables are transported to the location of the celebratory meal.

The annual meal in Woodstock, Vermont, the site of the inaugural project, is held under the covered bridge in the center of the village.

Volunteers set each table for its owner, their invited guests, and local guests who have purchased a seat at the lunch.  Pictured here with a cream-carved ShackletonThomas vase.

Another Naked Table lunch in Hanover, NH

And another at Prosper House in Barnard, Vermont

Music invites guests to the meal.  Pictured here, bagpiper Tim Cummings.

Bagpiper Tim Cummings at the inaugural Woodstock event

The organic meal is prepared by local restaurants or cooks.

Upper Valley pastry chef Charles Umpleby serves guests

Volunteers enjoy the delicious food

Charlie kicks off the meal, welcoming all participants in the table’s “chain of custody”, including table makers, foresters, furniture makers, machiners, master kiln driers, loggers, truck drivers, farmers, etc, as well as invited guests who have come to celebrate.

The inaugural meal under the covered bridge in Woodstock, VT

The tables are then taken home to start their new life

Table are available in rectangle

And now newly available in oval.  Tables are available for purchase separate from the project as part of ShackletonThomas’ Naked Collection at ShackletonThomas.com

The Naked Table will continue to bring people together throughout the table’s life.

Photos courtesy Jon Gilbert Fox & Naked Table Project.