Carlton’s Rare Woods & Veneers

Beware! Your first visit will raise your bar for lumber quality.
It doesn’t take long for a budding woodworker to tire of the big box home improvement store «fast food» lumber. The Internet-​savvy ones will discover Carlton’s Rare Woods & Veneers, an unassuming storefront at the intersection of 14^th and Hemphill in Atlanta’s Home Park neighborhood.
Behind the thick, Hemphill-​facing, front doors is a narrow room and a small office. Stacked horizontally against the walls, a daunting variety of familiarly-​cut rectangular lumber lies waiting for your project. What will be the best for your project? You have only a moment to experience the anxiety and excitement; the crisis of options will be interrupted by a friendly greeting.
Once you explain your project or needs, you’ll be shown what is in stock. Prices are fair. If the piece is an appropriate size, you might opt to have it planed.
My recent project required 10 feet of rough walnut. I took away two 5 foot cross cuts from a large branch, complete with knobs and bark on the outside. We planed it on site. I took it home, cut it to appropriate shorter lengths, sanded it, applied a basic colorless oil finish, and worked out a mounting method. Now I have the coolest bathroom shelves in East Atlanta.

A woodworker’s dream! Very knowledgable, easy going staff who don’t mind giving you an education on every type of wood around the world. Reasonable prices, planing/​surfacing, etc.