Standalone made-to-measure furniture — sideboards, dressers, dining tables built in the workshop rather than fixed to a wall — carries its own structure and its own weight without a wall or ceiling to help it. That means joint type and timber movement allowance matter more here than in most fitted joinery, and they're exactly the detail a quote can skip.
A specification for a piece like this should name timber species and grade, joint construction, and the finish schedule, since these are what separate genuine hand-built furniture from a boxed-up flat-pack equivalent at a similar headline price.
Timber species, grade and movement
Species (oak, walnut, ash) and grade (whether knots and character features are accepted or the timber is selected for a cleaner grain) should be stated, along with moisture content at time of build — kiln-dried timber at the correct moisture content for indoor use is essential to avoid movement, cracking or joints opening up after a few months in a heated home.
For a table top especially, the quote should confirm how the top is constructed to allow for seasonal timber movement — commonly with slotted fixings (figure-of-eight buttons or similar) between top and frame rather than the top screwed rigidly down, which would crack as the wood moves.
Joint construction
Genuine hand-built furniture uses mortice and tenon, dovetail, or dowel joints depending on the element — drawer boxes are traditionally dovetailed for strength, while frame joints on a table or sideboard carcass use mortice and tenon. The quote should name the joint type used at each key point rather than describing construction only as 'solid wood', since solid wood glued and screwed together with butt joints is a much weaker and shorter-lived build.
Where a piece has doors, hinge type and count per door should be specified as with any cabinetry, along with whether doors are solid frame-and-panel construction (which allows for timber movement) or a flat, glued-up solid panel (which is more prone to warping over time).
Finish schedule
The finish — oil, wax, lacquer or hardwax oil — should be named along with the number of coats and whether it's applied in the workshop under controlled conditions. Each finish type has a different look, feel and maintenance routine, and a quote that just says 'finished to a high standard' isn't telling you which one you're getting or how to look after it.
Delivery, assembly and site access
Large pieces like dining tables and sideboards need delivery access confirmed before the piece is built — will it go through the intended doorway and up any stairs assembled, or does it need to be designed to break down into sections for delivery and reassembly on site. This should be checked at the design stage, not discovered on delivery day.
What cheap quotes leave out
Protective packaging and delivery method for a finished piece, and any snagging visit after delivery to check the piece has settled correctly in its new environment, are commonly left off lower-cost quotes. Confirm too whether a design drawing or 3D visual is included before manufacture starts, since committing to build without a design sign-off step increases the risk of a mismatch with what you had in mind.
Common questions
Why does a table top need to move independently of its frame?+
Solid timber expands and contracts across its width with seasonal humidity changes, and if the top is rigidly screwed to the frame, that movement has nowhere to go and the wood will crack. Slotted fixings allow the top to move slightly without damage.
Are dovetail joints necessary for drawer boxes?+
They're the traditional strong option for a reason — dovetails resist the pulling force of opening a drawer far better than glued butt joints, and they're a fair marker of genuine hand-built quality in a quote.
Should the quote include a design drawing before building starts?+
It's worth asking for one. A 3D visual or detailed drawing agreed before manufacture reduces the risk of the finished piece not matching what you pictured, especially for a one-off item that can't easily be altered afterwards.
Commission a made-to-measure piece properly specified
We agree the design, timber, joints and finish with you before any timber is cut in the Biddenden workshop.