Butcher Block - Soft and Hard Maple

The best cutting boards are "end-grain-up," meaning that the pieces are actually very short boards glued together. This construction helps keep knives sharp as the blade edge slips between wood fibers. I was lucky to get a hold of some abandoned soft maple to build the base. All of the joinery involves wooden dowels except for the drawer, which is connected to drawer sides via hand-cut dovetails. The end-grain-up top is hard maple, and it is not attached to the base. It simply rests on vinyl bumpers that are stuck to the top of each corner post. So the top can be flipped over at any time or even brought to the kitchen sink for more serious clean-up needs. The cutting surface is covered with organic and nontoxic materials. I rubbed-in multiple coats of mineral oil (sold in grocery stores as a laxative) which is then sealed-in with melted paraffin wax. Works great. Now I need the nerve to let it get dirty.