Multi-generational family business
Knot Just Tables is the furniture line of Knot Just Lumber, a three-generation family shop in Hiawatha, Iowa. It started the way most family businesses do: with someone good with his hands and a family willing to bet on him. Nic Carter learned woodworking as a kid in our dad’s workshop and has spent 25 years at it since. Today he builds alongside his son Chris, and his sister Caris runs the showroom and helps you choose the right piece. The way we build hasn’t changed since day one: one glue-up at a time, by hand, with real materials.
How we build
Every piece starts as solid American black walnut. Never veneer, never particle board dressed up to look like something it isn’t. We kiln-dry every board to 7–10% moisture before it becomes a tabletop, because a stable board means a top that stays flat for decades. Then we sand each top by hand and finish it with a zero-VOC hardwax oil, so the grain shows through instead of being buried under a plastic-looking topcoat. Nothing sits in a warehouse. Each piece is built to order in our shop and arrives in about 2–3 weeks.
What we make
We build two kinds of pieces. Some go into homes: a dining table where your family actually gathers, a matching bench, a coffee table that anchors the living room, a desk top you’ll work at every day. Others go into businesses: bistro and high-top tables built for daily restaurant service, and conference tables made to the size of your room. Different rooms, same standard. Need a size you don’t see? Send us a message. Custom sizes are what we do.
Who we are
We’re not the biggest shop, and we’re not trying to be. We’re a family, not a factory, building furniture for other families and small businesses, one table at a time. If you’re near Hiawatha, come see the walnut in person at our showroom, Monday through Saturday, 10 to 5.