Elko Hardwoods is a Chicago furniture company specializing in modern live-edge dining and conference tables. Matt Thomas began salvaging and sawing urban trees after graduating with a fine arts degree and founded Elko Hardwoods in 2013 with his brother Jeremy. Trees are sustainably sourced from northern Indiana, and the company states that "the entire process from tree to the final fabrication is done in house."
That chain is unusually complete for a furniture shop. Where most mills saw for grade by avoiding knots and imperfections, Elko saws for character, cutting large slabs that retain the tree's size and natural shape — which is why no two of their tables are alike. Slabs are paired with mates, stacked, and air-dried for two years, a deliberately slow process that retains color and avoids the twisting and cupping that rushed drying causes, then brought to a specified moisture content in a controlled kiln. Surfacing, sanding and prepping are done with power and hand tools, with each design customized to the grain patterns and shapes the process reveals. Tops are paired with hand-welded modern bases: "Base fabrication is done in-house and custom fitted to each tabletop." Finishing uses an imported Italian matte finish. Tables "can be built to your room specifications," and slabs are also sold on their own.
Price band, lead times, team size and showroom status are not published and are left empty.