Wood moves, and that isn't a fault.

Across the grain, not along it — A two-metre top changes width with the seasons and barely changes length at all. That is why the joinery looks the way it does
What's designed for it — Buttoned tops, breadboard ends, panels that float in their frames. All of those exist for this one reason
What you'll notice — A hairline gap in a door in winter that closes in summer. A drawer that runs sweetly in July and snugly in January
What would be a fault — A split, a joint opening permanently, or a top that cups and stays cupped. Those are mine to put right and they get put right
Underfloor heating — Changes the maths a lot. Tell me at the design stage rather than after — it affects the timber choice and the construction
What helps — Not standing it against a radiator, and not letting a room swing from very damp to very dry. That is the whole of the aftercare

The doorway — Width and height, and whether the door itself comes off its hinges. Most do and it buys you four centimetres
The turn — The landing, the half-landing and the corner at the bottom. A long piece needs the diagonal, not the width
The ceiling on the stairs — The thing everybody forgets. A tall bookcase fails here more often than it fails at the door
Send photographs — Of the route, with a tape in shot. Two minutes of your time and it is checked before a board is cut
If it won't fit — It gets designed to come apart, and it is designed that way from the start rather than sawn in half at delivery
Flats and lifts — Measure the lift too, including the diagonal inside it. Stairs in a block are usually the harder problem

Boards vary within a species — Two oak planks off the same tree can be noticeably different. There is no swatch that will predict yours
Colour changes after it leaves — Cherry darkens dramatically in the first year, oak greys in light, walnut lightens. All of that is normal and none of it is reversible
Sapwood, knots and figure — Say what you like and what you don't. "No knots at all" is possible, costs more, and wastes a lot of a tree
Come and pick the boards — Most makers will let you and few advertise it. An hour in a timber yard is the most useful hour of the whole job
If you can't come — Photographs of the actual boards before cutting, and nothing is cut until you have said yes to them
Matching existing furniture — Possible to get close, and never exact — the thing you are matching has aged and the new piece hasn't yet

"Oak" often means oak-faced — A thin veneer over board. It can be well made and it is a different product at a different price
"Solid oak" is sometimes finger-jointed — Short offcuts glued end to end. Structurally fine, visually busy, and much cheaper than wide boards
Wide boards cost more — Because a wide board needs a big tree, and there are fewer of those every year. That is most of the price difference
What the joints tell you — Look underneath. Dowels and screws is one thing, cut joinery is another, and the underside is where nobody bothers to pretend
Where a shop piece wins — Price, and having it next week. Both of those are real advantages and it is silly to pretend otherwise
Where this wins — It fits your room, it is repairable, and it will outlive the person who commissioned it. Whether that is worth the difference is your call

A re-finish — Every ten or fifteen years on a working surface. Charged at time and it takes a day or two
A re-glue — Free, always, whatever the age and whoever owns it by then. A joint that lets go is mine rather than yours
A new leg, a new top — Possible, because it was made to be taken apart. That is a design decision made on day one
If you move house — And it doesn't fit the new stairs, it can usually be dismantled and reassembled. Ask before hiring anybody with a saw
If you sell it — The repair offer follows the piece rather than you. Give the buyer this page
What this costs to promise — Very little, because it is rarely needed. Furniture built to be repaired mostly doesn't need repairing