The worms are long gone, leaving some scattered tiny holes.

For a rustic vintage look, as long as he's not charging you extra, I'd take them. Getting the grain of quarter-sawn oak is always nice.

I'm not sure about wormy in arts & crafts since you're wanting a really clean look. Like a heavy grain, heavy worming might compete with the detail of arts & crafts cabinetry. It might depend on how wormy the wood is. :)

Also I'm thinking it would depend on your door style, and how much visual weight your floor had.

Some arts & crafts door styles are minimalist and could probably carry a heavier texture, and some (especially modern interpretations) are much more intricate and would probably be best-served by a cleaner wood.

E.g., I (pesonally) wouldn't want a very wormy wood on this island or uppers, but I would put it on the lowers.
But in a reduced style I would go for it (because I'm a big fan of wormy/rustic/distressed woods):

{{!gwi}}

Wormy is so ambrosial! We lived in a 180 year old house with wormy pine floors and they looked great. It is definitely a distressed look and will go great with soapstone.

I agree w/ Avesmor, though. If you want super period craftsmen style, I would get clear.

Any other thoughts on this? Still struggling.

wormy oak is pretty rare - I've never seen any actually. Is he sure it's not chestnut? A lot of people mistake the two.

That said just go look at the wood and decide. If you don't like like it have him get some "clear" quartersawn oak. This is not an exotic species and is readily available all over the U.S.

I second everything antss said. Chestnut is often mistaken for oak.

melissa

I would request several samples - See that it is in fact Oak (mentioned by other posters) and that it is in keeping w/style you are looking to achieve.

to me, wormy would add more rustic element - If that works for your application - My personal pref would be worm free - that's just me

Posted link to some inspiration pics

Here is a link that might be useful: kennebec cabinetry

Your vision sounds beautiful and the wood can work into it very well.

If the wood has flecks and worm holes, I'd get it and change the design very slightly to accommodate it.

Also remember that the "craftsman" people put in their kitchens today looks nothing like a craftsman original kitchen. An original kitchen looks much more like one of three things - a 1910's-20's bungalow kitchen - white painted and white tiled to kill germs, idiosyncratic, easy-breezy style; a colonial kitchen- knock together cabinets out of beadboard with very little framing; or a victorian pantry. Most kitchens had very few built-in cupboards and many had none. It's simply today's fashion to imagine that craftsman kitchens were like craftsman living rooms.

So there is a lot of license to determine what is craftsman-like for you. Your choices of materials combined make it a little more victorian to art nouveau-like to me. Both of which are perfectly historically correct blended into a craftsman house.

Just my personal opinion but I would go for it in a minute, especially in an old home. Good luck.

Speaking as someone who loves old wormy chestnut and antique oak and has both in my home, I chose NOT to use in for my cabinets. After seeing someone else's I thought it looked too rustic, even for me. A couple of little holes here and there would look okay but not all over my cabinets. I put it on the floor instead.