Custom Wood Window Sills in Hardwood
Made to measure in eleven hardwood species — cut to your opening, profiled on the edge you choose, and priced before you order.
Why a wood sill is cut, not bought
A stock sill comes in fixed lengths and one square edge. A custom wood window sill is machined to the actual jamb-to-jamb measurement of your opening, with the depth, the eared returns and the edge profile all specified by you. That is the difference between a piece that sits in the opening and one that looks like it was built for it.
Every sill on this page is made to order. You set the dimensions in inches and sixteenths, choose the species and finish, and the drawing updates as you go — so you approve the exact piece before it is cut.
Hardwood sills in place
The eleven hardwood species
Ninety-five hardwood finishes across eleven species. Grain, hardness and how each takes a stain all differ, so the right choice depends as much on the room as on the colour.
White Oak
The most requested species for contemporary work. Straight, open grain and a pale base that takes natural oils and grey-toned stains without going orange. Hard-wearing, which matters on a sill people set things on.
Walnut
Deep chocolate-brown heartwood with a fine, even grain. The premium choice for a dark sill — it needs no stain to read as rich. Softer than oak, so best where it will not be knocked.
Cherry
Smooth, close grain that starts light and darkens with age and sunlight — a sill in a bright window deepens noticeably over its first year. Traditional and warm.
Brown Maple
The most economical hardwood and the most versatile under stain, because its tight grain takes colour evenly. Where a painted or heavily stained sill is planned, this is usually the sensible substrate.
Hard Maple
Denser and paler than brown maple, with a subtle grain. Chosen where a very light, clean sill is wanted and durability matters.
Hickory
The hardest of the group, with dramatic variation between pale sapwood and dark heartwood in the same board. A rustic, high-contrast look — not a quiet sill.
Oak & Quarter Oak
Traditional red oak with pronounced grain, and quarter-sawn oak for the medullary ray fleck associated with Craftsman and Mission work.
Character grades
Wormy maple carries mineral streaks and small worm tracks; sap cherry mixes pale sapwood with darker heartwood; elm has an interlocking grain. For a sill that should look reclaimed rather than uniform.
Grain, hardness and how each species takes a stain all differ — so the right choice depends as much on the room as on the colour.
Popular hardwood finishes
Four of the most requested species. All 95 hardwood finishes are shown on your own piece inside the configurator.
Hardwood window sill sizes and thickness
Wood sills are made to your measurements rather than to a size chart.
| Dimension | How it works |
|---|---|
| Length | Jamb to jamb, entered to 1/16". The cut list takes 1/16" off each side as a reveal so the piece drops into an out-of-square opening. 18" to 144". |
| Depth | Wall face to window frame, plus whatever projection you want into the room. |
| Eared returns | How far the ends run past the opening. 2½" is typical; set to zero for a flush cut. |
| Thickness & build-up | A laminated build-up edge lets a 3/4" slab read as 1½", 2½", 3" or 4" from the front. |
| Multiple openings | A mulled run of two or three windows is cut as one continuous piece with the interior jambs notched in. |
Edge profiles on hardwood
All six profiles can be machined into a hardwood sill: eased, bevel, radius, cove, ogee and Roman ogee. On open-grained species like oak and hickory a deeper profile such as ogee shows the grain running through the curve, which is part of the appeal. On tight-grained maple the shape reads cleanly at any depth. See all six edge profiles explained →
Wood or solid surface?
Hardwood suits rooms where the sill is meant to be seen as woodwork — matching trim, casing or cabinetry. Solid surface suits wet rooms, south-facing windows with heavy sun, and anywhere a seamless colour match matters more than grain. Read the full comparison →
Your hardwood sill, drawn to size.Set the size, pick the finish, and see the exact piece before you order it.
Configure Now →Frequently asked
Can you match my existing trim?
Usually. Send a photo and, if you can, a small offcut. Matching species is straightforward; matching an aged finish is closer to colour-matching than to picking a stain from a list.
Will a wood sill warp in a sunny window?
A properly dried, finished hardwood sill is stable in normal interior conditions. In a south-facing window with all-day direct sun, or over a radiator, solid surface is the safer specification.
Do you finish the sill or does it arrive raw?
Sills ship finished in the stain you select. The finish schedule is printed on the spec sheet that comes with your order.
What is the minimum and maximum length?
The configurator accepts openings from 18" up to 144". Longer runs are quoted as a multi-piece assembly with a specified joint location.
Related guides
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