Furniture
made from trees might have started the first time someone sat on a log. It's evolved a long ways since then and whole schools of design have been formed around the various ways to use wood to make furniture. On this page you'll see a few pieces of furniture that were created, for the most part, back in the 1970's.
For a short time a friend and I built a series of tables, chairs, and beds, mostly on commission, and I learned a lot doing it. I'd spent a season in Vermont learning Joinery from some very talented and gifted craftspeople, and this was an opportunity to put some of what I knew to work. It was fun, but due to not having a shop of my own, and my friend getting divorced and moving, that venture ended. From there I went on and began carving doors, some of which you can see on another page. Regardless, I did enjoy the challenge of making a good table, and although the only pictures I have from that time are the one table featured here, it led into other commissions, one of which I'm working on currently - a 5' diameter, 2" thick oak round table with double stretchers and tapered locking wedges. It's put together with full length sliding dovetails holding the individual planks together for eternity, and has inlaid exotic woods forming Celtic knots and braids in addition to the carved braids on the edges. It's a nice table, and when it's finished it'll show up on this page, of course.
The miniature table is a model that I can work from as it's scaled at 1"=1' and accurate. It's a lot better than a drawing to work from, and clients appreciate having that as a base to work from so they can see how they'd like their own individual table made. Commissions are still being taken at this time for anyone interested. The drawer front is somewhat elaborate, and seemed like a good idea at the time, but after carving one, and looking at how many drawers I was going to have when I finished the cabinetry in this studio, I gave up on the notion of carving more - just too much time involved. The cradles were made and carved back in the early 80's for a set of twins.
I do apologize for the low quality of some of the pictures, but I'm glad I have at least these. Most of the early works went out of my hands before I even thought about keeping records of any kind. Somewhere during this period I also carved a couple of mantle pieces, and for a year I carved the interior of a home - beams, panels, posts, and so on. I also carved a newel post for a stairway that'd been burnt in a fire, and that was a challenge due to the fact that all I had to work from was a chunk of charcoal. It was a time of exploration and learning, and I enjoyed it a lot.
