I'm back...

Hi Everyone,

As many of you may know, my email was hacked last week, and taken over by hackers who had changed my password.
My blog was shut down, and everything stopped. I couldn't access anything except facebook. It was extremely frustrating. Finally, last night after 9 days, I got everything back, including blogger, flickr, email, etc. I hope I never have to go through anything like that again. I began to set up new accounts to start over, so now I need to be contacting a number of people and straighten this situation out.
Thanks for checking out my blog. There will be new posts coming again soon.

Designed for today...

I have had this design in mind for some time, and finally made it happen. I really love arts and crafts styled furniture. I wanted to design a small desk in true Arts and crafts style, that would not take up much space, and still be attractive. Lap top computers are a common item found in most homes and apartments today, so my goal was to design a piece of furniture specifically for computer use. The small footprint makes it ideal for apartments, and is small enough to easily move around from room to room as your living space changes.
The Arts and Crafts fall front desk is not a new idea. My research has found a number of fall front desks made by all of the great Arts and Crafts manufacturers of their time. The earlier designs just were bigger, and designed as writing desks, you know, getting out the old paper and pen, so I revised the idea to be in step with todays lifestyle and way of communicating. Now you can have a great look of a true arts and crafts piece of furniture, that functions perfectly in todays environment. The fall front desk measures 26"w. x 19'd. x 50"h. It is made of quartered oak solids and veneers, and finished with an authentic fumed oak and shellac finish, just as they did it over 100 years ago. Once I had the desk, I knew it had to have a chair to match, so now you will no longer have to clear off the dining table to check your facebook, complete your homework, skype that special someone, or balance your checkbook. Here's a special place where you can do it all.

Have a seat....

Another current project that I'm excited about. I worked with interior designer Carol Wixom to develop seating  for a large foyer. Fashioned in the style of an English Regency window seat, this custom made bench was designed to fit a specific space.  The bench measures 102" L. x 22" W.

The frame is made of Michigan Cherry and features a warm, lightly distressed finish. Scrolled arms are accented with delicate floral  carved rosettes.The sweeping posts flow into saber shaped legs offering a graceful seat.

I really like Carol's fabric choice.  The two bolsters in a complementary  print accent the seat cushion, and add an element of sophistication  to a timeless style.

The finished piece makes a grand statement in the entrance of a country club banquet hall.

Have you ever.....

 

Have you ever worked with exotic woods and veneers? I am currently building two lamp tables of a wood called zebrawood. A relatively small number of woodworkers even know that it exists.

The trees producing this unique wood comes from West Africa, and can reach heights of 150 feet. I have also read that the bark of the tree can be as thick as 12 inches. I can only imagine the work it must take to bring it out of the jungles.

The timbers of this tree are used extensively for veneers because of its striking effect. The dark brown to black stripes on a pale golden yellow heartwood offers a very unique look to a piece of fine furniture. Zebra wood is often used as an accent wood on borders, inlays or marquetry on high end pieces. My tables will simply promote the beautiful colors and straight grained pattern of the veneer.There is no further need to embellish the tables with moldings or hardware. Simple clean lines and a clear finish make this a truly unique, exotic piece of furniture, perfect in a contemporary setting.

Zebrawood is only one of the exotic veneers we offer. There are even more species that we want to share with you. If you are interested in creating a very special piece, that you simply won't find anywhere else, contact us.

 

Little gems

Small ottomans like these are great little gems for apartments and homes. They can add a bright spot of color to any room, and are easy to move anywhere they are needed.

These low ottomans are perfect to be used as a foot rest, a low seat, or a place to stack your magazines and books next to that favorite chair. Cats love them too, at least mine do. Just the right spot to take a nap.

We offer a variety of sizes and styles to fit your needs. Make it formal, with traditional wood finishes and pattern prints, or whimsical with painted colors of the rainbow and bold prints. These pieces are individually made to last. All of our ottomans are made with hardwood frames and dacron wrapped foam cushions.

You can individualize your ottomans. Perhaps a his and hers. Send us a note to share your interest and needs. We can make them for you.

CATS AND HORSES

Do you have a cat? I do. Two of them. I do my design work at home, so the cats are always around, and curious of my activities. They love to jump up on my drawing table, and sit in my chair. When they want to play, they bat my pencils, paper clips or anything else not tied down to the floor. If you have a cat, you know exactly what I mean.

My cats got me remembering the cats we used to have in the factories where I have worked. In those days it seemed that every factory had a few cats to deal with the mouse problem. Boots, Mr. Jinx and Dutch were just a few of the many that I can remember. Thinking of those cats reminded me of the stories the old timers would tell. I had worked for fifteen years at Baker Furniture in Holland (MI) and there were many great stories.

Think of how strange it would be to have a factory cat now days. But they got me thinking about the draft horses that used to work at Baker furniture. They were long gone by the time I got there, but their stables were still standing when the company left town in 2004. A team of horses were used to move huge piles of lumber from the train to the drying yards, and to the kilns. They were also hitched to a series of pulleys that operated the elevator of the three story building. That was all before my time, but I think it's interesting to reflect on the effort it took to build fine furniture in those days. It took more than just the craftsmen to keep things going. Cats and horses were important too.

Imagine riding in a two-horse powered elevator.

Coming full circle

This past week I received a call from a unique store here in Holland that sells a variety of products made in Michigan. The store is called The Shaker Messenger, and has been owned and managed by Diana Van Kolken for a number of years. I had a two door cabinet that I had designed and built on display in the store, and Diana called to say that it had just been sold. The buyer didn't have a way to get it home so Diana asked if I would deliver it. This is one of the best rewards of building custom furniture.

The woman was waiting on her front porch as we pulled up. She was so grateful that we delivered it.

She said she had considered buying it for some time, and had finally made up her mind that she had to have it. She showed us exactly where it had to go in her living room. It was a perfect fit in the space and complemented her decor and color scheme.

It's a rare experience today when you get to meet the person who appreciates your work enough to purchase it, and then to see it prominently displayed in their home. This woman was so happy that she gave me a hug! It doesn't get any better than that.