As a designer I tend to look at pieces of furniture for their aesthetic first whilst Richard, and I'm sure many of yourselves as well, look at things for how they're made instead.When I first came across a chair similar to the one shown it was a fairly poor example and I must admit I near … [Read more...]
A Cover Up
One of the make or break decisions of building any piece of furniture can be made right at the end, when you decide how you will finish it. It's quite amazing how that simple decision can completely transform the look of your work so it really isn't something you want to get wrong - especially if … [Read more...]
Tomorrow’s The Day!
I'm very pleased to say that the first part of our Wall Cupboard video will be available tomorrow. Helen's been hard at it with the editing and though it's taken a few days longer than expected we're learning fast and really starting to enjoy making these - I'm already thinking about the next … [Read more...]
Building Replicas – What’s The Point?
Everything we build is inspired to some extent by what we see, and generally this will be either from nature or from history. Recreating old furniture is common place and often we’ll only aim for a likeness to a particular style without being too concerned about historical correctness though it’s … [Read more...]
Robin Hood’s Chest
The European Woodworking Show is a great place to meet up with some real craftsmen; people who’s crafts genuinely become a part of who they are. Another highlight for me last year was meeting with Willy Rackham, an archery enthusiast and expert at fletching and making longbows. Willy wasn’t hard to … [Read more...]
Furniture for the Home – Design Origins (Part 3)
The nailed together ‘boarded’ furniture of my previous post remained in use for many hundreds of years and it’s this continued popularity that makes us feel that its worth attention even today.Early, surviving chests were built for settings such as a church or castle and were large and featured … [Read more...]
The Boarded Chest – Design Origins (Part 2)
Following from my last post on the Dug-Out Chest I’m going to look now at how furniture construction moved forward to become closer to something we might use today. As the most common item of furniture used in the Middle Ages I’m using the chest as an example.Boarded chests have been built in … [Read more...]
The Dug-Out Chest – Design Origins (Part 1)
The design for our Medieval cupboard was put together rather quickly. We didn’t have a specific example in mind to take measurements from and instead we choose dimensions by its intended use - a compact wall cupboard for storing small household items. So if it isn’t a replica why have we called it … [Read more...]