Meet The A-Chair

There are so many chairs in the world. There are thousands or maybe millions of choices of chairs you can buy ranging from little brittle elegant antiques to giant beanbag chairs to Frank Lloyd Wright's "art" chairs that were probably never meant to be sat in. Why does the world need one more chair?


The perfect chair is a designer's holy grail. It is his yardstick. When a certain chair begins to move, it starts appearing in more places, people recognize it. The earth starts to fill up with his chairs. Thrift shops and auctions and landfills alike.


The A-chair is a studio chair, made one at a time like a sculpture. In the same breath it is also practical and very sturdy. Its design does not trump its function. This one is a walnut chair with a cherry seat. I'm building them out of the old standbys: Walnut, Cherry and White oak, or a combination. Hopefully people will be drawn to the A-chair for the following reasons: because they like the way it looks, because it is well built and because it is very comfortable.

Price: $750 (cherry) more than a production chair, much less than Thomas Moser!

Speaking about the design, it is a low profile chair, the backrest just barely above the table. I want to see a room that is uninterrupted by high chair backs. It is a balance of slender and strong, square and rounded with some elements calling more attention to themselves; those being not purely aesthetic, but for comfort as well. The seat for example is curvy, but not just for kicks, it sort of cradles you in and slides you slightly back.


So, go out into the world little chair, rise or fall on your own merits!

Light Basement

Remember that big project from last summer? I finally have some pictures of it! This was another project with Harrow construction in a small beautiful town in Idaho.

This project started with a very dark color scheme! In a rare 180 degree change of mind the clients decided that dark was not going to work for a basement, in spite of a wall of windows. So, the plan changed after the saws had already began to buzz. I only mention this little bit because this is a high anxiety change for a woodworker! Without too many casualties, we made the adjustment to the new color scheme: "whites, creams, and ivories." In the end I am happy. I only painted over a little bit of walnut.

This is sort of a long view through the length of the basement. there are are a lot of "ins and outs," textural contrasts and interesting uses of light. The fireplace is solid stone, carved by one previously mentioned Chad Parkinson the master of making everything look effortless.

Here is a closer look at the wetbar. I love how the stone on the wall is the backsplash for the right bank of cabinets. I also love arch top glass paneled doors with glass shelves. I also recommended mirrored interiors, but it didn't fly. I guess they'll fill these with expensive shiny things and that will be bling enough.


On to what the client calls his Roman Bath. Since this is the bottom floor, they had to cut out quite a healthy piece of concrete to dig out the space for this bath. The tile work is really crisp and well layed.



It also has a steam shower unit which is concealed by...the cover I featured in progress a while back. If you click on the picture you can see the wonderful weathered look of the patina.


Missing from the tour are pictures of the Office area, which is opposite a craft area the size of a kitchen complete with rolling island with cutting surface. The counter tops are all maple butcher block, which I really like. Also missing is the extensive closet and theater room. It is quite an open refreshing change from what we started with. Just for fun here is what the bathroom looked like before the remodel and one shot of the rest of the basement.

Library shelf with Drawers

Here is a one-photo preview of a bookshelf I'm adding to the A-line. The great thing about this particular version is that it is 7 feet tall! That means it holds loads of books. I will also have a version that is just under 4 feet with no drawers for the "constant mover" or college student. The two drawer fronts as well as the side panels (not shown) are chip carved which invites the viewer to feel the wood. The chip carving also provides an important visual contrast. The drawer pulls are low profile and made of a small loop of dark leather. I think natural oiled leather would be nice also.

Cherry again. I just really love the ever darkening color of it. I will have to devote a whole post to the virtues of Cherry. Until then!

Tag Team

For the last little bit, I've been working alongside David Chamberlain, a terribly talented and formally trained furniture maker. He works solo and has been kind to bring me into this large project. I've had a good time working in another shop and working on a project the likes of which I have never had the opportunity to approach.



The thing that really sets this vanity apart is the veneer work. Outside the woodworking world, the word veneer carries with it negative connotations; veneer = not real. Well, within the woodworking world it usually means very specialized (it is a lost art) and it also means that the piece has been made with a higher level of craftsmanship and a great deal of careful selection. The doors and drawer fronts (eventually there will be some tall paneling on the wall above the vanity with the same treatment) were veneered with a very beautiful crotch mahogany, which is book-matched across the nearly 12 foot face of this piece. This means that each piece of this veneer came from the same chunk of wood and was kept in sequence so that it could be mirrored over the length of the work. Other details to come are polished nickel caps on the feet and nickel accents on the mirror frames. The whole finish will be dark with these light shiny touches, it should be rather impressive. Obviously my custom crafted masking tape handles will get nixed too.

Dave is meticulous about his precision and is a careful planner. This is one of many projects he is doing with Elizabeth Kimberly for a home in Cottonwood.

young apprentice

Sam is constantly coming out to the shop to "help" his dad get some work done. It both slows me down to a near stop several times a week and delights me. The other day after one of Sam's visits, I had to pause and laugh at his excellent job cleaning up. There were these regular patterns in the sawdust where he had dragged the broom one direction and then another believing that this was how it was done. Now firmly out of an effective pattern I turned on some good music, swept the floor and tried to get back into the project puzzling at the opposing forces at work in the shop. It is the worst best place to do woodworking.

Here are some doors that went to an enormous entertainment center I built earlier this summer. There were four upper doors made in a revised French Country style. The finish was sort of a cream with some light glazing. Overall, the piece had quite a bit of ornamentation, something that is outside of the average IB project, which was good for a change.

Some odd rails with the tenons cut into them, ready to assemble.

My best helper Sam helping me dry fit the parts together.

Gluing and assembling the various parts.

Driving the stiles home before clamping.

Metal Cover

This summer we worked on a beautiful home in Idaho. It was situated on a butte overlooking the most picturesque river. It was a really good project and it kept us very busy. I will hopefully be able to sneak back up there once the floors are finished and snap some photos.

In the bathroom there was this tricky sump pump that was a little difficult to design around. The contractor suggested a big steel sleeve to hide it. We also were able to conceal a remote steam shower unit. This is the unit in progress and again with the first coat of patina.
The finished metal is a deep auburn rust with some lighter marks here and there. It has since been capped in walnut with a bench that fits next to it. It will also have a towel bar wrapping around it. An interesting kill-several-birds-with-one-stone sort of a project.

The -A- table

Hey gang, check out some pictures of our latest table on the website. The goal is that this will be a part of a signature line that is intended for everyone, not just the wealthy. At $1750 it is still not inexpensive, but I challenge anyone to find a table that is made in America with a solid 8/4 (which finishes off at 1 3/4 inches thick) cherry top for less money.

This table has a hand rubbed finish, which I truly love. The danish oil and paste wax make for a very nice smooth feel without masking the wood's character. This finish is also less fussy than a urethane or a lacquer because tables get scratched. Especially if you have kids, it is going to happen! Instead of scratching through to the unfinished wood and having peeling issues, all the owner has to do is rub some more wax on it and let the wood be wood, acquiring it's patina of good use.

The design is also very simple so that he wood itself becomes the primary decoration.