another sir edwin lutyens inspired desk

here we have another desk in the sir edwin lutyens style

click the photos to enlarge them and see it happen from start to finish below ...

nice desk, and a job well done by my man chris bowlen ... 

this desk is the third in a series ...will built the first two at the links below ..

hardware by horton brasses in cromwell, ct

sir edwin rocked!  check out his wikipedia entry, then scroll down to his list of 'major buildings and projects' any one of which would likely occupy the typical architect for many years.  in a minor aside, the entry notes that he designed a little furniture and 'some of his designs are still on the market today'  .. 

this is one of our interpretations of one of his designs seen in the photo below.

our original client in 2009 sent us this photo, which we 'interpreted' into the piece you see at the top of this post.  that one is in cherry, bubinga and walnut, as was the second version we made in 2013 ..

the new cousin is in walnut, ebony, and walnut burl, and has a couple more drawers than the original.
 we're coming down the home stretch on it now ..

at 28" x 72" x 31" (the client is taller than most), it's the largest one we've made yet ...

we went back and forth a bit on the details and palette and finally settled on walnut burl panels with
an ebony line, quartered claro walnut borders and an american walnut legs, frame and top ..
we've done some finish samples and i'm pretty sure it will be striking when it's done ... 

it started out as lots of  parts

we started with our revised cad drawing of the original desk, lengthened it and added a second row of drawers and since it will be in the middle of the room, a stepped up back panel
and interior panels in the kneehole ..

chris roughed out the legs from a template modified from the original on our vega duplicator,
i did the final clean up and shaping of them .. just keeping my hand in .. i also worked on the structure off and on for a couple weeks while chris was in australia and new zealand .. i was happy when he got back.

we got the walnut burl veneer from ben barrett at berkshire veneer in massachusetts.  we've been buying veneer from ben for quite a while and he's always got some good stuff when we need it. we also got the drawer pulls from horton brasses in cromwell, ct.

tricky construction with the step up in the middle

and lots of edging on the top and the panels ..

only sixteen like this one .. probably 30 pieces on each panel ... lots of tape.
onward ...

wha's up?

well, it's fall ... and after almost seven years of blogging and about 700 posts, i think i may be running out of steam a bit ... my last post was about 3 weeks ago. it is fall though and the outdoor activities/distractions are daunting .. i was talking with sam yesterday, and i realized one could theoretically do some fly fishing in the morning, have lunch, play nine holes of golf.  then hit a couple apple orchard covers for some grouse or woodcock in the late afternoon, play some paddle tennis around 5:00, then have a shower and dinner, and still have time for some pottery before bedtime.  so many options; so little time. 
this post will be just a bunch of pictures and short descriptions to summarize our recent activities .. not much detail needed .. click the photos to enlarge them.

the two photos above are a revisit to the hill farm project with some more work .. we reworked the funky pedestal thing above into a bar table ..

fixed bob marley's lion chair and took it to be upholstered .. very cool chair with a 'made in italy' sticker .. appeared to be from the 50's

and we inlaid some mother of pearl poker chips into a table top.  will had to engrave a couple of them below

and we've got a new slab headboard bed going ..

another one, just like the other one ..

big and heavy, but very interesting ..

       

and i took a little trip to see emmy lou and bela fleck and abigail washburn at 'fresh grass'

it took place at mass moca ( mass. museum of contemporary arts), down the road in adams mass. an awesome musuem and worth the trip just to see the buildings. 

       

courtyard d

and a great concert venue.  for emmy lou in joe's field, i was able to stroll my way up to pretty close ..

and trevor just finished a custom walnut king bed

lots of xs  .. luckily we have done a million of em

 

 

all in.  all done

more on the fall light later  .. it particularly lights up the figured cherry on our bedroom bureau at this time of the year

pretty tough to photograph though ..

and kit has gotten the harvest in

and back in the shop, we've got another lutyens style desk going ..

this one's bigger though .. 28 x 72 .. gonna be a beauty .. lots of burl

and chris is off to australia and new zealand for three weeks on saturday ..

sam made the gates below for the side door of a local restaurant and we had to make a sign to keep the customers from using them

and sam made some funky parts for a friend's gasifier furnace

some old will mosheim wood burnings surfaced in the office .. probably from about 1990 .. love the tiger ..

the pop up tv cabinet is waiting for a decision on the finish ..

and we made a new mahogany top for an antique table pedestal

amd more news from the metal shop with this custom wood rack and adjustable grill for a peter moore fireplace up on the mountain

and i think we might have had our last outdoor shower for the season.  with temps in the 40's in the morning and 30's soon, i'm going to have to shut it off and drain the lines soon. along with taking down the screen doors, just another fall chore.

i'm going to miss the view

and speaking of views, about this time of year, for a couple days we get the reflection of the rising sun off the metal roof of the gondola shed at the top of stratton mountain about 25 miles to the southeast.  it's another one of those seasonal markers .. all for now ..

a burst of activity

hmmmm .. busy time here in the designing and pricing and proposing department.  plus it's spring, which always cuts into the free time i usually have available for blogging.  this post will be more or less a continuation of one from the end of last month, where again, i didn't take the time to write in depth about specific projects.  i think, maybe too, the 'writing' is taking sort of a backseat to the enjoyment of 'living', for the moment at least.  getting out for five rounds of golf in april is pretty good for me. 

here's a quick april 'projects in the works' lineup, and some hints of what's to come in may ... click the photos to enlarge them ..

a claro walnut coffee table from the offcut of a previous dining table ... we keep 'em, and sometimes we get lucky, and someone needs one exactly the right size ...

this one's heading to chicago this week.  'industrial look' welded steel base by sam.

speaking of sam, the metal shop is humming, and he's cranking it out.  these are parts for some large turnbuckles that will hold a building together, where the second floor floor was removed.  there are four of them total ..

 that's 1" solid round stock bent into those graceful hooks .. turnbuckles from peak supply ...

and he fabricated and installed some new custom railing projects ...

i think this one was installed a couple of weeks ago ...

and these unusual objects will support wooden poles which a local message artist will hold on to while she walks on your back ... sounds interesting, but i haven't tried it yet ... a niche market for sure.

and next up we have the new design department.  this'll be a new kitchen, hopefully by this time next month ...

i finished the shop drawings using some uninterrupted time this weekend ... during the week, i often work from one interruption to the next, and drawings like these just don't flow for me unless i can concentrate.

and after a few sketches and cad iterations of this wall, we have a confirmed design for a long bedroom wall ... coming up in june sometime ...

another claro walnut coffee table ... waiting for it's base that will hopefully happen this week.  the 'ant attack' area is fascinating ..

and the pine sideboard is finished and gone, and now in its new home in stowe, vt ...

here we have another upcoming project that took some time to design and figure out.  it will be a credenza in a north carolina law office, along with the 'ant attack' table above.

 using claro slab cutoffs, we'll cut the short cut offs into veneers, and lay up the door and drawer face panels like a puzzle.  it will have a welded and polished steel base by sam.  i am looking forward to seeing this one get umderway.  it should be a fun one.

and this one, will whipped up week before last.  it's finished now, and i hope we can deliver and set it up in the client's home early this week.  shaker influenced design, simple detailing,

and will is currently, along with a couple of new banjos, working on this slightly smaller version of a lutyens style desk he built back in 2009.  luckily, in a couple of blog posts, we documented the process as we figured out the first time so he's got a little leg up on this one.  also, four additional years of practice doesn't hurt either ...

 

march, 2009 .. +/- 26 x 72

the new onw was starting to take shape by last friday ... still a long way to go though .. lots of detail.

and trevor whipped up this little 'rustic' coffee table last week.  it may not look so rustic in this photo, but now the base is distressed and pickled, the top has its breadboards, and the culry maple top will be distressed, stained and finished later this week.

and jim and sam made a couple of reclaimed oak tables in the 'bethlehem steel' style .. burned, and lightly distressed reclaimed white oak from west virginia ...

and, actually one of the larger projects we wrapped up this month has been ongoing since last september.  it will start to take shape, hopefully, by early july ... we have one more approval to go, and sam's new metal shop will start happening.  it's been a long slog, with lots of challenging permit related details, but i think we have cleared almost the final hurdle. we have received the loan commitment, and the last detail, which i will not mention for fear of jinxing it, will be approved by the 15th of may ... and then, my 'free' time will be gone.   'life is uncertain, golf now.'

ok, work on your pottery too