Chairs

A well-known North Bennet Street School project is the Georgian Footstool.  It incorporates four feet (pad, slipper, trifid, and ball and claw) with several knee carvings including an acanthus leaf and a shell. There is also an aplied curved shell on one of the rails. Through this project we also learn slip-seat upholstery, and coloring and finishing techniques.

 

 

While at the North Bennet Street School in Boston, it only makes sense to build pieces inspired by the great historical cabinetmakers of the Boston area.  This Seymour style side chair is based on an example in the collection. The woods are mahogany, crotch birch veneers, and ash for the seat rails. This chair is for sale, and commissions are available for similar pieces or sets.  

 

 

I based the design for this roundabout or corner chair on a famous one built by John Goddart in the 1760s which is known as the John Brown corner chair.  It was once owned by the Herreshoff family of Rhode Island, known for boat and yacht designs. I think it's interesting that I came to build this chair without knowing its connection to my boatbuilding past. The wood is black walnut (the original was manogany), and the leather is goat skin which I aquired from the Bookbinding department at the North Bennet Street School.  All parts are hand shaped, the surfaces are handplaned and scraped, and the ball and claw feet were carved from solid blanks with traditional tools.

 

This Chippendale style side chair was designed and built as a Mother's Day gift for my wonderul mother.  It is slightly curly air-dried black walnut that was given to me by my very good friend Mark Soukup.  All parts are hand shaped, and the surfaces are handplaned and scraped.  The finish is tung oil and paste wax.  Upholstery is lambskin.  Commisions are available.

 

 

This German Brettstuhl was commissioned by the North Bennet Street School during my first semester there.  I really enjoyed the carving in the backrest and I am honored to have it permanently on display in the admissions office.

 

A simple timeless chair, the sack-back Windsor chair is built of  mostly green wood allowing for easy turning and bending of the parts. The natural process of the wood drying out actually helps lock the mortise and tennon joints together.  As seen $750

 

I have now built two of these Windsor-inspired shop stools with very deeply sculpted seats. I built the first for my own use at my bench, and then the second on commision for someone who admired mine.  It is my first original design for a stool, and I use mine every day at my cabinetmakers bench. $550 as shown

 

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