White Pine Blanket Box

This is something I made years ago to the recipient's measurements. They were very dear friends and it was truly a labour of love.
Inscribed in the lid is their favourite Bible verse. The tray provides added storage.

Cedar Fench

In our old home, Jennifer planted a shade garden on the east side of the house, under a big old tree. Being on a corner lot, she also wanted to have some fence built to create a private garden space. The ground was very rocky so putting down posts was not an option, so I built a "Fench." One side is a bench where you can sit and enjoy the garden, the other, looks just like a section of fencing.

Summer Fun

I built this croquet set a number of years ago. Every summer we set it up and enjoy a game or two. The stand is Oak, the mallets are Maple.
I even turned the balls. Everything fits nicely on the stand for storage too.

Our Pine Dining Room

Although I prefer to work in hardwood we wanted a warm, informal dining room so we went with Pine. The Sideboard above was actually the last piece to be built, the whole process taking a few years to complete. Jennifer came up with a general design idea and the basic dimensions and I engineered it for actual building. The teacup/teapot handles on the drawers were found at Pier 1 Imports years ago. She didn't want any handles on the cabinet doors so as not to make the piece too busy.
Our dining table can seat ten people. It is seven feet long and three feet wide. The drawers on the one side go the full depth of the table and are very spacious. The benches were built by Jennifer's grandfather for his own family of five children, many years ago. We deliberately left it unfinished so it would collect the life of our family as we used it. Homeschooling three sons, rolling cookies and doing small repairs, along with many art projects have left a patina of history on its surface.
This was first piece I made for the dining room. While recovering from heart surgery, thirteen years ago, I decided I wanted to create something I could pass on to my sons. So began my adventure with wood.

Mission Oak Footstool

Necessity is the mother of invention. We needed a footstool to go with an old Mission Rocking chair, again found at a yard sale. This is what I built. The original design had no slats at the bottom to hold magazines or books so I added them. Super sturdy too. I did the upholstery as well.

Mission Oak Tray, Frame & Maple Rolling Pins

This Oak tray sits perfectly on our leather Ottoman. Again I have used through tenon joinery. Simple, yet classic. It's seen a whole lot of "Chips and Salsa" Sci-Fi movie nights over the years.
Jennifer found the needlepoint at a yard sale and had me build this quarter-sawn Oak frame for it. Notice the rays or lighter flecking on the wood, unique to quarter-sawn Oak.
Many years ago Jennifer found an antique rolling pin with a "Thistle" handle. I decided to reproduce it and alter the design slightly to create one in Maple.

Oak Trapezoidal Bookcase

This is a special piece and was a fun challenge to build. As usual, my wife wanted it taller than the original plan so some serious adjustments needed to be made. It measures 18" by 18" at the bottom, and 14" by 14.5" at the top. It is 64" tall. The peg detail on the sides is purely decorative and not functional although smaller versions of this piece can be built to be knocked down.
Here it is full height. Everything is cut to a three degree angle top to bottom, side to side, and front to back. Well worth all the work.
It also sports a secret drawer at the top.

Greene & Greene Maple End Table

This is one of my favourite projects. The end table is made of Maple and the contrasting wood detail is Ebony given to me by a friend who lived in Africa. The design is reminiscent of the work of Greene and Greene, architects and designers in the heyday of the Arts and Crafts movement.

Mission Bedside Table in Ash

I made this for my oldest son. This time I used Ash. While the bottom is open, the drawer creates a small space to tuck things away.

Another view of the table.

Mission Oak Bedside Table

For bedside tables, I designed them so that you could store items without adding clutter. I use the square peg detail in a number of my pieces. Notice the through tenon joinery on the sides. It measures 17" wide by 15" deep by 27" tall.
The drawer and cupboard below do a good job of keeping your favourite book or the remote control handy. The Oak leaf and Acorn hardware were found in Balderson, Ontario.

Mission Oak Wardrobe

This was the first piece I made, many years ago. It measures 39" wide by 29" deep by 64.5" tall.
The inside is outfitted with drawers and shelves on the left and on the right is a small shelf and a rod for hanging slacks.

WELCOME

Thanks for dropping by. I will be posting my furniture and other things I have built. The Mission Style is a very classic, livable design suitable for modern homes as well as the more traditional homes and offices. Browse around. I hope you enjoy your visit.