Made to order · Carlow
Coffee tables, benches, shelving and sideboards, designed with you and made by hand in my workshop. A rough idea is all you need to start: I'll draw it up, and you'll see exactly what you're getting before I cut any timber.
Recent work
Two recent pieces, and the videos of them being made. Both pair spalted beech with solid walnut.
A bench made for a client. We talked through the timber and settled on walnut for the legs, and spalted beech for the top and the rail between the legs. The legs are joined with through mortise and tenons, wedged in bog oak.
From my YouTube channel: Spalted Beech and Walnut Bench Build
A round coffee table with a spalted beech top on solid walnut legs. The edge of the top is chamfered underneath and rounded on top, so it's as good to touch as it is to look at.
From my YouTube channel: Spalted Beech & Walnut Coffee Table build
Why handmade
Made to fit the space and the way you'll use it: the height of your sofa, the width of an alcove, the length of a hall.
Solid oak and walnut, and spalted beech for tops, chosen board by board for the grain. No two pieces come out the same.
Traditional joints like the wedged through tenons on the bench above, cut by hand and made to last for generations, not a few house moves.
I design it, make it and deliver it myself, so you deal with the same person from the first sketch to the day it arrives.
Ways to work together
One-off pieces, made for one home.
01
Coffee tables, side and end tables made to the size and height that suit your room, like the round spalted beech table above.
02
Hall benches, window benches and benches to go with a table you already have, from a simple top on solid legs to the wedged through tenons above.
03
Wall shelves, bookcases and alcove shelving, freestanding or fitted, like the spalted beech wall unit above.
04
Sideboards, TV units and cabinets with solid wood doors and drawers, made to fit the wall they're going on.
Planning something bigger? I also make kitchens, fitted wardrobes and bathroom vanities. Smaller ready-made pieces are in the shop.
Materials
I work mainly in oak and walnut, and I love spalted beech for tops, like the bench and coffee table above. Each piece is finished by hand with Osmo Polyx hardwax oil, which protects the wood without a plastic feel.
Warm and golden, with a strong, open grain. Hard-wearing and timeless.
Rich, dark brown with lively figure. It's what the legs of the bench and coffee table are made from.
Beech with dark, winding lines left by natural fungal activity as it dried. Every board is different, so every top is too.
How it works
Tell me what you have in mind: what it's for, where it's going and roughly how big. A photo of the space and a few pictures you like are plenty to start.
Rough ideas welcomeI draw it up in CAD with full dimensions, and we adjust it together until it's right. For fitted pieces like alcove shelving, I'll come out and measure first.
Dimensioned drawingsWe agree the design, timber and finish, and I'll give you one clear price. A 50% deposit secures your slot.
One clear priceI make it by hand in my Carlow workshop and send you photos as it comes together. It depends on the piece, but as a rough guide, allow about 6 weeks.
Made in CarlowI deliver it myself by van, or you can collect it from the workshop. Fitted pieces are fitted by me. The balance is due on delivery.
Delivered by mePricing
Every commission is designed from scratch, so there's no price list. These are the things that decide where yours lands.
A side table and a sideboard are very different amounts of timber and time at the bench.
Walnut costs more than oak, and wide, well-figured boards cost more than narrow ones. Spalted beech depends on the boards I can get.
Through tenons, shaped legs, drawers and doors all add hours at the bench. Each drawer is a solid wood box on its own runners.
A fitted piece, like alcove shelving, needs a measuring visit and time on site to fit it. A freestanding piece doesn't.
I deliver by van at the same rates as the shop (see Shipping & Delivery), and collection from the workshop is free.
Once we've agreed the design, I price the hours it takes to make and the timber and hardware it needs. I only count the hours I'm working on it, not the time glue and oil spend drying. You get one clear price, and any change is priced in writing before I make it.
It depends on the size of the piece, the timber and how much joinery and detail goes into it (see "What affects the cost" above). Once we've agreed a design, you'll get one clear price.
Coffee and side tables, benches, shelving and bookcases, and sideboards and cabinets. I also make kitchens, fitted wardrobes and bathroom vanities, which have their own pages.
No. A rough idea is enough: what it's for, where it's going and roughly how big. A photo of the space and a few pictures of pieces you like help. I'll draw it up from there.
Yes. Every piece starts as a dimensioned CAD drawing, and we adjust it together until it's right. Nothing is cut until you've approved it.
It depends on the piece, but as a rough guide, allow about 6 weeks once the design is agreed and the deposit is paid. I'll confirm the timeframe in your quote.
Once you've approved the design and the price, a 50% deposit secures your slot. The balance is due on delivery.
Solid hardwood: mainly oak and walnut, and spalted beech for tops. Each piece is finished by hand with Osmo Polyx hardwax oil, which protects the wood while keeping its natural feel.
Beech with dark, winding lines through it, left by natural fungal activity as the timber dried. No two boards look the same, so no two pieces do either. It's the top on both the bench and the coffee table above.
No. My furniture is solid timber with hand-applied oil finishes. I don't make painted or spray-lacquered pieces.
Yes. I deliver furniture myself by van, at the same rates as the shop, and collection from my workshop in Carlow is free. Delivery to Europe is quoted individually. Fitted pieces are fitted by me.
Because it's made to your design, a commission can't be returned for a change of mind, which is why you approve the drawing before I start. If it arrives damaged, faulty or not as agreed, I'll put it right. The details are in my returns policy.
Yes. My workmanship is guaranteed for 2 years from delivery.
Wipe it with a slightly damp cloth, keep it out of long spells of direct sunlight, and don't put very hot things straight onto the surface. If the finish dulls over the years, a light coat of Osmo Polyx oil brings it back.
Start a commission
Tell me about the piece and where it's going, and I'll get back to you to talk it through.
