See Ernie's new pages following the construction of a gun cabinet. A continuing story.

Furniture : In its gradual evolution from periods of earliest civilizations, the history of furniture parallels the progress of culture and technology.

For those who think the progress of furniture culture has gone a little past its high point, here is furniture that keeps the traditions of 17th, 18th, and 19th century woodworking alive. It isn't plastic. It isn't even wood finished to look like plastic. The wood looks like wood and the hand tools used to shape it leave their mark.

We work as a team. Rosslyn, with a fine arts degree and 20 years experience in design, does most of the design. Ernie, with a Ph. D. in English, does the construction (What else does one do with a Ph. D. in English, besides flip burgers?). Note, though, that he does know where to put the question mark and period in the preceding sentence.

A small armoire, about two feet tall, with hand made door pulls and a shelf. Great for small books, jewelry, writing supplies.

Quality

The word says it all - - joints and engineering that have stood the test of centuries remain tight as the day they were made

Heirlooms to pass on to future generations

Timeless, handmade, with skill and devotion to historical craftsmanship

Traditional joinery marks them as hand made

Antique lumber

Imagine a tree cut in 1850 in the midst of the largest river basin swamp in North America, lost, then found again in 2000. Milled into lumber and shaped and joined into fine furniture. History is in these boards.

Ernie's furniture is made primarily of salvaged "sinker" cypress, trees that were logged a century or more ago. These old growth trees produce a much finer and more durable wood than baldcypress harvested today. Ernie also uses traditional hardwoods--maple, walnut, pecan, hickory, ash, and others.

A small table of cypress. Note that the whole log is used from bark to bark. The natural lines of the wood are respected.

A table top of variegated wood species.

Quality is important to us. For example, sinker cypress often has small soft areas. We take the time to clean these out by using carving tools, instead of using pressure washers or other machinery.

Table tops are most often attached with one of the most time-honored methods--a hardwood button that engages the top but allows normal wood movement with changes in enviromental conditions such as temperature and humidity. Metal fasteners work just as well, but don't look as refined. See these methods at work on our Wood Photos pages.