B y - Selena Cate
One of the reasons we use alchemy as part of our business description is that there often is a bit of magic that materializes when we are building furniture. The definition found online describes it as this - "a seemingly magical process of transformation, creation, or combination".
When Timothy and I are standing in front of our lumber collection we loosely plan what our next piece will be like. Yet we never quite visualize what the end piece will be. We never contemplated using a vintage grate as a shelf when we built this. When the drawers were in, it simply felt like something was missing.
I made the suggestion of using this vintage metal grate that I picked up at an estate sale. That's where the magic comes together. Using something found to create something useful.
I often am drawn to wooden crates, metal grates, galvanized trays and all sorts of industrial metal wares. So far, every piece that we have handcrafted has utilized these cast off odds and ends. It's taking recycling to a new level in our craftsmanship.
At this stage of our business we've yet to make anything "cookie cutter" although with that said, this is our third workbench / kitchen island. The style is similar but each one has been unique and individual. Also, the history of the wood changes with each piece depending on where we had sourced the wood. That's part of the reason behind our name "HappenWood" as we often just happen upon an incredible collection of antique wood in an old barn or at a ranch.
This latest Whitcomb + Cate piece was delivered to the Antique Society yesterday. If you are interested in pricing, please be sure to check out our Studio page.
Fabulous table!
Posted by: nick | 10/22/2015 at 09:46 AM