Chests and Case Goods

This gallery includes chests, armoires, etc., but not huntboards, highboys or secretaries (now called desk-and-bookcases) which are located elsewhere on the website.

Case goods use a lot of wood, but most of it is hidden away and is called "secondary".  Since it is not seen, we usually save the customer some money by using a less expensive but just as satisfactory wood, such as poplar or beech.

We usually produce a sketch of a custom piece, and for these larger pieces we also produce a full-sized pattern for the customer in order to check the scale and proportions.  It also helps to see the site where the finished piece will go, or at least a photo of the space.

Gallery

Armoire This was made for a family in a small house that didn't have any closet space. The armoire was sized to fit in an upstairs hallway, leaving just enough room to comfortably walk by. The clothes are hung sideways, and the bottom part is used for shoe storage. Made from cherry and figured maple.	Charleston Triple Chest A neat invention. Three sections high, each with lift handles. Charlestonians didn't suffer summer weather gladly, and a lot of their furniture was designed to move with them to more temperate climes for the hot summers.	Wall Cupboard Made in walnut, sized to exactly fit a space and the slightly oversized dishes owned by the customer. The frieze has a checkerboard pattern. We made a similar frieze once with alternating walnut and maple squares - very interesting.	Wall Cupboard (detail) A detail shot of the frieze and pediment of the walnut wall cupboard in this gallery.
Chippendale Chest This chest is evocative of a Philadelphia style chest ca.1760. It has quarter columns, ogee bracket feet, full moldings below the top, nice (flashy) brasses. We love to get an order for one of these beauties.	Collection Cabinet A customer had a collection of Christmas ornaments that made up a beautiful crèche scene, and wanted a place to keep them. We designed the star pattern of the top and door panels, and fitted the interior to hold each part of the scene in a special compartment. All Honduras Mahogany, with quarter columns and ogee bracket feet.	Corner Cabinet This cherry cabinet is part of a continuing evolution of a design first begun in the 18th Century by some unknown craftsperson. The original was quite wide, and more homespun than elegant. Another iteration shrunk the width, but kept some of the other features. Our design refined some elements, such as increasing the size of the scallops as they go from bottom to top. Next?	Small Cupboard One of a set of two cherry cupboards to give an owner of a beautifully restored ca. 1750 Virginia stone and log home some storage space in his kitchen. We also built his kitchen cabinets.