European pear, bubinga, granadillo, soft maple

52" x 20" x 9"  2011

Curved front cabinet made of hand-sawn European pear wood veneers.  The maroon heartwood flame-pattern is echoed on the cabinet's interior.

The interior features curved-front, hand-cut dovetailed drawers made of granadillo. The stand is bubinga and the finish is shellac and wax.

Fiddleback western maple, ziricote, abalone, mother of pearl, with marquetry

20” x 12” x 8”  1997

Dragonflies of abalone and mother of pearl inlayed on figured maple suggest a watery background for marquetry grasses and reeds.  The cabinet is made with hand-sawn veneers.  The single door swings on hand-made brass knife hinges.  Inside are nine ziricote and maple, hand-cut, dovetailed drawers with carved pulls.  The finish is shellac and beeswax.

Red gum and black walnut with pear, maple, holly, walnut, bloodwood, satinwood, bubinga, wenge and peroba rosa

58" x 16" x 9"  2005

The Cherry Blossom Cabinet is a jewelry cabinet on a stand.  The piece was inspired by the stylized pattern on an antique Japanese Kimono.  The hand-sawn red gum veneers are carefully matched so the striped pattern wraps completely around the cabinet.

The marquetry design flows from the cabinet side and across the front, as well as the cabinet’s interior.  Five drawers inside the cabinet compliment the two drawers in the walnut stand.

Granadillo, fiddleback maple, spalted maple, European pear, hand-made and patinated brass hardware

45” x 28” x 13”  1999

Dame Granadillo demonstrates the design flexibility that is possible with sawn veneer work.  The cabinet’s exterior is deep, maroon colored granadillo, an ecologically harvested member of the rosewood family from Central America, while the interior is highly figured fiddleback maple.  The lighter color and vibrant figure of the maple brightens the interior and provides a pleasant surprise when the curved doors are opened.

The solid brass drop pulls on the cabinet doors are hand-shaped and hammered with a light patina added.  The pulls are set in an inlaid spalted maple medallion that provides a focal point for the exterior of the piece.  The legs extend part way up the cabinet sides, ending in a gentle outward curve.  

The interior features two dovetailed drawers of spalted European pear.  The drawers visually share a drawer pull carved from bubinga. The finish is shellac and beeswax.

Norway Maple and White Oak, Kwila and Beech with bay laurel, alder, holly, ebony, doussie, bubinga

52" x 25" x 17"  1993

I enjoy designing and making furniture that compliments the decorative art of marquetry.  My idea was a cabinet with subtle curves and a delicate presence that could become the canvas for imagery in wood. The subtle greens and reds of the Norway maple help create the feeling of a water color wash behind the marquetry design. White oak for the legs and rails provide a framework for the marquetry. Inside the cabinet there is a pair of curved front, kwila and beech drawers with hand-cut dovetails and a single adjustable shelf.

Kwila (Papua New Guinea) and wenge (Africa) with German rolled glass

59.5” x 16” x 12”  2001

The Kwila Showcase Cabinet is a curved front display cabinet with glass on three sides.  The clean lines of the cabinet are intended to have a refined presence in the home while displaying precious objects.  

The German rolled glass has a subtle, wrinkled texture, which creates a shimmer in the interior of the cabinet.  

Kwila (pronounced quee-la) is an ecologically harvested wood that is only recently known in North America.  The hope is that by using lesser known species such as kwila, pressure will be taken off of wood species like teak, that are in trouble from over-harvesting.  Kwila has become a personal favorite for its warm, rich color and strong presence.

Two very special kwila planks were carefully selected for this piece to display an unusual and rare trait sometimes seen in this species.  A random ‘splatter’ of small black spots, seen especially on the base and the interior of the back panel of the cabinet.  These beautiful spots, reminiscent of a fountain pen shaken too hard, appear a few days after the lumber is milled in the shop.

Red gum, tzalam, narra and maple with holly, maple, pear, bloodwood, walnut, bubinga, satinwood, red oak, wenge, peroba rosa

50” x 22” x 9”  2004

Jewelry cabinet made with hand-sawn red gum veneers.  Narra and maple drawers with hand-cut dovetail joinery.  The stand is made from tzalam – an ecologically harvested wood.  The finish is shellac and wax.

Redgum, black walnut, spalted maple, beech

59" x 14" x 8"  2009

Norway Maple and white oak with bay laurel, ebony, holly, alder, doussie, English elm, pear, sycamore

49" x 24" x 15"  1994

A Stand For Music is a special commissioned piece made for a choral music director and close friend. Meant to be used while standing and directing, the piece has a pair of drawers that slide both left and right for the storage of music and batons. A marquetry design of Black-capped chickadees and a flowering branch decorate the top panel, which folds flat when not in use.

The finish is shellac and beeswax.

English elm, eastern maple, spalted maple, Cedar of Lebanon, hickory

68" x 17" x 9"  1993

The English Elm Cabinet is made of English elm on a stand made of eastern maple. The elm lumber, with its distinctive texture and grain pattern came from a storm-downed tree on an estate in England.

The shallow cabinet has concave coopered doors, convex shaped sides, and is wider at the back than the front. Coopering is a traditional technique used to make curved shapes or objects in solid wood such as wine barrels. The curved legs of the maple stand twist slightly as they taper and reach the floor.

Red narra (Papua New Guinea), panga panga (Africa), paella (South America)

28” x 9” x 4.5”  2000

This small wall cabinet made of narra has a wonderful, spicy fragrance and a beautiful texture.  The piece is intended to display small, precious objects.  The cabinet is made of solid wood uses a concealed hand-cut half-blind dovetail method of joining the carcass.  The beautiful maroon stripe discovered in the narra plank helped to determine the dimensions of the piece. 

The dovetailed drawer is made of paella and has a carved pull.  The door pivots on shop-made, solid brass knife hinges. The finish is shellac and beeswax.

Fiddleback soft maple and hickory, spalted maple with mountain mahogany (juniper), poplar, ebony, kwila, pacific yew, satinwood, and bloodwood.

27" x 28.5" x 16"  1996

The Cedar Waxwing Cabinet is made of soft maple and hickory with a marquetry design sweeping across a pair of curved doors. The hickory legs are five-sided.  The exposed tops of the legs are textured with a carving gouge.  The subtle red tones and light figure of the soft maple used as the background for the marquetry design, helps create the feeling of a watercolor ‘wash’ behind the marquetry. The cabinet is finished with shellac and wax.

Narra with wenge, chechen, satinwood, English walnut, cuta, arrariba, and Cedar of Lebanon 

63" x 26.5" x 12"  1997

A showcase cabinet using hand-sawn narra veneers.  The lower cabinet has hand-cut half-blind dovetailed drawers, double mortise/tenon rail joinery, and adjustable shelves.  Upper cabinet has German rolled glass in the front and sides and a waist panel of wenge.  Marquetry ginkgo leaves blow across the back panel and onto the lower shelf and drawer bottoms. Finished with shellac and wax.

European pear, spalted western maple, spalted pear, and ironbark

48" x 29.5" x 12"  1996

Inspired by an antique Chinese wardrobe, the "Pear Cabinet" is a veneered cabinet made of hand-sawn European pear veneers. Pear wood is highly prized for its beautiful pinkish color and creamy texture. The hand-sawn veneers are hand-planed to an extremely fine finish.

The spalted western maple door panels are set in pear frames. The cabinet base, with its slightly curved legs and rails, is made from a darker plank of pear. The finish is shellac and beeswax.