This shows the stages of creating two reproduction chair legs. From left to right: the original photograph, enlarged; a plywood pattern; two practice legs; the two final legs.

This contemporary bookshelf was commissioned by the Rowley Public Library. It is an original design based on their existing decor.

A progression of carving the toes on 3 ball and claw feet. These wound up on my pie-crust table.

Angled joints can be as hard to clamp as they are to make. Adding angled clamping-blocks brings it back to average difficulty.

The four legs on my Pembroke Table needed 8 brackets. Carving multiples can be very satisfying. It gives me a chance to find a rhythm and develop a method of attack.

The final stages of carving a pie-crust edge require a lot of patience and some good shadows.

Caning makes a very strong seat, but it can fail. When it does, the entire web is removed and hand-woven from scratch.

Bracket feet are a staple in traditional furniture. Proportion and scale play a major role in separating shapely feet from clunky ones.

Sometimes refurbishing a piece yields major surprises. When this chair arrived, none of the inlay was visible. A lot of cleaning, a fresh finish, and new upholstery has it back to its former glory.

Marquetry is the art of creating decorative patterns with pieces of wood. There are various methods, but my favorite yields a series of "negatives" of the original pattern.

This shows the stages of creating two reproduction chair legs. From left to right: the original photograph, enlarged; a plywood pattern; two practice legs; the two final legs.

This contemporary bookshelf was commissioned by the Rowley Public Library. It is an original design based on their existing decor.

A progression of carving the toes on 3 ball and claw feet. These wound up on my pie-crust table.

Angled joints can be as hard to clamp as they are to make. Adding angled clamping-blocks brings it back to average difficulty.

The four legs on my Pembroke Table needed 8 brackets. Carving multiples can be very satisfying. It gives me a chance to find a rhythm and develop a method of attack.

The final stages of carving a pie-crust edge require a lot of patience and some good shadows.

Caning makes a very strong seat, but it can fail. When it does, the entire web is removed and hand-woven from scratch.

Bracket feet are a staple in traditional furniture. Proportion and scale play a major role in separating shapely feet from clunky ones.

Sometimes refurbishing a piece yields major surprises. When this chair arrived, none of the inlay was visible. A lot of cleaning, a fresh finish, and new upholstery has it back to its former glory.

Marquetry is the art of creating decorative patterns with pieces of wood. There are various methods, but my favorite yields a series of "negatives" of the original pattern.