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Whether you're a professional designer or homeowner, the process is deeply collaborative from selection to completion. Following your initial inquiry, I'll request details about your space, as well as your aesthetic goals and functional needs. Floor plans, planned materials and finishes, inspiration imagery, are all welcome. Clients often select a piece from our inventory page here. If I do not have the perfect piece in inventory, I can source additional options for your consideration. Sourcing for clients often takes me up and down the east coast, from colonial Maine down through the deep south. This uncommon commitment reliably produces consistent results.
Once the perfect piece has been selected, we move to the workshop where your project undergoes a dramatic transformation, both cosmetically and functionally. Clients have the option of stabilizing, restoring, and protecting the existing finish or complete refinishing. In situations where I am refinishing your piece, any desired tone can be achieved. I exclusively use hand applied oil based stains and coatings that are key to yielding dramatic visual depth and retaining a historical aesthetic in these projects. Photos are shared with clients for feedback and fine tuning throughout this stage.
Functionally, every antique base is thoroughly restored and modified to suit your planned or existing rough-in. It is not unusual for me to spend 40 to 60 hours on this important stage of the process. Only the best materials are used here, from fresh Baltic Birch drawer bottoms to solid oak, walnut, and maple elements for internal rework.
Fixtures, basins, and stonework are all offered at direct cost and every option is available for all without exception. Clients also have the option of procuring their own elements and stonework, whichever works best for project flow.
Completed projects are either delivered personally within 1000 miles or so of our new workshop in Eastern North Carolina, or shipped via custom built hard sided crate anywhere in the world.
This restoration and conversion of a mid 1800's washstand is an example of another transformation that highlights our commitment to reaching functional and aesthetic goals. This adorable and well worn washstand had seen 150 years of history, no doubt some with care and some with a measure of neglect. The finish was removed down to bare wood, inside and out, with a combination of hand scraping and sanding with HEPA dust extraction. The original height of 28.5" was deemed too short, our solution was to design and build a solid wood base with tapered legs to raise the washstand up by 4". Visually, the base also serves to balance the delicate upper details of the piece. Wood cup pulls were stained and fitted to pair with the original mahogany towel bars. A piece of american history, stunningly converted into a functional washstand in a carefully modernized aesthetic.
This mid 1800's marble topped solid mahogany cabinet was converted for a client in Atlanta. We often restore and resurface existing marble but this piece was not a good candidate for an undermount sink. The goal was also to raise the height of the vanity, so we used 1 1/4" locally quarried Danby Marble. The thicker top is much better paired with the more bold dimensions of the piece. To raise the height further, we built a 2.5" hardwood riser with rounded corner blocks at a slightly larger dimension to create a 'reveal' around the edge. The riser was profiled to match the rounded base. The riser allowed us to save the function of top drawer, a key goal. The undermount sink used was a handpainted talavera sink, and the faucet fixture was early an antique solid brass set forwarded to us by the client. The poorly sized knobs originally on the piece were not native, so they were changed out for an antique set of an ideal size projection. The tone of the piece was originally a little too varied, and it was successfully harmonized during refinishing. Note how the hearty elements we introduced actually improved the balance of the piece from it's original form, this was particularly satisfying to achieve.
Some say it's all in the details, and we agree. Whenever and wherever possible, we use authentic antique/vintage hardware when needed. You simply cannot buy hardware of this type at retail, so we carry a fair stock of it.