One fortunate soul

I have been blessed by fortune. I enjoy my work, restoring antique furniture, and am delighted when I can bring my client’s loved ones back from the ‘dead’, or in their particular case from the scrap heap. Pieces that would succumb to time and be lost, pieces that often were part of their childhood, can be made solid and durable again and be a source of pride. And I get to be part of that process.

At present I am restoring a house full of furniture for a couple who are rebuilding their home. The woman was from a very large Shaughnessy family and their home was filled with beautiful furniture. They had inherited a number of pieces and the couple were aware of the delight of being surrounded by some history so had purchased beautiful antiques themselves. One of the pieces was a Victorian Honduras Mahogany dining table. This I restored and refinished for them.

I was quite surprised when they asked if I could add another leaf to the table because the previous week I had been given a piece of Honduras Mahogany by a friend. He said that he had been given the board years ago and had never found a use for it. I went over to the board with my tape measure to see if fortune was actually smiling or just smirking at my hubris and found it to be a half inch longer than needed. By the time I had squared the ends and fitted the new leaf all the was left over was sawdust. This relatively rare wood had been around for over a decade with no purpose. I got to be the instrument to give it a function.

Restoring a Walnut Desk

The end result!