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Updated: 7th October 2008
About
Barry
A
number of years have now passed, since launching my online shop and thanks to my many
customers, some of whom I now consider friends, the experience has proved both successful
and extremely enjoyable.
The
title over my door and by which I trade, Traditional Woodworker, was deliberately chosen
instead of one of the more popular terms like cabinet or furniture maker, for good reason.
Over the course of the last two decades these terms, have to a large extent lost their
true meaning as have, the terms craftsman and handmade. The latter has been so overused
and watered down it has now become almost meaningless. Some woodworkers and indeed other
trades have tried to overcome this dilemma by calling themselves Artist this or Artist
that. I certainly agree with the sentiment behind this idea, however, it's possible that
this may sound elitist and would therefore be divisive. Whereas Traditional Woodworker is
instantly inclusive and says all I wish to convey with honesty. There are no CNC, Lasers
or CAD in my shop. Here handmade means simply that, made with my hands. 
Preparing drawer
sides
Hand cutting dovetails
Throughout my woodworking career,
it has been my ambition to produce distinctive furniture and accessories of the highest
quality possible. Equally important, they should be at an affordable price. Why? Because
of the need for democracy in excellence. I believe everyone has the right to quality and
beauty in their surroundings and that price alone should not be an exclusion. However,
this is not as simple as it may sound; quality always means time, and time, as the saying
goes, means money. The battle continues.
Arts and Crafts influenced Cot
I have always been
a huge admirer of the furniture produced by the Arts and Craft movement, (coincidently
William Morris had similar views on quality and pricing). So naturally, the simple,
elegant lines of Shaker furniture also had instant appeal for me. The Shakers removed
everything unnecessary or pretentious from their designs, resting simply on the purity of
line and the inherent beauty of timber. They combined this with an honesty of approach and
elevated craftsmanship to a form of worship. The resultant Shaker style was a precursor to
the modern movement which subsequently influenced furniture design around the world. The
continued popularity of Shaker style has dominated the bespoke commissions I have received
these latter years. However I am pleased to say there is a current revival of interest in
the Arts and Crafts style and I welcome this. Never the less, Shaker style items like Peg
Rails and oval boxes will always be the perfect accessories for an on-line shop and
to send by post.
clinching copper tacks
Another continuous source of pleasure, not to
mention inspiration, is living here in Central France. We are part of a very small hamlet,
"Les Moussins", which consists of our farmhouse and barn and our neighbours who
have a "real" working farm, breeding cattle. This is ironic really, as we have
been vegetarians since the late eighties; one of life’s little jokes?
Our farmhouse
The countryside rolls away from the hamlet on all
sides, broken only by woods or forest and a line of meandering poplar, which denotes the
route of the Canal Du Berry.
We try to be self-sufficient with our vegetables;
much praise going to my wife, Lesley-Anne, who plants, weeds, picks and washes them. I
then make my appearance, cook and receive the applause. Did I hear someone say
"typical"? Fortunately we now have a tractor and trailer which is used for
pulling our yearly supply of firewood from the forest and will (I’ve promised) in
future be put to work helping Lesley-Anne on the vegetable plot.
Bringing home the firewood, this oak came down in storm.
 There
is another very important member of the team who hasn’t yet been mentioned, our head
of security, helper and general "dog's body". He conscientiously keeps the
property free from moles and other unwanted guests, helps out in the workshop, mainly by
waking up periodically and reminding me it's time I took some fresh air and exercise. At
50 kilos he really can be quite convincing! Barney joined us when he was already 2 1/2 years' old. He’d
been making a living at a pig and chicken farm, after being turned out by his breeders for
being goofy. He then came to us, under a bit of a cloud, following an incident involving
three dead chickens, a very nervous sheep and a terrier needing a plaster cast on one leg.
Barney explained it was all an unfortunate misunderstanding and we are inclined to believe
him; after all, since he has been with us, he not only attends to all his duties
diligently, but also will share his food with the guards from the farm, when they come
over to visit him.
Barney
Sadly
Barney passed away on January 23rd 2006. That was an unbelievably sad day
for us and he is sorely missed. We chose to leave Barneys story on the site as a
small memorial to a great friend.
Strangely,
and this is a very Barney type story, a creeper from a nearby pumpkin plant encircled his
final resting place and started to produce, what was to become an enormous pumpkin right
on top of him. Now, here’s the strange part, When I put it on the scales at the
end of the summer it was exactly the same weight as Barney had been….. 50 kilos.
The end of December 2006 we received two
new additions to the family, Charlie and Maud. Sister and brother form the same
litter, although it would appear their mother was a bit of a girl on the quiet, as both
the puppies have different fathers. Maud’s father was a Labrador, like her
mother, however Charlie’s father was a Great Dane. I shall let you know how
this develops further and post some pictures on the site. About three years ago we
took on Heidi, one of the farm dogs across the road, when her owners moved off to
Canada. She will be 15 this year and is not too happy with these young
whippersnappers who are systematically destroying the courtyard. She spends most of
her time sleeping in the peace and quiet of the kitchen. Did I forget Gilberte the cat?
Who adopted us.
A big thank you to all our customers for
making what we do and our life here possible.
Au bientôt.
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