Ambient Decor

I bought this trunk from a thrift shop and it was extremely cheap as it was in terrible shape. I had all kinds of before pictures which I suspect I may have deleted accidentally. Anyway the drawer was in pieces and the decorative piece under it was detached but luckily inside the trunk. These were made by the hundreds in the thirties and forties in Ontario in Goderich and a few other places in Southern Ontario. They have all been lined in cedar to deter insect infestation but this one is actually lined in Honduras Mahogany and was chemically treated with cedar oil.

A Eucalyptus, Burled Maple and Walnut vanity repurposed into night stands. One half of a handle was missing so I cut a new one from Poplar and stained it walnut. I also soaked one of the shelves that had been in the middle in warm water and peeled the veneer to use in the repair of the gash on top of one of the cabinets to ensure the grain quality and oxidation level. These little cabinets are so heavy I will be adding handles at the back to make it easier to pick up.

A small Art Deco liquor cabinet in quarter sawn walnut, figured walnut and blonde mahogany. This cabinet sat in a very damp environment as the lacquer finish had gone milky and the joinery was loose. This was a very straight forward restoration with only minor repair required. The original interior was a badly lead painted green paint which I contact cemented a sage green grasscloth on the walls and a cork on the shelves.
The glassware came with the cabinet. The whiskey, scotch and wine I added with contributions from a Raszkul I know.

An older cabinet of Solid and veneer Oak. I peeled some veneer from the interior of the drawer to repair the bits of veneer that had chipped from the drawer front and exterior writing surface. I also decreased the size of the pigeon hole storage of the interior to accommodate the customer's storage of arts and crafts material. It is a sturdy cabinet circa 1880-1910. The foot on the right leg required minor recarving as it had been chewed by a small dog.

I pulled this table out of a dumpster in Edmonton in 1978. It had a dozen or so cigarette burns on the top. I sanded through the original veneer and resurfaced it in a figured walnut. The rest of the table is solid walnut. It's circa 1935.

I bought these tables about 25 years ago. They had a faux walnut finish on them that was in really bad shape. I altered the basic design a bit and clad them in some veneer I brought back from New Zealand. The center panels are Macracarpa, the edging is Rimu with a thin band of Macassar Ebony. There was a lot more contrast between the Macracarpa and Rimu originally but it has oxidised and looks almost like a related species. Macracarpa is a conifer and Rimu is a gum wood,

Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. There are frames still being finished and I will post pictures when these are reassembled.

Another Big Bang table with a different assortment of wood species.

Harlequin Bakelite Cutlery sets. British, circa 1930. Complete set and never used.