About
Starting in the residential and commercial building industry in my early twenties, I found a love for creating beautiful spaces while working with like-minded, talented designers and tradespeople. Over the years I was fortunate to work with many wonderful clients in various capacities, ranging from historical renovation to new construction. As time went on I had a growing desire to start working out of my own shop with the intention of providing my clients with the highest quality finishes possible, forgoing finishes produced en-masse, and focusing on cabinetry and fine finish carpentry.
In the winter of 2018 I moved into my shop and began designing and building custom cabinetry and mill work for building projects that I was overseeing. I quickly realized my love for being in the shop and started to phase out site work and focused solely on my passion for woodworking. From there, it has been a very organic transition to designing and crafting high-end, sustainable heirloom furniture. I have a love for working with clients that have a vision for whatever idea they have and working with them to bring that to life.
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Since the summer of 2021 I have been working with local arborists and individual homeowners alike to save logs from going to landfills by milling them into materials that can be dried and used in future furniture builds. I have a kiln in my shop that I can properly dry these materials ensuring I'm working with lumber that is not only sustainably harvested, but also properly prepared for furniture making.
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I have been influenced by many well known designers, with a focus on mid century modern design. Some of the people I have been most influenced by include George Nakashima, Sam Maloof, Finn Juhl, Frank Lloyd Wright, Florence Knoll, Ray and Charles Eames, and many others.
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I welcome opportunities to work with clients directly as well as other building industry professionals, including designers, architects and builders. While most of my work is commission based, when time allows I do build various furniture pieces and they are available at Esber's Home and Rugs, located just east of downtown State College.
The
The Brain Trust
I have two labrador retrievers, Addy and Finn. They were the inspiration for the name, The Woodshop Labs, and assist me in the shop in many ways, namely managing shop morale.
Their incredibly positive demeanor and abundant joy for life are infectious and I embrace their zest for each new day. They can often be found making sure scrap wood has been properly chewed or relocating themselves to my workbench under the guise of quality control inspections but mainly to wrestle another snack from Dad.
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