Gold applied to carved work has a radiance and depth, whether matte or burnished, that is like nothing else.  It even looks good when it's nearly all worn away! 

Preparing a surface suitable for laying gold is an art itself and is today essentially unchanged from centuries ago.  Working with the glue, gesso and clay is both a challenge and a joy, and the variety of effects that can be achieved with them is remarkable.

Besides genuine gold, imitation gold, silver and other types of metal leaf like copper can be used to create striking effects. 

The art of casting is a fine companion to hand carved work.  For centuries it has been used to make ornamentation such as bronze mounts on fine furnishings and composition picture frames.  Casting makes it possible to create a perfect duplicate - or many, and it allows a change of material to one better suited for the application.  The subtleties of the original model are repeated in the casting.

In order to have more control over the final outcome of my antique reproductions, I found that finishing my work with authentic techniques, using authentic materials, would naturally give the look and feel I sought.  This also ensures that as my work ages and wears it does so just as a piece made long ago would.  This idea led me on a journey of experimenting with natural pigments, such as umbers and siennas, malachite and cinnabar.  Then followed the various resins and binders, egg tempera, French polishing and so on.

As much a a pleasure these materials are to work with, and the beautiful results they yield, they are sometimes not the perfect choice for a project.  Sometimes the environment the item will be placed in, or maintenance concerns mean that other finish materials would be a better choice.  In such cases it is possible to get very similar results using modern materials in an artistic way.  I am happy to provide samples for the customer and to help in finding the best fit for their project.

While furniture repair is not my primary focus, there are many instances where I can help, or gladly refer you to someone who can.

I can work in a variety of furniture styles and with a variety of materials.  When needed, I have associates that I call on for special welding, machining, polishing, plating, metal casting and more.