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Chippendale Furniture School team inspired by restoring a Swiss chalet

Chippendale News, Uncategorised

A blog by Ali Easton (of Organic Geometry) and Anselm Fraser (Principal of the International Chippendale School of Furniture) about their working holiday restoring a Swiss chalet.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love my workshop in the Chippendale Incubation Centre. Looking south, I can raise my eyes from my vice and see the quiet woods and tended fields of East Lothian climb towards the Lammermuir hills that roll over the horizon. I’m a lucky man. But I was given an offer that would take me away from that and jumped at the chance.

Developing a new career in furniture making & restoration

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An interview with former Chippendale Furniture student Ian Darroch who now runs his own bespoke furniture making, woodworking and restoration business.

After 20 years of service within the banking sector, Ian took a leap of faith and decided to pursue a career in furniture making and woodwork. Realising that he needed to develop his skill base to professional level he started to look for suitable training courses and facilities. Ian chose the Chippendale School of Furniture due primarily to its reputation….

Chippendale School of Furniture gilder teaches students to show off

Chippendale News, Uncategorised

An interview with Gareth Evans, a gilder and restorer, who spends two weeks each year teaching gilding to Chippendale School of Furniture students.

Gareth Evans studied painting at St Martin’s College of Art in London which he loved. Afterwards, he worked with a friend at a gilding workshop on Fulham Road. He went on to gild alongside Paul Ferguson, President of the Master Gilders’ Association. Next, with a little help from the Prince’s Trust, Gareth set up his own gilding workshop in West Wales.

Greek train encounter leads to Chippendale Furniture School

Chippendale News, Uncategorised

An interview with Chippendale Furniture alumni, Tara McIntosh, who now runs her business, Twiggd, from the Chippendale Incubator Centre.

What sort of work were you doing before becoming a student at the Chippendale International School of Furniture?

“I have an HND in Fashion Design and a Degree in Textile Design (weave and tapestry) from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art so I’m very much from a creative background. I had always wanted to learn cabinet making skills and had heard of the Chippendale School of Furniture years before but there was no way I could afford it.

“The summer before I started the course I was on a 27 hour train journey from Greece to Hungary where I randomly met a guy from Edinburgh. He was just about to start at ECA studying Furniture Design and he brought up Chippendale Furniture and I got really excited!

How falling out of a tree led to a love of wood

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An interview with Seonaid Denholm who set up a furniture making business in a Chippendale Incubator unit after graduating from the Chippendale Furniture School.

“I fell out of a tree aged 9. Here I am, 14 years later, a few less broken bones but still playing around with wood!”

What sort of work were you doing before becoming a student at the Chippendale School of Furniture? Why did you choose furniture making?

“Prior to September 2010 I was a studying economic and social history at the University of Manchester, and working part time as a chef. Had I graduated a few years earlier the career path would have been very different; I would have a PGDE and be teaching primary school (well I would have hoped to have been). The pessimistic state of the economy dictated otherwise.”

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