Chippendale News

Paul Hartman from Alberta, Canada made one of the most beautiful rocking chairs that we’ve seen for some years. It was inspired by the late-great Sam Maloof whose rockers are in national collections, and have been owned by US presidents. What was great about it was that Paul ‘wove’ the seat back into a complex […]

Heather Jones from Los Angeles came on our professional course with no woodworking skills. But her Gertrude’s Cabinet of Cocktail Curiosities demonstrates that she has certainly learned them now. It’s a stunning and monumental piece 75cm wide and 100 cm high, and made from stained sycamore. Before coming to the Chippendale school, Heather was an

Ross Cunnison first came to the Chippendale school on one of our one-week introductory courses. It gave him a taste of sawdust, and we were delighted when he signed up for our professional course. We’re particularly pleased because Ross has really mastered the skills and dark arts of woodworking. Not only that, but he has

Alex Stanton, from Brisbane in Australia, came to us after working for three years fitting timber floors and staircases. It gave him a grounding in working with wood, but not the skills needed to design and make fine furniture. But Alex has proved that he has absolutely learned those skills during his year with us.

To succeed, good furniture needs to be functional and aesthetically appealing. Sometimes, on top of those qualities, it needs to be extremely hard-wearing. That’s the quality most evident in Jacob Corradi’s ebonised kitchen island in solid oak. It’s a wonderful statement piece that is entirely functional, and even has a slate on the top for

Oli Juliusson, from Hafnarfjardur in Iceland, has become a furniture designer whose pieces conjure the spirit of the sea. It reflects his past as a trawlerman, and his design approach to honour the lives of Icelandic fishermen. It’s an approach that links his past to the present, with design flourishes that make his furniture original