Making A Chair From Salvaged Wood

Friend and fellow Dandy/cycling/photography enthusiast Paul Borden has been busy lately with a unique hobby: hand-crafting chairs from salvaged wooden pallets. His passion for not only his craft but also learning how to create these exquisite heirloom pieces is evident not only in the final product, but in the photographs Paul takes to document his journey as well. I’ve spoken with Paul a few times about his chairs, each time updating me on his progress and the idea behind each design; the latest of which was a “Dandy” inspired piece paying homage the late Andrew Wyeth which can be seen below.

Paul’s website Repose in Nature showcases not only his photography, but also his chair-making process and I highly recommend checking it out. He is a true testament to the return of hand-made, old world craftsmanship that we’ve been seeing more and more lately and I commend Paul in his incredible work. I wish I had the time and patience to create something like this.

Below is an excerpt from Paul’s post about what inspired this undertaking as well as some beautiful photos of his progress.

“In 1978, I was inspired by the book: MAKE A CHAIR FROM A TREE: AN INTRODUCTION TO WORKING GREEN WOOD, by John D. Alexander, Jr. A friend and I made a shaving bench and I began practicing the techniques of shaping parts with hand tools. I still have a copy of that book and have added the DVD, which was produced in 2009. Last March (2015), since I do not have a source of trees or logs for raw materials as described in the book, I began harvesting materials from used pallets. While more difficult and time consuming to work with, I derive a great deal of satisfaction and enjoyment from the process and the end product.

Each chair is unique due to the characteristics dictated by the materials. Each is an heirloom quality piece, which will last for generations, just like the original chairs produced by joiners when this country was young.”