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Both of my grandfathers were carpenters, not by profession, but because it integrated well with their needs and interests. Of course, in those days, it was not so unusual for folks to have multiple practical skills like that. I was quite fortunate to spend a lot of time with each of them, and cite them as my first instructors.
At the age of sixteen I went away to High Mowing School, a small private high school in Wilton, New Hampshire. There were often small building projects going on there. The main building was a 200 year old farmhouse ( the barn had been converted to the girls dormitory), and when a large portion of the old structure (including the main farmhouse) caught fire one bitter January night and burned to the ground, we had plenty of work to do. The school had a saw mill, and teachers who thought nothing of setting a few teenagers loose in the woods with chain saws. (I can assure parents of any prospective students today that this is no longer the case!).
After high school I worked at an Inn in the Berkshires where the innkeeper made a unique modern interpretation of shaker furniture. Although my main function at the Inn was housekeeping and culinary-related, I worked with him enough to refine my skills and learn a few tricks. At one point an older fellow who also worked there died suddenly of a heart attack. Several of us got together in the shop and made a simple coffin out of 2” x 12”s. I’ve never seen a coffin since that I liked better, and if I weren’t planning on being cremated, I would build one for myself now to have on hand for the inevitable.
I build much like I cook or play music, which is primarily by improvising. This can lead to some interesting predicaments, but the end result is often more satisfying than it otherwise would have been.
This approach has guided numerous personal projects, and the results are shared here in these photographs.
Susan had the original Cape (green roof) built in 1979 by Michael Haman and Paul Bolton. I added the bedroom addition and new cellar around 1990. Right: built in shelves rising to cathedral ceiling; the curved unit in the corner conceals upward-facing lighting.
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