Warning: This blog is a bit woolly and may best be read with an open mind or some alcohol.

My introduction to woodwork was about 12 years ago with a year long course in cabinetmaking at a private workshop in Devon. From day 1 we were encouraged to approach every piece of work with the aim of achieving “perfection”, whether it be fitting a joint, applying a finish or a host of other wood related endeavours.

This was undoubtedly the right way to go about training a novice to be the best craftsman that they could be and I have taught others in much the same way.

However, a decade on and I find myself striving for “imperfection”, this seems a bit of an odd thing to say, but what I'm referring to is a subtlety that describes an individual maker's distinct touch. It is something I was told about years ago but never really understood

I probably would have said this sounds like a load of old cobblers, why wouldn't you want to achieve perfection, but having lived and breathed this life for a while now, it makes a lot more sense to me. In much the same way my woodworking teacher, all those years ago tried to impart the idea of the rhythm of design; but having seen enough good and bad design, this too begins to make sense.

There is however a huge difference between an “imperfection” and a “cock-up”.

An imperfection can reflect the confidence of the craftsman in his knowledge and abilities to the extent that it adds soul and personality to a piece. Extrapolating this further, it is the confidence and flair of the craftsman to express him or herself in their work.
An analogy can be made with impressionist painters. The fact that they were classically trained artists of the highest order serves to add weight to their later work.

A “cock-up” is exactly that, a mistake, whether it be in the design or the execution of the work, and tends to be glaringly obvious to all concerned. Kind of like a “rubbish” painting where “it's just wrong”.

“Perfection” on the other hand is more easily achieved now that ever before by getting something produced in a factory, but this is infinitely bland and soul-less. Perfection is the mass produced photoshopped image of the furniture world. Why would you try to replicate with your own efforts and imperfect hands what a machine can do in a fraction of the time?

I had an enquiry a few years ago from someone who was ultimately concerned with having something handmade versus the shop bought “mass-produced perfection” as he rather gallingly called it. We would agree to disagree.

Buy something handmade and the user should feel a direct connection to the maker and the piece will tell a unique story, though the true narrative is known only to the person that crafted it.

When I was graduating from University more years ago now than I care to think about, we had this process called the “Milk Round” where representatives from big city firms would come to campus recruitment fairs and use tactics fair and foul to attract graduates to join their ranks.
“Come and train as a Chartered Accountant, it will open doors for you” they would say, “and we'll give you £2,000 to help clear your student debts”, well that was me sold, I could clear some debts and have a nice holiday too!
After enduring 3 years of tedium and mental torture, they'd nearly broken my spirit (but not quite), many doors did indeed open for me, unfortunately all were to banks and finance departments.

It was in hindsight, a rather drastic reaction to give it all up and become a woodworker, I concede the salary of a “fat cat” executive would make life easier, but i'm not sure I would sleep well at night and maybe fate always intended for me to become an impoverished artisan.

Where am I going with this? A tenuous link I know but I was reflecting last week on how the doors I'm now opening are of the solid oak variety, whilst those to the city banks are very likely to be closed by now.

Doors generally fall into the category of joinery rather than cabinetmaking, but essentially the techniques are the same. I don't tend to do them often, as joinery workshops are set up to make doors, windows etc on a commercial scale and produce them more competitively than I can.
Although, if it's something a little different and the sums stack up i'd be happy to consider it..

I recently built an oversized oak door at a local house. I declare a personal interest in this one as it is ours and is something I've been wanting to do for a while. The house was once a local dairy and a passageway ran from the street to the milking sheds at the rear. This meant that a standard door was not an option and making something bespoke was the only way to go. The “before” image shows the brown “timber effect” PVC door that has served the purpose but has not done the house any favours in my opinion.

My intention was to make something contemporary yet sympathetic to the history of the building hence incorporating a traditional planked door references its agricultural past and the sandblasted glazing panels and brushed steel hardware creates a more modern architectural feel.
Functionally it works well and being double skinned and insulated is very energy efficient.
For me I think it works aesthetically, but taste is a highly individual thing and like a new pair of shoes, it's taking a little while to get used to......