Dirk Leach Rustic Arts

How Shakerondack Furniture is Made

"The great desideratum in the furniture of country houses is, that it should be essentially country-like -- which, we think, is attained only when it unites taste, comfort and durability in the greatest degree."
- A.J. Downing from The Architecture of Country Houses, 1850

My chairs are made one of a kind one at a time. I use rock maple saplings (aka: sugar maple, hard maple, Acer saccharum) harvested from local woodlots. The maple sugar farmers need to thin their stands periodically so that the hearty trees can flourish and produce plenty of that delicious sweet sap. I do the trimming and pay them for the privilege. I season the wood in my barn for over a year. The construction techniques I use to build my chairs require the wood be good and dry. This is especially true for making good, strong chair joints.

I use traditional mortise and tenon joinery , as opposed to nails and screws, to hold my chairs together. The mortise is a hole of a specific dimension drilled into a chair leg, also know as a post. The tenon is a peg of the same dimension formed on the end of another maple stick, also known as the rung. The tenon is inserted into the mortise to form a very strong and lasting joint. The application of a special high-tech adhesive serves to make the joint even more indestructible. Fine mortise and

Strong Mortise and Tenon Joinery

tenon joinery is at the heart of my chairs. It dates back to the ancient Egyptians, and gives them the strength to last a lifetime. I guarantee it.

My Shop- Future Rustic Arts Furniture!

After a two-step sanding process, where the rough bark texture is softened, every chair part is given three coats of tung oil varnish. This provides a tough, water-resistant finish that is silky smooth to the touch. My seating is either maple slat or a woven canvas fabric also known as "Shaker tape". The maple slats are held in place with high quality wood screws, counter-sunk and covered with walnut plugs.

The Shaker tape comes in a limited variety of colors. Click here to see available seat tape colors.