Larry Northrop, our Shirlington Showroom Manager was recently featured in The Northern Virginia magazine. If you didn’t see it, here’s the magazine and his article on built-ins.

The Northern Virginia Magazine featuring Larry Northrop

This article provides clear information on what to consider when you're purchasing a built-in.

3 Things to Consider Before You Buy Built-Ins

With over 40 years of woodworking business to his name, Larry Northrop, Hardwood Artisans Shirlington showroom manager, advises us all on what to consider when purchasing built-ins for the home.

1. Asses your needs.

This may sound like a simple, obvious step, but many homeowners and renters don’t fully take into consideration exactly what use they’re hoping to get out of a built-in. “Give a lot of deep thought to what you’re actually wanting,” says Northrop. “People think just about TV or stereo, but don’t take books, statues, etc., into mind.” Do you have a large DVD collection? Are you interested in glass doors and LED lights? Built-ins aren’t one size fits all. “It’s a broad spectrum,” says Northrop. Do you want to start with a standard piece and customize onto it?

2. Determine the amount of space you have.

“People with spare bedrooms often have a double-wide closet with double-wide doors,” says Northrop. “We’ve designed a bed to fit that closet space.” How much of the room can be taken up by the built-in? Is there a certain space that needs to be filled? Northrop’s philosophy is to take a room and utilize what is available. “How can I design something that will maximize space?” is the question Northrop asks when sketching out plans for his clients. Does the guest room also function as a home office? If so, then built-ins that hold anything a guest could need during their stay while leaving an open area for the room to maintain its office-like qualities would be the perfect solution.

3. Think about the future.

How long do you plan to live in your current residence? Do you think it’s likely, or reasonably possible at least, to move sometime within the next few years? If so, then built-ins may not be the route to take for additional storage. “They get so hung up on the built-in look that they don’t think into the future,” says Northrop of many in the storage-seeking set. He suggests considering built-ons if a clients future plans involve reserving a moving van. “It gives customers the option to be removable if they love the piece of furniture and want to take it with them.”

For more information about Hardwood Artisans built-ins, visit our Shirlington Showroom and speak to Larry Northrop himself!

My wife, Erika, doesn’t like to waste anything. Her mother came from the Old Country and frugality was a way of life in her house. After all, many immigrants arrived at the New World with very little. My family wasn’t as interested in saving and Erika saw me as wasteful when we merged our lives together. Over 25 years ago, when I started working in the shop of The Loft Bed Store, I would occasionally bring home a couple buckets of scrap wood; small, 0r randomly sized chunks of kiln dried cherry, oak, walnut, and mahogany known as mill ends. We’d use this in our small condo fireplace since we couldn’t afford to purchase seasoned firewood for our occasional fires. She couldn’t believe this stuff was just thrown out. (After all, her mother would have found a way to build a house with it or sell it on Ebay.) But in creating furniture, the fact is that every single inch of wood just isn’t usable. Though the shop guys are very cognizant of using each piece of lumber to its fullest potential, there are sap stains, splits and other irregularities that need to be cut around. Then each piece needs to be edged, squaring it up, and other trim scraps are added to the pile. Admittedly, it is tough seeing all this beautiful hardwood tossed. Well, not exactly tossed. We do send it to the local landfill, to be ground up with other things like yard waste and used Christmas trees. That mixture is turned into mulch.

When Erika and I moved and started heating our home primarily with a wood-burning stove and made fires with regularity, we started cutting our own firewood from dead and downed trees on our property. And to get each fire started with ease, there’s nothing like dried wood scraps from the shop! I started bringing home boxes of thin wood “sticks” for kindling, all cut to about 15” by myself or the guys in the shop. When family and friends saw this at our home, they wanted some too. So I’d bring home more. These days, my brother-in-law requests a truckload of kindling for his home every year or two. We make up a couple boxes of for neighbors as Christmas gifts every year. And though my father converted to a gas fireplace, he still likes me to bring him over scraps to burn in the chiminea on the back deck.

Even after supplying several families with this kindling, it doesn’t begin to make a dent in the amount of scrap our production shop ends up with every day. Recently Erika thought maybe others might want to secure some of this nice kindling, keeping even more out of the landfill and giving it a second purpose. So I’ve been bringing home a couple truckloads of cutoffs ranging in lengths up to 5’ or so. She unloads the wood into our home workshop and cuts everything to similar lengths. Then she makes bundles and secures each one with leather or upholstery remnants from showroom floor model projects, re-purposing those scraps also. I’ve dropped these bundles off at each of our showrooms for customers to take. They’re not for sale, but we do ask that a small donation be made to benefit local no-kill animal shelters. We invite all our customers with either indoor or outdoor fireplaces to consider using some of our scrap wood to help warm their families and help a good cause. Who knows- some of those kindling sticks might have come from your very own furniture order!

Let’s celebrate together!  Join us for a day of jolly activities.

Highlights:

1pm – Shinto bench making demonstration by Greg Gloor

5% off Shinto benches or Shinto stools purchased at the event

2:30pm – A talk by Fred Eberhart on his unique, stitched digital mosaic photography. Learn how he has overcome digital limitations. His photographs will be on display and available for sale.

Wine tasting by Paradise Springs Winery

Gorgeous holiday decorations thanks to Décor by Denise

A visit from Santa and his elves

A scarf & hat fundraiser for the Bethany House

Where:

Our Shirlington Showroom

2800 S. Randolph St. Arlington, VA

703.379.7299

Although Lawrence Oliver is not local to the DC area, we could not pass up on showing his amazing sculptures in our showrooms.  These are works of art that you need see in person to fully appreciate.  Using one block of wood to make each piece, he sculpts away until he ends up with the shapes we see now.  He left us completely baffled, shocked that this form of art is even possible.  We cannot get over how he makes these sculptures out of one piece of wood.  Take a look at the picture below and see for yourself.

Starfire II in walnut sculpted by Lawrence Oliver

Lawrence starts by making a pattern out of formica covered particleboard. Using a pin router to cut out around his pattern, he removes the main pieces of wood that he doesn’t need on both sides. He then cuts away the wood using a band saw.

Escher Knot in walnut by Lawrence Oliver

He then uses a rotary die grinder to shape the piece of wood. Afterwards, he attaches the sculpture onto a swiveling vise so he can move it in any direction, and starts the sanding process. The sections where the wood crosses over are still connected. After the first sanding process, Lawrence uses a “Dremel” tool to cut away the crossing pieces of wood and finalizes the sanding of the sculpture to create his finished masterpiece.

Lawrence Oliver sanding one of his sculptures

Lawrence moved to Springfield MO in 1979 after he gave up the lumber business.  He feels blessed that he is still able to work with wood. He began sculpting while working in a Colorado furniture workshop, but since he moved he now fully focuses on making wood sculptures.

All four artists are currently displaying their artwork at our Fairfax, Arlington and Rockville showrooms.  For more information about any of these artists please contact Dahlia@HardwoodArtisans.com with any questions you have.