This is the busy season for period woodworking reproduction furniture makers (I think I may be the only one). We've been remiss in defining these terms. This has had serious repercussions as period woodworkers and reproduction furniture makers often don't themselves distinguish the important differences separating them. Wherever the two have met, I've seen friction and discord. Now, mere days away from one of the biggest and most prestigious shows featuring reproduction furniture makers, is a good time to offer a definition of these terms so we can better understand each other's work.

Period woodworkers focus chiefly on the process of using pre-industrial tools. Though Garret Hack makes contemporary furniture, his use of period tools and processes may qualify him as a period woodworker, only different from Roy Underhill by degrees. Some period woodworkers simply enjoy working with old tools. Others, me for example, feel strongly that the tools influence the work to such a degree that their use is essential to creating accurate reproductions of period work.

Reproduction furniture makers are by far the larger group. The reproduction furniture maker's chief interest is in producing an item that looks like an original. They typically care not at all whether the saw is man powered, electrically powered, or electronically powered. For the reproduction furniture maker, tools are merely means to an end, not the end itself. These folks are product, not process focused.

In reality, like the political poles of libertarian, and egalitarian (conservative and liberal are inaccurate terms for the groups they represent), all of us fall somewhere in between. I may well be one of the few exceptions, very likely the only such exhibitor at the Designer Craftsmen show. I am both a period woodworker and a reproduction furniture maker sharing a great desire to manage the authenticity of both product and process. Understanding that is key to understanding why I do what I do.

The Designer Craftsmen show at the Valley Forge Convention Center this coming weekend (Jan 18-20), offers the opportunity to drink in the different approaches and examine their inevitable results. If you are not sure which you are, go and see whose furniture you prefer. It also may be a fun activity to see if you can tell the difference. Here's a hint: you won't be able to tell from the prices. I've been going to the D-C show for many years and I highly recommend you go if you can. In my opinion, its as valuable as a trip to a museum.

Adam