Lachlan-Adams Furniture

I make and restore classical and contemporary furniture. I don't restore upholstery as it hurts my fingers too much. I have been a woodworker since childhood, a lifetime apprenticeship, Some time ago I attended The Chippendale School of Furniture to enjoy a more adventurous and experimental approach to the art.

I have taken an extraordinarily long time to learn that you cannot, try as you might, engineer wood. Whilst it is an intrinsically dead or, at best, dying thing, it continues to be affected by the air, the moisture and the temperature around it, well beyond its life as a tree. Handmade furniture is, as a result, a challenging but highly enjoyable practice.

There is a lot of claptrap written and spoken about the craft of woodworking, especially when it comes to design and build. As with most art, zealots rise to the surface and expound on this and that, making esoteric observations all about wood and how it must be crafted. I have reached a stage where I really can't be doing with that arrogance. Wood is just a beautiful thing. The trees do all the work. We just chop the trees up and work out how we can put the wood back together again to good effect.

I decided to take up the craft of furniture making and restoration full-time because I love working with wood. Always have done. I shall work with any wood, solid and veneer and I am happy to build and restore traditional and contemporary pieces. I also have a keen interest in the art of Parquet and I shall be pleased to quote to finish and to restore solid wood Parquet floors.

Personally, classical furniture is probably where I am at my happiest. Edging into more contemporary furniture, I do admire the Arts and Crafts movement. I really like detailing in furniture and Greene and Greene are right up my street. I like to use traditional finishes and hand tools in the work that I do. They let me work quicker and, in my opinion, improve the quality of the finished piece.

I live in Scotland, just to the west of Edinburgh, and I work mainly with Scottish hardwoods and softwoods. I buy logs, get them milled to my specification and then season and dry the planks in a variety of locations. I sell some of my timber as well as use it for commission builds.

I don't charge for quotations or designs. If someone chooses to take my design and award it to another maker then, so be it. Must have been a great design but a lousy quote.

I have tried to keep the site simple, readable and succinct. It was pretty hard to do and I hope you enjoy your visit here. You should feel free to get in touch. Visitors are always welcome at my workshop.

Mark Adams

mark@lachlanadams.com