Monday, June 28, 2010

Find Us on Facebook!

Hello readers! We've noticed a big increase in the popularity of our newly redesigned "What's New" page and blog, so we thought we'd take some time to make a quick post about our new Facebook page! Our fan page is used to post recent updates on our blog, product photos, future products, and even changes to the website. Being new to Facebook, we only have about 18 fans as of now, but it's a start!

So, if you'd like to recieve all of our blog updates on your Facebook News Feed, become a fan! We promise not to crowd your Feed up with updates, we only update once or twice a week!


Craftman's Corner
Reclaimed, Recycled, and Reborn!

Friday, June 25, 2010

Planter Box Bench

Recently, a local school near our production facility asked us to build them two custom benches to be placed by their main entrance, so we came up with a unique cypress bench design. Like our other cypress products, we stained the wood  to ensure it would resist the elements of nature. As you can see in the image on the left, the bench is made up of two square planter boxes with a central bench.


Having planter boxes on either side of the bench will provide a unique experience for the users of the bench. Whether that be from the fragrant smell of the plants, or from the chance to have a more comfortable spot to observe nature while waiting for the bus ride home. We hope that the school will be able to use the benches for years to come as a spot for school projects, a place to read, or even just for the decorative look.


If you've looked at our outdoor catalog before, you'll notice that the planter boxes used on either side of the seat are very similar to the ones you can purchase online on our website, under outdoor furniture. If you like this design, and want one like it, send us an e-mail, or leave a comment on our blog! We'd be more than happy to build you one like it, or even one completely different! So far the school has enjoyed their new benches, and have even added a commemorative plaque to the front of each bench to mark the occasion.


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Wednesday, June 23, 2010

The Country Cabinet

For this week's blog post, we've decided to highlight one of our cabinets - the Country Cabinet. Our Country Cabinet is one of our biggest sellers, but it's often times missed by our online shoppers because it's not located on our main Craftsman's Corner catalog pages. Like our other products, the Country Cabinet is built using our signature reclaimed wood and coated in a wax finish.

On the outside, you'll find the Country Cabinet has a familiar theme you've seen before on our other products, from its three slat door, to its unique distressed surfaces. As you look at the cabinet, take notice of the light striping going across the surfaces of the piece. Those are the remains of the rafters the lumber had rested on for the past several decades. 


If you look near the top of the door, you'll see we've fitted the cabinet with a unique old fashioned latch to add a touch of class and function to the Country Cabinet. Behind the door, you'll find a solid, center mounted wood shelf; sturdy enough to hold whatever you could possibly fit inside, whether it be books, clothes, towels, or even movies. Whatever you decide to place in, or on, the Country Cabinet, you can rest assured knowing that it's built to last. We nail and glue every joint, top, and shelf in place for long lasting durability. You'll also notice that we don't skimp out on our wax finish, we cover every nook and cranny, including underneath, and inside to ensure that the cabinet is sealed and safe from the elements.

Like all of our Reclaimed wood furniture, the Country Cabinet holds true to Craftsman's Corner's recycling philosophy, Reclaimed, Recycled, and Reborn, and is built entirely of reclaimed lumber. Even the debree left over from manufacturing each piece is donated to local horse stables to be reused. Unlike other products on the market, the Country Cabinet has built-in history, each nail hole, rafter mark, or dent is real; nothing is manufactured. This way, you'll always be left wondering if your piece is from a demolished building, off the roof of an old cottage, or even the planks making up the shelves of an old warehouse. If you'd like to know more about the Country Cabinet, visit our Other Great Products page, or send us an E-Mail, we'd be glad to tell you all the details!



Saturday, June 19, 2010

The Demolition Process

We at Craftsman’s Corner have always been dedicated to the true “green” philosophy of saving the earth’s resources. Long before it became fashionable to put the word “green” on manufactured products, our company has been working at putting the 3 R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) into practice.



For more than 25 years, all of the lumber for our primitive style pieces has come from reclaimed sources. These sources fall into 3 categories. Some of the wood is purchased from organizations such as Habitat Restore. Linked with Habitat for Humanity, Habitat Restore’s mission is to provide used materials obtained from deconstruction site donations. Revenue gained from the sale helps to fund the Habitat for Humanity projects. The second category is individual contractors. Craftsman’s Corner has obtained some wood from deconstruction contractors in the area. These individuals find houses/buildings to deconstruct, then find buyers for the materials that are useful for resale. The third method to obtain this reclaimed wood is to reclaim the wood from the sites ourselves. Craftsman’s Corner attempts to locate responsible, eco-aware home owners or builders that share a passion for doing the “right thing” for our planet. Rather than hiring bulldozers to demolish a site within minutes, sending all of the refuse to overload a landfill, these responsible owners allow us a few hours or days to reclaim all of the material that we can in order to put these resources back into the stream of productivity.


Once the wood is obtained, it is denailed, sorted, and stacked until it is selected for just the right piece of furniture. Then, like most other forms of construction, it is sanded and fashioned into the unique piece it was chosen to become. All of the nail holes and other scars help to tell the story of the previous life of this piece of wood; giving it a one-of-a-kind look and history.


We hope you share our passion for saving and reusing our planet’s resources. Whether it is using the “3 R’s” in your own home, or purchasing items made by companies like Craftsman’s Corner who are dedicated to this philosophy, we all must do our part.


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Tuesday, June 8, 2010

New Cypress Products

Here at Craftsman's Corner we've been busily working on getting our online catalogs ready for our new cypress outdoor furniture. Right now, we only have our cypress planter boxes available to purchase online; however, we hope to have that changed soon. Until then, check out this posting to see the future products coming to Craftsman'sCorner.com.  

On the left, you can see our upcoming outdoor products, including a slat-top table, matching chairs with armrests, and two styles of benches. We also have different variations of the furniture you see in the image, including different table lengths, different seating types, and different bench styles. If you're interested in purchasing one of these pieces, give us a call or send us an e-mail, and we'll send you more information.

Unlike our indoor furniture, which is built out of reclaimed pine, our outdoor furniture is solid cypress. This means that they will be able to withstand the elements of nature and have a long life outside of your home. Although the wood is new, we are still committed to the building green philosophy by using all of the saw dust from the wood as bedding for local horse stables, ensuring that all of the wood is re-used, rather than thrown away.

Feel free to e-mail us about this posting, or share your thoughts in the comments section below! We'd love to here your thoughts on our outdoor furniture!

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The Nine Foot Harvest Table

Here at Craftsman's Corner we try to make a variety of sizes for both the Harvest table and Farm table to fit the various needs of our customers. In some cases though, even our largest six foot size isn't enough; as was the case with this custom Harvest table shown on the left. The owners of this particular table wanted to be able to seat all of their guests around a single table so that no one felt left out at another table or in another room.

The table itself has a story to tell. It began life years ago as the floor boards in a now demolished nun's convent. Notice, if you look closely, you can still see the lighter colored rafter marks running across parts of the table's surfaces, a small reminder of the table's past. While not being visible in this particular photograph, the table still retains all of the original nail holes that had, at one time held the pine planks to the rafters of the convent.

Underneath the table you'll notice the matching benches. The owners opted for two separate benches along the sides to making sitting down or getting up at the table easier. At the end of the table is a single seat; however, the opposite end is left open to allow easier passage through the kitchen area. Like the table, the benches also have a unique origin, they are constructed out of pine from older homes that had been demolished for land development.

If your interested in learning more about this custom Harvest table, or even the standard Harvest table, feel free to e-mail us! We'll continue to post more custom pieces we've built so that maybe you can come up with your very own unique Craftsman's Corner product!