On Track with Renovations

Thanks for checking back in! It's been a while since our last update to the blog and this time we have lots to share. Since the Spring I have been busy renovating the barn into a woodworking shop with my sons. First came the clean-up operation, which involved stripping out the old, dusty wall paneling and sweeping up years and years of dirt and debris. Then followed the process of wiring the barn for better electric distribution, improving it beyond its outdated and limited capacity. Now that power has been restored, the rest of the renovation process has progressed much easier and we're still moving right along. Here are some photos of our work over the first half of the summer:

Workshop after clean up in June.

Workshop after clean-up. The charming window on the wall will stay.

Workshop after clean-up. The small holes in the wall were sealed later.

Workshop floor after clean-up, formerly an animal troth.

Trimming pipe for electrical wire housing.

Grinding pipe ends for better fit. At this point there was only one outlet for power!

Installing the electrical housing.

My son Robert and I laying in the first layer of insulation.

The secondary layer of foamboard insulation.

My son Elliot and I focused on different tasks. Elliot is measuring out dimensions for a much-needed air conditioner housing.

Elliot with hammer and nail. Notice the new light fixture above!

Our first glaring problem: Rotted wood, treated with wood hardener.

Slowly filling in hollow beam with wood filler. A few more cans were required.

For more photos of our work, click here to see our "progress shots" album. Needless to say it has been a hot summer in the barn. I am looking forward to an air-conditioned workshop in the near future. In the meantime, I believe renovations are right on track. In the coming weeks, the walls will be fully insulated, water pipes will be installed, concrete shall be poured and new additions will be on their way. We hope you'll check back with us in a month's time for more pictures!

Thoughts on Chairs and their Materials

I'm taking a moment's rest on an unseasonably cool day in late May. Renovations to the barn are underway again after a few weeks' hiatus. I'm happy to share that the transition from the old house in Rochester to our farm in Centerfield is just about complete. While unpacking jars of old nails and screws, I realized that another post to the blog was due. Let's talk about the processes of antique restoration as I have some pictures of past projects from the old shop on St. Paul Street.

Hitchcock chair and footstool on display at the old store.

Chairs are common projects in any restorer's shop since they are generally subject to lots of wear over time. Like other antique furniture, wooden chairs have a wide variety of different structures, finishes and laminates -- especially upholstery, since different fabrics and prints have their own unique characteristics. All of these traits need to be taken into account before a piece goes up on the bench. Just as the case with any piece of furniture, careful consideration to the material makeup must be taken into account before a piece is cleaned, cut, painted or altered in any way. These initial considerations will help insure the value and the integrity of the piece after any reconstruction or restoration work takes place. Allow me to add -- even if you find a guide on how to restore an antique chair yourself, you should opt for the work to be done by someone with a trained eye and a practical knowledge of woodworking materials and finishes so that the piece is assured a longer life with its dignity intact.

A rococo revival chair outside the old St. Paul Street store. This piece was sold before completion -- the upholstery was cleaned, the frame was washed and some small structural reinforcements were made.

A common consideration when assessing the work to be done on an antique chair is the finish of the piece. Determining the finish of a piece -- whether shellac, varnish or lacquer -- is crucial to the restoration process since these finishes require their own seperate methods of application and removal. It is also tricky to determine what areas -- if not all -- of the chair's surface need to be treated.

Aside from the practicalities of working with the materials, I find the most facinating aspect of restoring antique chairs is the process of preserving -- or in some cases, revealing -- their historical context. Generally, it may be the case that the older the piece, the rarer the piece, but all antiques have a story and that story holds value of some sort. This footstool, by the looks of it, was circa the 18th Century. It is such a delicate piece and when it was brought into the shop, I realized it was prey to wood-boring powderpost beetles. After removing the pests, I was able to wash the wood, clean the upholstery and fix the damage in the legs. Now, if this were your antique chair or footstool, you might choose to put it on display and limit its daily use. That is  completely understandable. After all, one of the tenets of antique restoration and antique collection is the preservation of material over time in order to uphold not only an object's value but the value of history in our time.

Spring & the Old Store

Spring has finally arrived in Centerfield. After a few false starts the weather has warmed up a bit. Up until now, the sun had only made a handful of appearances. Instead, the rain, thunder and wind have been with us for the last couple of weeks. As the climate eases, we're going to ramp up the renovations to the storefront and the workshop in the barn. Unsurprisingly, the barn swallows have already begun to settle back in the rafters of the empty storefront. I guess we'll have to work out some sort of arrangement.

 

The old Antique Restoration Service storefront circa 1976

Mr. "O"

It was the middle of Winter when I began Antique Restoration Service. In 1976, I moved all my woodworking equipment into a austere retail space on St. Paul Street in between the town of Irondequoit and downtown Rochester. In the Spring, nice weather permitting, the store served as an open workshop where any passing bystander on the sidewalk or a potential patron in the doorway might admire my finished work on display while the work in progress sat atop the work bench. Right next door, Mr. “O,” as he was affectionately known, displayed aging photographs in the front window of his office. At 92 years old, he was in the process of compiling his personal history into a memoir. Years and years before this photo was taken, Mr. O had established O’Connell Electric, a major player in the burgeoning energy industry in the first half of the 20th Century. In one of his photos on display, he posed alongside Thomas Edison and George Eastman -- an extraordinary portrait of accomplished businessmen. I am still humbled to have shared the same side of the street with Mr. O. His lasting impression upon my perspective on business and entrepreneurship has influenced me in many meaningful ways.

View to St. Paul Street from the shop's wall phone shortly after opening.

Within months the shop filled with exciting projects from mostly returning customers or their gracious referrals.

Another view of the shop -- notice my traveling office/briefcase set up on  a drop leaf table.

Preparing to re-carve missing elements of a mended mahogany chair.

As I mentioned before, setting up shop in the countryside poses its own challenges. Although the weather is similar in both settings, the past two months of cold wind rushing over the open fields had me frozen in my tracks. In the barn, dust, debris and discarded junk have accumulated in the walls, on the ceiling and all over the floor for decades and cleaning up that mess has been a real chore. The cinder block exterior of the storefront has been exposed to years and years of weather and portions of the concrete floor are crumbling away. The plan is to work hard into the summer, when we will be able to restore these spaces into a solid foundation for the new Antique Restoration Service. Check back with us in the coming weeks to see more pictures of both past and present progress.

Introduction to the Blog

First shop circa 1970 in the basement of a rental double house. There are a couple of chairs on the floor and another on the workbench - all with work in progress.

Hello!

My name is Rich Drury and I am the owner of Antique Restoration Service. Aside from providing you with the most up-to-date information regarding my business, this website will also serve as my blog. Every so often - about every other week - I'll post pictures of my progress as I begin to renovate the ARS storefront and workshop. I'll also share some pictures from years ago, when I first began this business in 1975. If you are unfamiliar with the methodology of antique furniture restoration, there is much to discover and I invite you to check up on my blog in the near future.

Much has changed since I started my business in 1975. Although the timeless trades of woodworking and restoration are much the same, it is my personal experience that has grown over the last 30 years. As a full-time profession, I was a staff architect at Eastman Kodak and Rochester Institute of Technology. Somehow, after all the hours spent at my day job, I managed to find the time to return to the woodshop in my basement where I restored picture frames and household furniture. Since retiring in 2009, I have committed myself to dusting off all of my old tools, moving out to the countryside, and returning my focus to my old passion - appreciation of antique furniture through restoration, reconstruction and repair.

The picture of me above was taken in my first workshop about forty years ago. Nostalgia is important to me as I realize how far I have come with my trade. Back then, the resources available to me were limited and the budget was tight - as it was then it is today. It will take a measurable amount of dedication and dexterity to set sail. At this moment, however, I am looking forward to the challenge just as I had looked forward to spending time in my workshop over the last forty years.

In the next few weeks, I will post some photos of my first storefront circa 1976 as well as some memorable pieces I restored long ago. Cheers!

Thanks for stopping by!

Just wanted you to know that operations for the shop are suspended while we construct our new storefront. Come on back and check us out periodically for updates on our progress!

Our Future Storefront, Now