Toshmahal

Paul Evans Cityscape Coffee Table

2011-10-19T06:01:00.000-07:00

Finished Piece

This is a Paul Evans Cityscape coffee table I received from a client in the Fort Worth area who was planning to take it to show it in the 48th annual Dolly Johnson Antique & Art Show. It was also to be featured in 360 West magazine, which I thought was pretty neat.
This was when I had first moved into my new shop here by the levy..The piece was in really rough shape. I've done several of these Paul Evans pieces and have had great success with them. I really like the olive burl veneer and some of their designs are really great, even though some are a little over the top, it's got a certain deco quality about it as well as having the sleekness of a modern design.

One thing I love especially about this, is not necessarily even the design, but the philosophy behind the design and production of it, which is exactly the type of thing we are going to be trying to do here in the very near future (it is called Hand Crafted Modern, for those of you interested and we will be making prototypes and refining designs for a few lines of furniture this fall).... Their philosophy is basically the same as ours...Every piece should have the same amount of lovingly designed and hand crafted and finished care as the last one or the one after it. This way, you have nothing but truly one of a kind pieces of custom furniture even if they are from the same basic design, each one is different and cared for throughout the whole creative process.
(from Wikipedia) The artist's relationship with Directional Furniture set a unique standard for creative manufacture by insisting every piece is made by hand, finished by hand, supervised by the artist at each step of production, one piece at a time.

I had been told it needed some pieces of veneer glued up, so I thought, o.k. , no problem, nothing I can't handle...Well, if you look at this piece closer (which is a series of boxes, connected to one another) , you begin to realize, that a few pieces of veneer turns into several dozen.

First glue/clamp ups

Alternate View

More Clamps Being Added

Another Alternate View

Clampscape

This set of boxes is veneered on every side by dozens of pieces of olive burl veneer and chrome plated steel. Most of the chrome was in decent shape, just needed a bit of polishing , but the olive burl veneer was peeling, splitting and torn from all sides. There were also a couple of dozen pieces of veneer missing that had to be measured , re-cut and re-applied (after the surface was scraped clean at the substrate). Towards the end of the glue ups, I started to realize that it was absolutely necessary to remove the piece of chrome on the end box hiding the first set of screws that held the last box to the one next to it, which would in turn reveal the next when it was removed. This way I would be able to glue up and clamp pieces that I couldn't otherwise get to and get an even finish all the way around, when I actually got to that point.
This one was definitely a challenge. I found the veneer I needed and it was a perfect match, once I applied to proper toner to it during the finishing process. I first carefully removed all of the failing veneer, scraped and cleaned the surface it was to be applied to (also marking every piece of veneer so as to know where it went back to) and re-applied and glued up everything I was able to get to before disassembling the boxes....

Once this was done, I marked, measured, cut and dry fit all of the veneer pieces that were actually missing and applied them as well. At this point I took apart the boxes and repeated the process with the other pieces I wasn't able to get to at first (in hindsight, it wouldn't have been a bad idea to disassemble the boxes first, but I was trying to avoid it for several reasons)... That all said and done ( which took several dozen hours) I was ready to begin the preparation for finishing....
We taped off all of the chrome, stripped it box by box and then let it dry, checked the tape and re-taped for sanding, got everything finish sanded, removed the tape and taped again for finishing....

FINALLY!! I was able to move it into the paint booth. I applied the toner I had mixed to match what would be the original aged patina of the olive burl and then applied the rest of the finish. I then re-assembled the boxes, did one last glue up as well as gluing back the piece of chrome I had removed ( the boxes had already been consecutively numbered on the bottom so I didn't actually have to re-mark them so they went back in the correct order) and cleaned it up as well somewhere there polishing the chrome. Unfortunately, my name didn't get mentioned in the article for the restoration, but here is the final piece and the article it was in. Pretty happy it made it in there, nonetheless.

360 Article

Some of My Finest Work Yet

2011-09-02T06:44:00.000-07:00

(Although, we all know who did the work....I only stood by, or sat and held her hand and wished I could do something more, so I wouldn't pass out, nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs, as they say) I tried to be steadfast and sturdy for my girls, but it was a little rocky. Now we have two more 'Hungry Texans' in the world.
This makes all of the work I do, just that much more worth the effort. So happy to have these girls in my life. I have been super busy the past few months preparing for the arrival of these two and now keeping them happy and healthy takes so much energy, I'm sure even single child parents understand this, but I would never trade it.
My muscles ache and my mind is reeling with sleep deprivation, I have trouble holding my head up, but I am more happy than I could have ever imagined. It IS all worth it. On August 21st, 2011, I was given two gifts and a great challenge... to be the best father and husband I could possibly be. Hopefully, somehow I can keep this up and measure up. It's funny how you find the strength to do something you feel so strongly about. Luckily, I can still get to the shop to do the work I need to do too, so I can keep my customers happy, bring home the bacon, and somehow find time to actually bring home the bacon and cook it, so my better half can focus more on her ten thousand things to do with being the best mother in the world and all. (which according to me, she is) Anyway, I'm rambling again. Anyway, if you'd like to see pics of them, you can go here,

To view photos of the twins click the link below:

http://www.baylorhealth.com/PhysiciansLocations/Dallas/VisitorsGuide/BaylorBabies/Pages

Select date:8:21
Select: Sylvia S.
Then check out my girls, Lula and Cora!!!

but this one is one of my favorites so far...

For my Girls

2011-06-11T11:09:00.001-07:00

This dresser (this is what we'll call it for now. I have a feeling it is an old 'gentleman's chest, but it has been used as a baby's dresser all it's life as far as I know..) has been in my family for many generations and had as many layers of paint added to it for whatever reason (according to my dear Mother, probably one of the only things holding it together). It was my Grandpa B's (that's Henry Jack Black) when he was a child. I am thinking it was probably acquired when he lived in California. I really had little idea what to expect when I laid eyes on it again. It was used by both of my sisters, painted (lovingly, but painted) in Breckenridge years ago. Since I have two twin girls on the way, it was given to my wife and I to use for them and hopefully pass on to future generations.
Well, when I looked closer, I noticed some places where the paint was chipping (there were more than a few) and was happy to find that it was made from Solid Long Leaf Pine. This is not just any pine, but so sturdy that they used to make ship masts from it. Reason being, there is much more grain per square inch than regular pine, making it stouter and stronger almost as maple, but not quite as hard, just more stable and sturdy. Not to mention the fact that the graining is also very nice.
Well, After many hours of stripping off layers of paint, scraping and scouring, dental scrapers and all, (Many people aren't aware of this, but stripping old latex/colored lacquer/Milk paint involves much more than just painting on some stripper and wiping it off. Even the strongest of industrial rated strippers are not strong enough just to melt off this finish) I was really torn as to what stain I wanted to use on it. I knew I wanted it to be natural and for the wood grain to come through, but wasn't sure how it would look with the carving, so was considering something darker.

here are the door and drawer as they were painted before I started

I normally insist on restoring things back to what would be the natural aged color of the wood as if it had never been touched, so this was what I intended to do, but after applying the color, was still unsure...My wife urged me on, so I kept on in that direction. After staining one door, I applied the white to all of the hand carved areas with a fine tip brush (more painstaking work, but well worth it in the end) and then the whole picture started to come together. I finished out one door and knew this was exactly what we wanted (I had finished the inside drawers prior to this, but once I saw the combination, I knew this was the right thing for it).

With the painting and stain applied...

With clear coating applied

After finishing all of the drawers, I had to repair the upper rail, the hinges and make sure the wallowed out screws were set in place to stay. Finally, I had some brass knobs (the other knobs were yellow pine so I am sure they had been replaced) that were lying around doing nothing, added some machine screws to them since they were missing and they just fit, and just happened to go perfectly with the finish. I hope my Grandfather, god rest his soul, is as proud of it as we are. Maybe it will last another 100 years now. Here are some more of the pictures in it's final home, our little girls' nursery, which is another story altogether.

And Another

2011-02-03T09:18:00.001-08:00

Another Dunbar side table for 20th Century Design....

More Photos

2011-02-03T08:28:00.001-08:00

Rather than editing the whole post again and possibly deleting comments, I just decided to add some photos of some of the other pieces I had been working on. Here are the dressers I was referring to in the previous post (RWAY Cabinets). This is pretty much the very first set of cabinets to be completed at the new shop.

The larger cabinet on the stripping table, ready to be sanded/repaired...

Both Cabinets and Drawers sanded, repaired and ready to be finished....

And Both cabinets completed.

New Shop is UP AND RUNNING

2010-12-14T19:29:00.000-08:00

well, we have done lots of arranging and organizing here at the new shop and things are starting to fall into place. I was finally able to get a few pieces in the works here in the last week and a half and it's a good feeling. We had a lot to contend with getting the utilities going and the building functional, as it hasn't been inhabited for quite some time, but the gas should be turned on tomorrow (finally, it's freezing in there and the space heaters don't compare to the suspended gas heater we will have fired up). There is still much electrical to be run, but that should be in the works very soon. Here are a few of the pieces I have completed at the new shop. Hope you enjoy.....
(Note...This is also a somewhat dated post. I have lights in the paintbooth now, and electrical, and we also have power drops to the tablesaw and jointer and many more pieces have come and gone. still a ways to go, but we have made lots of progress and I've also had 3 other Frank Lloyd Wright (Hendredon) pieces come through. A Couple of my regular dealers have also opened up new spaces very near by, so the best of luck to them as well. More pictures to come in the very near future of course.)

This pair came to me from an individual referral. It's by RWAY, from the 40's. Nice Honduran Mahogany mixed with Bird's eye drawer fronts. Really Like the lines on these....

(pictures to come)

A couple of really nice McCobb pieces, both solid maple, of course (one a rarely seen table/dresser/jewelry chest) for Form..

These are both Widdicomb, by Robsjohn Gibbings, done for Sputnik Modern. You can also see this post for more info on the Gibbings....

This is a beautiful walnut Brown Saltman Dining Table, also for Sputnik Modern.

-there are many more, but it's difficult to post everything. Just like on the website, it's just a drop in the bucket, but I will try and keep putting some of these up here if anyone's interested in seeing them. Meanwhile, more shop pics to come and it get's more and more into a fully functional mode.

New Location

2010-11-22T08:39:00.000-08:00

As many of you already know, I have been working with a few different people to get my new shop ready to go. It has been a couple of months in the making. We started out with a pretty bare bones metal building, and it had plenty of issues. We now have the outer walls repaired (which were leaking and rammed in a few places thanks to what must have been a drunken forklift driver). We also have the inner walls built, insulated and sheetrocked and just finished up building the paint booth the other day. Have my shop partner's stuff all moved in and partly arranged. I shoud have the rest of my operation up and running in here by next monday. It has been a long time coming. I have made things work well with my beloved home shop for many years now, but I felt like it was an oppurtunity for a positive change that I couldn't (or shouldn't) pass up. I am going to really love having more space to work. I have included several pictures of the process of re-working the new shop and there will be more to come. Just make a note of the new address. It is 4750 Gretna. This is 75207, right off of Irving blvd. , close to Inwood road.

Most of the walls had to be 'stick framed', which I eventually figured out was framing it stick by stick, because of the notches that had to be put in every stud for the cross braces.

Thanks to Bart and James for Schooling me on some of the finer points of construction.

And thanks to Larry and Mitchell, the outer walls were fixed so we can keep out the critters and the rain.

Finished walls on the north side of the building.

The inside of the new paint booth.

along with some nice natural lighting..

Another Nice Article

2010-11-14T14:38:00.000-08:00

I have been in the process of moving my shop over off of Irving blvd., building walls and doing repairs and things to get it ready to move in and helping my shop mate move, so have been so busy that I haven't been able to post much. I'm really excited about the move. (I will post about this later) In the meantime, a friendly nieghborhood MCM blogger has written a really nice post about this here operation. (thanks again, Dana!)

Mid to Mod Blogspot : Toshmahal

Jack

2010-10-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

Rather than making another post, I will just link to this. Going to miss this little guy.

The Hungry Texan (Posting)

Learning Curves

2010-06-21T06:23:00.000-07:00

This is another piece of Finn-Juhl I have had brought to me that was very badly neglected before it got into our hands. We have a pretty good idea that this (and the other Credenza) had sat for a long time in a very damp place and just eventually sagged under it's own weight and the poor thing ended up looking like an old swayback horse. Not to mention all of the other repairs that this had on it, the main thing on this was to straighten out the top and get it to stay straight once the desk was put back together, having to bear the weight of it's world once again.

I cut a piece of red oak to go under the desk and run the width of it, about 3/4 x 2 1/2 x 32" and centered it belly side down, clamped the ends to my work table, 2 on each end, over compensating the curve of the top, steamed it heavily from the underside twice, letting it sit overnight both times, prayed a lot, released it after a long steamy weekend, checked it and it was perfectly flat. Now to keep it this way....
There are a few options here, My dealer had the idea to use a piece of angle iron bolted to the bottom and the stretcher (I think this is the simplest without routing a channel into the bottom of the desk and it worked beautifully.). I don't normally do any metal working, but agreed to do this one. I pre-drilled a total of 36 holes in 1/8 inch angle iron with my hand drill (ouch. I am getting a drill press very soon, to do the other piece the same way, plus it will come in handy for other jobs. My hands won't take too much more of that), shearing off about 3-4 1/4 inch drill bits, but eventually getting them done, putting in 36 one inch lag bolts (with a slight pre-drill in the top and the stretcher, so they wouldn't split) and they grabbed very nicely. It has sat up on it's feet (thanks to Kevin for helping me flip it over) for more than 72 hours and it is straight as it can be. I love when a plan comes together. Anyway, I think we saved this one from going to the curb. Hopefully it will have a much longer, happier life now.

Pull up a Chair

2010-05-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

I've said it many times before to different clients that a chair is not always a chair in the sense that you know what to expect in the refinishing/repair of it (the same could be said for a table or credenza).

There seems to be a very common misconception that just because it is a chair (maybe because it is small), it should be less work than a table or any other various larger pipeces of furniture. This couldn't be further from the truth.

They are generally a little more time consuming and difficult to properly design and build, and build to last. The same often times holds true with the restoration and refinishing process of these beasts of burden. These are very delicate items, that over time, with all of the stress and strain we tend to put on them, are truly tested to thier limits. Many times when they come to me for a 'little tlc' or a 'touch up', many times unbeknownst to the client, they are in need of much more. After many years of experiencing this, you know more what to look for, but it has taken many years to get to the point where I recognize the tell tale signs. They are obvious to me now, but to many they are not. This is just an example of such a case. Just had a really good oppurtunity to shoot this one step by step, so I took full advantage of it.

This is one of those chairs (from the 60's I would hazard to guess) that is made of a sturdy white oak (good material by the way) and made to resemble walnut in color.
This could, in my opinion, sit along side any other high end modern designer chair and be quite comfortable with itself once the restoration is complete.

It came in originally just needing a tune up (there were a couple of obviously loose dowels, but the whole chair seemed a bit shakey), but I felt like the finish was pretty worn and gunked up over the years of use it had, not to mention some heavy scratches, so we collectively decided to refinish.

I will normally try to match what would be the natural aged patina of the original finish without all of the gunkiness and build up so you can actually see the woodgrain (in certain cases it is masked only because it is the nature of the original finish). I do this by using and mixing my own stains and toners again with many years of trial and error to perfect this process. (sometimes using a toner rather than a stain so as not to go too dark or too deep).
So..........after a stripping and a good sanding, it became more apparent that the dowel joints on this piece were very loose and in several more places than we'd originally thought (Again, this is not uncommon for a chair of this age) so I began loosening all of the joints to completely separate them so as to get the glue in all the right places, otherwise you are wasting your time and efforts. This also is a very delicate process. You don't want to break the joints, just separate, clean and re-glue/clamp them, also taking note here not to get glue on any of the surrounding surfaces (taping) as this can block out any finish/stain you try and apply later making it appear blotchy at best.
I have included many pictures here to show the clamping/glueing process. We also discovered that there was some ply separation at the arm, so I fixed that as well (thanks to the handy glue syringes I keep around). After all of this we were finally able to complete the sanding, apply the toner, tighten up all of the screws and add the new walnut buttons to cover the screw holes and finish with a nice satin clear coat and a final coat of carnuba wax.
This probably sounds very difficult and was too detailed/verbose. The truth of the matter thgou, is this is still the simplified version.

I hope you enjoyed the snapshot of this restoration. Hopefully it will help more in the understanding and appreciation of chairs in all of thier many forms.

dowel joints for back outer rails

inner dowel joints for front to back rails (see arrows)

dowel joints for rails from front to back under arms (arrows)

dowel joints for front rail left to right

ply seperation on arm of underside of chair damage/repair/clamp (with and without flash)

Toner applied after final sanding (with and without flash)

new buttons applied after screws tightened with grain aligned
(several angles with and without flash)

top angle with toner applied (so you can see arms)

several angles with finish applied

wax applied

And finally the chair put back together

Projects and Side Projects

2010-05-17T16:33:00.001-07:00

Sorry I have not posted in a while. I guess from my point of view, that is a good sign. What with all of the BPE recordings, record makings (our new record is set to be released in June or July andI'm very excited about it) , BPE and Saddle Tramp shows, I get very little time to do this. Not to mention my main purpose for this outlet, the realm of furniture restoration and refnishing of mid century gems. (which as of late has been very busy and ever growing in the sense of restoration proper). I have had many challenging and sometimes perplexing, mind altering experiences in the furniture business. (one of which was a rosewood Finn Juhl credenza with a badly bowed top and carcass, having to be steamed and clamped several times to straighten, but with the original design (as much as I love Finn Juhl) in my humble opinion, being slightly flawed, needing to be re-structured to support it's own weight.) I have definitely had my work cut out for me and am continueing, even after 15 years to learn more about something I truly love and realize more and more that there is always more to learn. You truly can 'never step in the same river twice.'

Frank Lloyd Wright Sideboard Restoration

2010-03-11T08:25:00.001-08:00

I will post the story to go along with this at a later date, along with some more detailed pictures of the process. Just save to say, this was a labor of love (and worth it. I love the style of these). I've only had the pleasure of restoring a very few of these. They are pretty hard to come by. Here's the after shot of it anyhow (oh, and the Knoll table top in the background is on it's way)

Paco

2010-02-04T09:14:00.000-08:00

I'm gonna miss this guy. One of the greatest dogs ever.

This was one of his favorite places to be. (mine too)

Take a Ride.

The Season for Gibbings

2009-11-24T11:20:00.000-08:00

OK. Here is the table all finished and waxed. I was very happy with the way it came out. Much better than the red it had on it.

And here are the chairs all finished with the cushions put back on them. What an excellent choice of fabric, Monica made. I think it works perfect with these chairs. I hope they enjoy them for many years to come. I was also lucky enough to hear the story behind the table and chairs. What a find!

Gibbings Gibbings Gibbings

2009-11-17T10:11:00.000-08:00

I have definitely done my fair share of refinishing of Robsjohn Gibbings (MFG. by Widdicomb) pieces and they are all generally very tedious and illusive animals, although very beautiful and very well built. The finishes and the treatments that are done to these in the finishing process, make them very difficult to work with in a refinishing situation, but if you have any experience with them and can get past the initial fear and loathing, then you can really come out with something nice when you have them completed. Well, I always seem to have a run of either a similar designer, similar manufacturer, or a similar wood at one time and in this case it is Gibbings. I just finished this piece (I wish I could afford it. It looks really good in my back room since we painted the walls).....

And I am working on these chairs and this table...(I have only the table base shown here)

-Unfortunately someone got hold of these before I did and there were swirl marks (from a disk sander with too heavy of a grit and too heavy of a hand) all over it, but luckily I was able to raise them out and get to the real wood grain, not to mention it had been dyed a lipstick red color and painted in as thick a finish, so we really had our work cut out for us on this. Not to mention, they had severely burned through the veneer on one of the ends of the table leaf, so I had to remove and replace a piece of the veneer. This repair came out pretty nice as well. I will post some more pictures of the table and base as I get it done.

Messengers Incorporated

2009-11-15T11:13:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Chad (and Will) for turning me on to this. Sorry, haven't had a lot of time to post. (It seems I should quit apologizing, for the few people who read this blog, they're probably aware by now that once a month is about the norm.) I don't normally do music posts on this blog, but this is an exception. Straight from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The best thing you could find there, and of course, Chad has it. I have to find this one. More furniture posts/doings very soon. Enjoy.

	Messengers Incorporated - Soulful Proclamation .mp3

	Found at bee mp3 search engine

2009-10-10T09:30:00.000-07:00

So......I've been busier than a one legged cat in a room full of rocking chairs (or some semblance of that phrase) and my shop is full enough that I am having trouble moving around (that's o.k. though, I like it that way). I have had some very interesting projects come through the doors here, but haven't had much time to blog about them as I've been working around the clock to take care of everyone.

I've had a couple of really nice articles that came out recently, one in Modern Luxury Magazine written by Rebecca Sherman, and one in the Dallas and Fort Worth Mid-Century Modern Blog written by Felicia Smith. I've updated the website so there is a link to all of the reviews on the front page (thanks to Mr. Jason Crow) and I will be adding more pictures soon, when I have the time to gather them all and put them in some sort of order.

I just finished this piece....

It is an early Nelson cabinet designed by Gilbert Rohde, the man who saved Nelson apparently. I love his work, deco meets modern, you know. Anyway, I am happy with the way it turned out. I really hate the way Salvation Army bangs these things around. Glad it wasn't too far gone.

FORM (opening today!)

2009-09-12T08:51:00.001-07:00

Finally, two of the foremost people in the mid-century realm are opening up a great new modern furniture store in the heart of East Dallas. I am sure there will be plenty of great stuff there to choose from. I am heading down there in a while to check out the grand opening (it's not actually a 'grand' opening, but today is the first day they will be open). The store is located on Henderson right next to the Pearl Cup and directly across the street from Sputnik Modern. Long time friends and clients of mine. I am wishing them many great years of success with this new endeavor. Don't let the rain keep you in. Go have a warm cup of coffee or Espresso at the Pearl Cup and go look at some great pieces of modern furniture at FORM. These guys do it right.

Mark Stevens of TVLamps.net

2009-09-10T07:40:00.000-07:00

Mark Stevens shares our passion for many things mid-century, namely TV Lamps and old televisions and it shows in the extensive history he has so lovingly recorded and published on his many websites.

http://www.atomicantiques.com/
http://www.tvlamps.net/
http://www.texansincorporated.com/
http://www.stevensfamilytree.com/

How it started...
Mark's interest in artifacts ("I always think of antiques and other old stuff as "artifacts of the past", remnants of things that were before our time or long-forgotten") began when he was in high school. "For reasons I forget, I began collecting vintage bottles and glass insulators, finding them at flea markets and antique shops. I used to walk along the railroad tracks south of town searching for insulators, as the earliest telegraph/telephone lines were strung alongside the tracks. (old insulators were often tossed to the ground and forgotten) That hobby passed after a couple of years, as life sort of got in the way of such trivialities for a time. But in the 1980s I became fascinated in movies from the 1950s, particularly the low-budget sci-fi and horror films." It seems this (and the golden Turkey Awards) is what began his fascination of all things related to the early american television experience and TV Lamps in general. I guess his proximity to the journalism field (he managed a paper for about 25 years locally) is what prompted him to and enabled him to research and write the history of tvlamps and a certain manufacturer out of texas (Texans Inc.) as well as cataloguing his whole family journal/tree. Some might say that this information is a bit extraneous but it is people like this that take the time to record and research this that enable some of the younger folks who are as impassioned about a subject to have the pleasure of knowing at least some of the whole story. I believe the research and writing about Texans Inc. is what inspired Mark to start TVLamps.net. Good thing.

My story as relates to Mark/TVLamps.net....

"Tvlamps were introduced right around 1950, coinciding with the proliferation of television in the home. The thinking was that eye damage could result from the glare of the TV screen, so decorative, back-lit ceramic statues were made to soften the contrast. This was a silly notion, but sillier still are the lamps themselves, often portraying ferocious-looking panthers, leaping gazelles, siamese cats, and all sorts of other animals."
I , personally think they are beautiful and one big happy accident. Americans are always coming up with crazy new ways of bettering their already crazy inventions and this is definitely no exception. One of the things that makes americana so intriguing to all of us, or at least myself.
I discovered his first website (tvlamps.net) as I was searching for the perfect Christmas gift for a very good friend of mine. I have also always had (since I was a teenager) a love for all things 50's, but especially lamps and old televisions/radios. When I disovered what I thought was the perfect gift for my friend. (Below)

Mark was such a pleasure to deal with and so timely in his responses. He was also very informative and very courteous, something you don't always find when dealing with businesses over the internet (or anywhere for that matter). As a small business owner, and someone who still values the old way of doing things (in other words doing things right and actually having a passion for what you are doing and taking care of the people you are serving), this means a great amount to me. I book marked the site immediately. We shared a few emails about our passions for all things mid-century and ended up linking from site to site. You have to be careful who you refer because it can reflect directly back to you. I felt very confident about adding tv lamps to my list of links and I still do. If you are in need of that perfect lamp for your mid century haven, then this is one of the best places to find it. If you're also interested in the history of it, or a certain Texas based tv lamp company, then definitely head on over to his other site (http://www.texansincorporated.com/ ) and give it a gander. I think you will be pleased.
TV Lamps were going to be my main focus here at first, but if you check out Mark's blog (Atomic Antiques), you'll find that he's basically all over the map of the 20th century. I guess this probably comes from his passion for writing too. You can always find something interesting if you head over to this one. This basically gives him the freedom to expound upon all of the other things, besides and as well as, the mid-century things he loves. If you are ever wondering who wrote a certain b-movie great, starred in it, what go carts they were riding in the 50's, or what crazy building they were using for a cult movie shoot, then this is the place to be. I love it, and I always find that I learn something new when I go there. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do.

(I have also included, for your viewing pleasure, just a few of the gems he has for sale over at his website below)

Toshmahal Featured on Atomic Antiques.com

2009-08-02T08:07:00.000-07:00

Mark Stevens of Atomic Antiques.com and TVLamps.net recently featured Toshmahal on his blog. He is at least a little bit like me in the respect that he is pretty much caught up with everything mid-century. He has some really cool articles on there as well. I'll have to do a feature on him soon.

Check it out here.

Toshmahal: The Rebirth of Mid-Century Furniture

Wakefield Wishbone Table and Chairs

2009-07-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

I just finished these up last week. Hadn't been able to post here cause I've been a little busy. I've got some other pieces I've finished that turned out really nice, but I thought I would post these up first.

This is a great Heywood Wakefield dining set. These are often referred to as 'dogbone' chairs. The table with the two leaves seats 6, very comfortably. The table is also commonly referred to as the 'whalebone' or 'wishbone' or also the 'butterfly'. The most common I hear is the 'wishbone'.

There were 6 of these chairs, some strays from different families and with different finishes and bad refinishes, so it took a little bit of work to get them where they needed to be, but I think they turned out really nice. I can't wait to see them when the upholstery is done.

The table had been refinished wrong as well (way too dark) (I failed to take 'before' pictures of this although here is an example of how dark it started out...)

.....so it took a little work to get that out of the grain, but I really love the way this maple glows when you finally get it right. I always loved the design of the legs on these and the way the little 'rutters' or 'fins' flip in and out to hold up the end leaves on the table.

This can be used without the two leaves as a drop leaf table as well, to save on space, but when you have family or friends over for dinner, you can break out the leaves and it will give everyone plenty of elbow room.

It is always rewarding to bring one of these back up to it's proper state. I will post more pictures of the chairs (and hopefully table in it's natural habitat) once the upholstery is done.

Heywood Wakefield Restoration

2009-06-03T08:21:00.000-07:00

This is a project I've been working on, off and on for a few weeks now. It's a Heywood Wakefield Encore dresser. I found this (much in need of repair and refinishing) Dresser at one of my favorite local haunts. Didn't realize the back and the bottom was in need of replacing until we started loading it up. As of now, I have the bottom removed and the back (what was left of it) removed. The back and the bottom inner pieces (two 1/4" pieces of birch ply inserted in a tongue and groove solid birch/maple frame) were curling up because of over exposure to some type of moisture, so they will be replaced and re-inserted and then the bottom will be re-atatched. I will use the old back piece for a template to make the new one. I'll also save the old piece of the back with the serial numbers and finish type on it. I have restored many Heywood Wakefield pieces since I have been doing this and perfected a mix for both the Wheat and the Champagne finish. I mix all of my own stains and toners. I only use a certain type because it doesn't mask the grain. (there are about 3 variations of each of these even coming from the original factory and one of these is a little more opaque. I usually prefer (as do most) the lighter version of this because it doesn't mask the beauty of the solid maple graining, so this must definitely be taken into consideration when refinishing) I don't think there are many people in town who completely understand these finishes. It took much trial and error to perfect and there are many steps involved, but the results are beautiful. I have brought many of these back from the dead. This one is especially involved though. I have the top and the sides ready to finish. They have been stripped sanded and all of the gouges (and there were many) raised out and sanded. Here are some pictures of the progression so far. I will post more up as I get further along, so feel free to check back if you like.

Side View Before stripping

Back view before restoration

After stripping

Drawer after sanding with toner applied

Drawers after applying final finish

Bottom of cabinet before removal/restoration

Bottom of cabinet after removal

Top of cabinet after sanding/repair

Back of cabinet before removal

back of cabinet after removal awaiting new backing

This is as it sits now. I am in the process of making the pieces to fit into the bottom and the back. I will probably just add to this post rather than making a new one, so be sure and check back here in a few days if you want to see the progress.

Almost Completed (First Update)

Here are the bottom pieces cut, put in place and clamped to dry

And the bottom piece section put back in place

The back section cut and put back into place...

And finally, the whole piece toned, finished and put back together

All it needs now is for the two broken feet to be made (thanks Tony), put into place and finished and it will be complete. This has been quite an involved restoration, but it is always rewarding to see something like this come back to this. Now, hopefully, with the proper care, it can serve someone for a long time to come. I hope this didn't boar anyone to tears.

2009-05-22T08:38:00.000-07:00

This Time Last Year

I was out at my grandparents' ranch outside of Breckenridge, Texas, getting hitched. I am just as happy today to be married to this wonderful woman. We spent our honeymoon in the beautiful country beach setting that is the North Shore of Hawaii (a lifetime dream of both of ours). My wife took this picture of some of the greatest Tiki's on the island (this is one of the three) on the north west side of the island.

Being that the first year is the 'paper' anniversary, I thought I would commission my good friend, Scott Krakowski to do one of his beautiful wood cuts for the occasion. Here is the woodcut in progress...

And here is the black and white version of what will eventually be colorized....

This man does amazing work. I really hope he continues to pursue this realm of art. I am so excited to get the colorized version and was totally blown away by the black and white (which will of course also be framed). I will also post pics when they are framed. Enjoy.

Otis Dozier prints

2009-05-20T09:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I just got these done. Everything seemed to go together very nicely. Just thought I would post up some pictures of a little of the process and the final product if anyone's interested in seeing them. Here's a few shots of the framed pieces......

Indian Corn

Passage to the Sea

Walpi

And that is just a few. Here is some of the process..
All matted up and mounted (to the mat using preservation corners so there is no tape touching the art), ready to have the glass cut and put on and the frame added....

And here is the frame after it's been mitered and joined. And then the final adding of the frame and the fit up (backing and hangers applied). This is probably a serious over-simplification of the process but it might give you more of an idea of how it works. Hope y'all enjoyed it. I really enjoyed framing these.

Silvertone 1661

2009-05-18T06:42:00.000-07:00

One of my latest ebay finds. I have done old radio cabinet restorations for a little while now as my furniture refinishing skills led me into that field as well. I have always loved old radios/consoles/reel to reels/tv's and it's really rewarding to see one of them come back to life. This is a Silvertone Model 1661 from about 1940. I will have one of the radio techs I know go through the chassis and make sure it is in good working order. All of the labels and schematics are intact so that should make it a little easier to work with. It also has a really cool round loop antenna on the side of the chassis. It is not in bad shape as far as the cabinet goes, but could use a little refinishing because of a few deep scratches and just a general build up of muck and degeneration of the finish so I will do that while the chassis is out. Stay tuned for more pictures of it as I get into it. I think it's a real beauty.

-Ok. Just got this one finished and put back together. It sounds amazing and I'm really happy with the way it turned out. What a beaut.

A Passage to the Sea

2009-05-14T08:18:00.000-07:00

I Just got these in from one of my modern dealers the other day to frame. I don't do as much framing these days as I used to. I seem to do more in the furniture realm, but I still do it and I feel especially privelaged to have these in my possession. I feel like these really deserved a good framing. They are as they say, only prints, but these are very hard to come by.

These were printed by UT Austin in the 50's. Otis Dozier is a very important Texas artist that I did'nt know of. (I feel very inept for not knowing this btw). This is definitely something I will seek out more of though. These are amazing prints. I have since seen some other works of his online, still difficult to come by and they are all very nice, but these abstracts are amazing and especially rare to find.

I think it is especially unusual for prints these old not to have been framed, and specifically not to have been framed badly, meaning they would have yellowing from being framed with acidic mats or backing materials, or tears, or bad taping jobs. This series of prints has absoloutely none of that, which makes them even more rare.

I have seen way too much bad framing from taking old pieces apart to re-do them. That is why the mere mention of a certain generic framing company makes my stomach turn and my blood begin to boil. I have opened up way too many otherwise beautiful prints only to see that they are hinged with scotch tape, or even worse, masking tape and everything under the mat has turned a dingy yellow.

It is my opinion that if you want to frame something, then it should be done right (as is pretty much the case with anything I undertake). This is why I will try and frame these with the loving care they truly deserve. I use acid free materials with everything for this very reason. I'll also use preservation corners to mount it rather than tape, so hopefully they will last another 50 years. They will be for sale at Sputnik Modern when they are done. Hopefully they will end up in good hands. I will enjoy looking at them while I have them.

(I will also post some pictures up in a few days when I get these matted/framed for anybody who wants to take a gander)

Surfin' Bird

2009-05-13T08:06:00.000-07:00

designed by Gibbings for Widdicomb

Somehow this little table makes me wish I was still going back to the north shore this year. Times are tight though. I have restored many Gibbings pieces, but this is highly unusual and it's the first one of it's kind I have seen. The Gibbings pieces are always a challenge but I think this one turned out pretty nice. I think the Duke might even appreciate the design of it.

Hold On, I'm Coming

2009-05-11T11:01:00.000-07:00

I Finally got this back.

It's a Motorola T5544. No refinishing on this one (the finish is a blonde/limed oak finish) , but I thought it was worthy of a spot. I sent it out with our man who does the repairs on old tv's/radios/consoles a while back and it's been totally restored. The picture is great and the sound is amazing. I originally purchased it from parking lot sale behind one of my favorite local stores, Lula B's for about 20 bucks. I remember when I first turned it on, there was a little sound and a fuzzy picture of the Twilight Zone just beginning (totally appropriate) but it needed some work and I didn't know anyone at the time who could do the job.

Fast forward to 8 years later and here it is. (that is Sam from Sam & Dave on the screen). It now has a hook up (like our Philco Predicta, which I might gab on about later) so I can hook up cable (don't miss the color), DVD player or VHS. This (pic) is from a VHS called Soul Deep.

These are great for old movies, music videos, like another one of my favorites, the STAX/VOLT REVUE : LIVE IN NORWAY (watched it again this weekend), which has amazing performances and no (as much as all of the info is good) gabbing through it, just a great live show with Booker T and the MG's backing the whole show and they are at the top of thier game.

This is a Modern World

2009-05-11T06:39:00.000-07:00

I now have a Cell Phone and Blog. Yikes. I held out for years on the computer. I am getting rid of my land line this month. It's been like an anchor. I found out (thanks to the cable guy (no, not the show, I hate that show) that my internet and cable only utilize the phone line to get to my home, but that I don't necessarily have to have a dedicated phone line for the line to be utilized for these other things, so I finally decided to drop the land line (not to mention the savings with our 'family' plan). I am still a little scared of the cell phone, but I have used the 'texting' option just for the sheer joy of the random act, although I have yet to learn to use punctuation (and I really hate that too). Welcome to the 90's.
As for this new Blog thing, It will enable me to post some of the more detailed goings on here at the Toshmahal. I hope everyone enjoys it.