One Hell of a Hutch

I keep a running tally in the back of my mind of my favorite pieces I've ever worked on. I'm a fan of my work- is that dreadful to say? And I enjoy scrolling back through the pictures of my portfolio from time to time, remembering different tables, sideboards, dressers, or dining sets. I love the unique challenges each one presents in turn, and remember fondly the folks that opened their homes to what had once been an unwanted and dreary vintage or antique piece. Looking back now, I believe my favorite piece I've ever done was a little yellow secretary for a client and friend. The client selected the colors, bold yellow on the outside, a lighter shade in the interior, and choose some fun and funky hardware for it. It was a delightful piece, and I still get to see it from time to time when I deliver more furniture to that client (he's become something of a collector).

        Well, the little yellow secretary is getting bumped to second favorite piece. This beautiful solid cherry vintage hutch by Harden is my new favorite piece of furniture I've ever done. There's a couple reasons I love it so much. First, it's a spectacularly constructed piece of furniture. The bold top molding, the dentil molding, the carefully paned top doors, the drawer arrangement, the perfectly paneled lower doors, the delicious ogee scrolled feet. It's a triumph of design. I love that the piece is solid cherry. Cherry is my favorite wood to work on. It just sings when it's refinished, so rich and deep and wildly grained. And it's such a dense and reliable wood. I love the glass that's used in the top doors, it's got a stunning yet subtle crackled effect, like a thin sheet of ice on a crystal clear pond. And finally I love the transformation of this piece. I'll indulge myself, I think I did a damn good job on this one. I wanted to capture the essence of spring in a piece, and so custom mixed a rich deep aqua, layering lighter shades over darker shades for depth when distressed. The color is named 'Spring Fever'.  The interior is a chalky blue so pale it's almost a white, and plays wonderfully with the brighter outside color. The drawer pulls are a combination of vintage brass knobs and reproduction cup pulls, all colored in a coppery gold. 

            I staged the piece in some pieces from my collection of vintage and antique glass.