I am no longer pursuing new clients as I have stepped one foot into retirement. I am no longer able to make doors. I will consider making furniture and cabinets for past clients but I will make no guarantees. If you have something very special in mind I would be interested in hearing about it. If you have any furniture repair needs please let me know -- I still enjoy repairing well-built furniture that is significant to the owner's home or workplace. I want to thank my past clients for the interest and faith that they had in me these past 15 years. I would love to hear from you whatever the reason. Again, thank you.
Heirloom Quality: It can take a tree more than 100 years to reach maturity. Furniture should be built to last at least this long. Also, when it breaks heirloom quality furniture is built in such a way that it is repairable. Sometimes the phrase "Collector Quality" is used instead of heirloom quality.
Furniture: The movable articles in a room that make it fit for living or working. The key here is furniture is movable or free standing and is not attached to the wall or floor. Heirloom Quality Furniture is built to out live a particular room, home, or building. In fact, it is built to out live its owner. Examples of furniture include: desk, chair, table, bed headboard, etc.
Cabinetry: Cabinetry usually refers to articles in a room that are attached to the walls, ceiling, or floor that, like furniture, make the room fit for living or working. Cabinetry is usually not built to outlast the home or building that it is attached to. Therefore, cabinetry is usually not built to heirloom quality standards. But make no mistake, the cabinetry that I build is of the highest quality. Examples of cabinetry include: kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities, and built-in shelving. Sometimes cabinetry is not attached to the walls -- for example, book cases.
Doors: This usually refers to front doors for private homes. I work with the home owner to design the door. Alternatively, I may be asked to make a reproduction of an antique door if the original door has aged beyond repair. I install the doors that I make. I also repair and rehang old doors.
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Custom Doors
I build custom doors or antique reproductions. In many cases, I can install the new door into the original door frame to avoid damaging the surrounding trim. I repair antique doors. If your original door is still sound, I can rehang it to obtain a solid weather tight fit.
Reproduction Pine Corner Cabinets
These reproduction cabinets were built as a matched pair for my client's formal dining room. They are made from northern white pine and have a traditional wax finish.
French Tables
Especially beautiful black walnut was used to make these somewhat formal yet casual tables. The coffee table has a granite top. The walnut is finished with Danish oil.
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Country Table with Four Shaker Chairs
This is a traditional 48" round pedestal table which is expandable with two 12" leaves. The table top was made from a single beautifully figured 18" wide red oak board. The set came with four Shaker styled chairs. These chairs are not pure reproductions as they include bent rear legs and a sculptured solid wood seat. These addtions have made the chairs very comfortable.
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Table with two of the four chairs
Shaker Styled Side Chairs
Table with leaves
Oak Mission-style Bedroom Set
The set consisted of two nightstands, two six-drawer chests, and a king size spindle bed. All the furniture was made from solid lumber only -- no plywood. I used two large highly figured Oak planks cut from the same tree to construct most of the bed and the legs of the chests and nightstands. This was some of the most beautiful Oak I have ever seen -- the pictures do not do it justice.
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Six drawer chest and dovetailed shelf
The Details...
The following is an attempt to describe my business model. To this end and in the hope of teaching prospective clients about me and my furniture making, I have developed a list of questions and answers. I have categorized these in such a way as to make them more understandable. If you are interested in having custom heirloom quality furniture, doors or cabinets built for your home or work place than please read these. After reading, if you are still interested, please contact me for further discussions.
Bringing together the maker and the client, i.e., how will we work together
Who is Malcolm Fields? I am in my early sixties, married with two grown children. I am educated to the excess and, I believe, beyond my level of intelligence. I am faithful, serious, and private. Above all, I am purposeful. God gives me purpose. Purpose gives life meaning.
What kind of products do I make? In short, wooden furniture of all types. I also build custom designed solid wood doors for the entry of your home. In limited cases I build custom cabinetry for any room in your home or workplace.
How is my furniture different from factory built furniture? In many ways. I use traditional joinery throughout. I use only the best hand selected lumber. Plywood is rarely used in my furniture. All finishes are hand rubbed. Just to name a few.
Who else makes the quality of furniture that I do? Thos. Moser and Stickly are two well known names.
Who is my typical client? As far as I can tell so far, my high potential clients have the following traits: 1) they love wood (the colors, figure, organic nature, warm feel, randomness, and "aliveness" of wood), 2) they recognize quality in furniture, 3) they like nice things, and 4) they are lucky enough to have found a furnituremaker that they can work with. They are not typically old or young, rich or poor (although custom furniture does come at a premium price), or educated or uneducated. My typical customers plan to stay in their current homes for a long time and want something unique.
What is the best way to learn about me? In short, study this web site. This web site was developed with exactly this in mind.
What is the best way for me to learn your tastes and needs? Visiting your home is usually very helpful. Seeing examples of furniture that you like is also very helpful. Beyond this, the challenge is returned to the potential client... What is the best way for me to understand your tastes and needs?
How much does my furniture cost? The cost of a piece varies based on size and complexity. Typically, the price will be more than (20 to 25%) a high quality look-alike sold at the factory furniture galleries such as Ethan Allen or some of the reasonably priced furniture boutiques. As compared to the middle market furniture stores, the price premium will be more significant -- middle market furniture is not built to last. One quick indication of the quality of factory built furniture is the material that it is made from -- if the sales literature does not identify the exact wood species that a particular piece of furniture is made from but instead says "hardwoods and hardwood veneers" then it is probably not high quality furniture.
How much do my cabinets and doors cost? On the cabinetry side, my prices are reletively equivalent to quality built custom cabinets and doors made elsewhere.
Design
What is the first step in arriving at the furniture or cabinetry that will be built for you? Design always starts with function. I do not make art furniture. What is the primary function of the piece?
Where does the design come from? Anywhere and everywhere. Many clients have a special piece of furniture in their home and they want other pieces to go along with it. Clients have brought in pictures of furniture that they saw in a gallery or a magazine and want the same thing only a little different (size, configuration, wood choice, finish). Some clients like the designs that they see in the furniture stores but cannot live with the lack of quality. Some clients found the piece that they want through a high-end manufacturer but do not want to pay the exorbitant price. Some clients want something totally new, different, and maybe even off the wall.
How is the design communicated between maker and client? Sketches, pictures, or an actual piece of furniture. In general, conversation is the most helpful.
Are there furniture styles that I am particularly fond of or have experience with? I especially enjoy furniture with a Shaker, Mission, Country French, and Oriental look. Classic period designs with striking wood figure and beautiful proportions are also a joy to reproduce (but can be somewhat expensive). A few examples include Queen Anne, Chippendale and Federal.
Are there furniture styles that I dislike or have trouble building cost effectively? Sometimes potential clients bring examples or photographs of a traditional designed piece they have seen in a factory showroom. The design of much of this "traditional" furniture is only loosely based on classic period designs. The factory designers have modified these designs with one goal in mind: to make the furniture cheap to build in a factory. Designs like these hide the underlying wood with heavy dark finishes. Often geometric veneer patterns are applied to large flat surfaces. Furniture like this is not built to last and cannot be built to last without significantly changing the design. If, in the end, the client desires a freshened up version of a period design, then we may find some common ground to work together. If the client really wants that design, then I usually suggest they just buy from the retailer.
What financial arraignments are required? I usually require one-third of the cost up front and then two-thirds on delivery. I do not require a contract with my client but I do not shy away from contracts if the client is so inclined. I do not accept credit cards at this time because of the high costs. At any time, the customer can request their money back with no penalty -- I am that confident in the products that I build.
Building, making, fabricating the furniture or cabinet
Who has a part in building the item? I build every piece on my own. I have no employees.
Where is it built? My shop is located in a 2500 square foot building located in the country two miles west of I-135 on 101st street north of Wichita, Kansas.
How long does it take for me to build the furniture? This varies widely based on the complexity of the piece and my work backlog. It is not unusual for it is take me two months or more to build a piece.
Is the client able to view the item while it is being built? Yes, but call first. You can look in on the process as often as you like. I encourage this especially if the piece has special design issues.
What materials are used? I use only the highest quality lumber. Much of the lumber that I use I get from specialty hardwood mills in Pennsylvania. On the cabinetry side, all facings, doors,and drawers are made of solid lumber. Sides and internal components are made of high quality veneered plywood.
What is the major difference between how your item will be built and the manufacturing process for factory made furniture? Even though I use some of the same tools and machines that the factories use, there is a large difference. My eyes and my hands see and touch every component during the building process.
Finishing the furniture or cabinet
What is a "Finish"? The surface coating and/or staining on the wood is called the "finish".
What type of finishes do I use? I use all kinds depending on the clients needs, the projected use of the piece, and the style of the piece. All finishes are hand rubbed.
How is the choice of finish made? Through consultation with the client.
Delivery
How is the furniture delivered? I deliver the furniture myself at the time and place requested by the client. If the piece is large, I will, of course, hire some help.
In the case of a built in cabinet, how is the cabinet installed? I do not install cabinets as a rule. It is the clients responsibility to arrange for installation. I will help the client find an installer if requested.
Long-term maintenance and repair
What is the best way to clean and maintain the furniture? The answer to this question depends on the type of finish used. I provide cleaning and maintenance instructions with every delivered piece.
If the furniture is such good quality, why is repair an issue? Even the highest quality furniture requires repair sometimes. I warrantee my furniture for life against defects relating to materials or workmanship. Most repair issues are result of an in home accident. Repairing furniture is different from refinishing. Repairing aims to preserve as much of the original piece as possible. I do not do refinishing work but I do repair finishes.
Is there a guarantee provided with the item? Every piece is guaranteed for life against defects in materials or workmanship. By "life" I mean my lifetime -- I expect all of my furniture and cabinets to out live me.
Do I repair furniture that someone else made? Yes.
Thos. Moser on the subject of Shaker furniture design...
"To me, it is deeply mysterious that such masterful, graceful, even spiritual objects could come from these largely unschooled people. Economy, unity, practicality, and proportion all merge into beauty that transcends culture and nationality... The impetus behind these works must, quite simply, have been God. A life force greater than the personal worked through these people."
Below are some rough pictures of the equipment I employ day to day in furnituremaking. Double click an image to get a pop-up window with a larger picture and a more detailed description.
