I grew up in a city that suffered massive unemployment as many of the factories were either shut down because of inefficiencies or the workers were turned out and replaced by machinery; Maggie’s millions were the result. The terrible toll of that period has been felt ever since: derelict buildings, areas of complete squalor, crime and the character of the city were changed forever. We are seeing a similar decline among woodworkers and carpenters. There are very few lads today who have the skill, the know-how or even the tools to hand cut a dovetail joint. Most of them come out of school knowing how to swing a hammer, aim an electric drill and unpack the crate the pre-manufactured cabinets come in. Carpenters today have been reduced to being installers. Enough of my prattle about doom and gloom. I’ve been asked to write something about a project I recently undertook to restore a Devonshire pub to its original glory. This was not something I undertook lightly. Pubs are among my favorite buildings to work on; full of character and history, but this one was a mess. Most of the original trim had been ripped out and replaced by plastic and the owners were on a tight budget and tighter schedule. The lads and I ripped out all of that plastic crap and I had oak trim custom milled in Southampton. The original bar circa 1845 was under wads of gaudy wallpaper, but it was knackered and had to be ripped out altogether; we spent two weeks building it up from scratch using solid oak with brass hand and foot rails. That bloody bar broke the budget and threatened to delay the opening. In the end, something had to give so I sat down with the project manager and we found bar stools online, at a UK store no less that would fool most people. They were well made and the store could deliver them in time for the grand opening. And the owner saved 50 on each stool, compared to what I would have to charge for making one; with at least a hundred seats in the place, they saved a fair bit of quid. I attended the opening. The place looked pretty good, the Guinness was just right and the seating didn’t fool me. But everyone else looked happy enough.
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