William Shea

I finished this Pennsylvania Lowboy earlier this year that I started at Lonnie Bird’s School of Woodworking in Dandridge, Tennessee. The six-day class was filled with many traditional woodworking skills to get the lowboy panels, stretchers and legs cut and shaped. The legs were especially challenging with layout of the mortise and tenons, shaping the legs and carving the trifold feet. I left Tennessee with my legs glued to the end panels, face frame made, back panel fitted, and the top panel profiled. I returned home to complete the project.

The Lowboy project is walnut and poplar as the secondary wood. Earlier this year, I attached the runners, drawer glides, made the drawers with hand cut dovetails and lipped profile fronts, and attached the knee blocks. I also attached the top to the frame using traditional wooden buttons. The hardware is from Ball and Ball and reflects the type used in the period. Lastly, the lowboy was finished with over 15 coats of shellac. My Pennsylvania Lowboy project is a lasting memory for my children and reflects my passion for creating period furniture that I learned from my friend and mentor Lonnie Bird that has since passed away.