Heirloom Finishes staff attends program on
Tools Used in making Eighteenth-Century Furniture

Charleston, SC – March 6, 2007

Paul Garbarini and Craig Cianciolo of Heirloom Finishes in Charleston, South Carolina, traveled to historic Salem, North Carolina, February 23rd and 24th, for a seminar on Eighteenth-Century tools used in furniture making. The seminar was presented at the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA), which preserves, documents, exhibits, and interprets the decorative arts of the early South.

The seminar, “Tools of the Trade” included lectures and demonstrations of early furniture making tools to show the participants what to look for in evaluating and conserving antique furniture from the Eighteenth-Century.

James M. Gaynor, Director, Historic Trades, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, gave a presentation on Eighteenth-Century Woodworking Tools. This was followed by a demonstration “Tools and Their Marks: Clues to the Understanding of Furniture in the British/American Tradition” by Mack Headley, Master, The Anthony Hay Shop, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.

Garbarini and Cianciolo joined the others for a tour of the MESDA collection and a discussion lead by Peter Ross, blacksmith, on the technological aspects of tool construction. Brian Coe, Director of Exhibition Buildings, Old Salem Museums and Gardens, presented a workshop demonstration on “Tools and their Marks: Clues to the Understanding of Furniture in the German/Moravian Tradition.”

Don Williams, Senior Furniture Conservator at the Smithsonian Institution’s Center for Materials Research and Education, provided a presentation on preserving these old tool marks.

Garbarini said their trip was to help Heirloom Finishes stay abreast of developments in the profession and incorporate them into the treatment of furniture in their care. Heirloom Finishes offers conservation of antique and fine furniture. Garbarini explained, “We treat each piece of furniture on a case-by-case basis, preserving evidence of its age and use. We use historically appropriate materials for finishes. This seminar gave us first-hand experience in identifying and preserving the hand tool marks on period furniture.”

Heirloom Finishes is located at 3721 Dorchester Road, in Charleston. For more information, contact Paul Garbarini at (843) 747-3737. Visit their website at www.heirloomfinishes.com

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