It is with great sadness that we confirm the death of David Binnington Savage on Friday January 18th after a determined fight with cancer. David was an accomplished artist, furniture designer-maker, writer and inspiration to all who followed his work over the years, or had the opportunity to train under him and his staff at the Rowden Atelier in Devon. David moved from his Bideford workshop to the rural setting at Rowden in 1995, designing and making outstanding furniture whilst growing Rowden into the renowned school it is today; training and guiding students from all over the world. W ..read more

A straight edge means a flat surface There is something of an obsession at Rowden about the use of straight edges. If I’m honest, there’s something of an obsession about just about everything to do with making here, which is as it should be. But the straight edge tool is an implement that is used pretty much every day by the students. From week one, if not day one, correct usage of the straight edge is the foundation of accurate surfacing. The very first thing everyone makes, whether they are here for a week or a year, is a cross halving joint. The cross halving joint is made from a stick of w ..read more

Luckily for me, we have a pictures of this stunning desk made by Rowden student, Tom McIntyre. Otherwise I’d have been here for ages trying to explain just how Tom managed to make such a deceptively simple and elegant desk! Tom likes curved surfaces. Everyone likes curved surfaces. The legs are solid and the shaping is perfectly executed. There is a certain Art Deco elegance and mid-century minimalism to the design, and if you’re working in solid wood it is relatively simple to create curved and rounded surfaces. The drawer fronts have the same effortless, curved edges that wrap around se ..read more

Sunny every day I’d love to be able to say that every day as a cabinet maker is all roses and sunshine. That we skip to work, whistling a merry tune, and that the furniture practically makes itself.  Sad to say, it just ain’t so. Some days are just a complete slog. Everything seems to take longer to do than you imagined and it can be hard to raise a smile. I don’t know if you’ve read the book Touching the Void, but it’s fair t say those guys had a worse day than you’re ever likely have as a maker. Basically, one of a pair of climbers ends up in a crevasse. A bit broken, crawls his way bac ..read more

Do you remember growing up when you’d save like mad for something? Your first ever guitar, or a skateboard, or a plastic pony! It wouldn’t be the best, but it would be cheap! And it would be yours. And then it’d break and someone you might want to kick in the shins says dolefully, “well, you get what you pay for.” Hmm, thanks for the advice. Too little, too late! But that kind of advice sticks with you. You just can’t get away from the apparent wisdom of this sage advice. Even if it is just a bald truism. And so, whether as a student, a new fully fledged cabinet maker or a seasoned veteran, yo ..read more

…The Dynamic Duo A week or so ago, I suggested that a maker cutting their teeth in the real world should design a piece that avoids creating excessive risk. Risk, that is, to the maker, as chances are the piece will not only be a total nightmare to make, it will probably also be rather inelegant. So who in their right mind would throw this kind of practical advice out the window? Well David Savage for one! Where I believe Rowden excels is in the logical progression of the skills that each and every student masters during their time here. Each skill has to be mastered before the student can pro ..read more

So, I was watching Antiques Roadshow the other day. It doesn’t happen often, but I am aware that every once in a while something grabs your attention. And it’s always a bit of fun to watch people’s faces when they find out what their hoardings are worth. A chap rocked up with a piece of furniture that he’d bought in an auction in the hope that it was a Pugin. He’d taken a £700 punt on something that might be worth ten times that. And he was a bit of an expert in as much as he spends his life in Westminster Palace that is choc full of work by Augustus Pugin, a celebrated architect and designer ..read more

There’s workmanship of risk and there’s bad design David Pye wrote The Nature and Art of Workmanship. It is a book we recommend to every Rowden student, and one I certainly recommend to you. David goes a long way to help explain why hand made furniture has value beyond its functionality. And far beyond the value of machine-made products.  He introduced, or at least formalised, the concept of workmanship of risk, a concept that is central to making by hand. And because I couldn’t put it better, here is an elegant definition of what he means: “Workmanship using any kind of technique or ..read more

Furniture making keeps you humble, no two ways about it. Pieces made from this wonderful substance we call wood simply can’t be thrown together. Do that and you’ll end up with junk. In fact, it is quite the opposite. Literally every piece of wood we use in a piece of furniture needs to be studied, watched and monitored throughout the making process.  When we buy a board for a piece of furniture, we want to be sure it’s good enough for the piece of furniture we plan to make. This initial study, includes checking: The amount of sap Grain patterns, straight, crown, both. Moisture conte ..read more

Luckily for me, we have a pictures of this stunning desk made by Rowden student, Tom McIntyre. Otherwise I’d have been here for ages trying to explain just how Tom managed to make such a deceptively simple and elegant desk! Tom likes curved surfaces. Everyone likes curved surfaces. The legs are solid and the shaping is perfectly executed. There is a certain Art Deco elegance and mid-century minimalism to the design, and if you’re working in solid wood it is relatively simple to create curved and rounded surfaces. The drawer fronts have the same effortless, curved edges that wrap around seamles ..read more