FROM MACHINE SHOP TO DINING ROOM

 
     I just adore talented and creative people.  I've encountered a share of such people since embarking on this renovation project.  One of these persons is James.  We stumbled upon James Schmidt's work while searching online for antique farm tables.  Instead of dealing in antique furniture, James works with reclaimed antique wood and creates one-of-a-kind heirlooms.

    Let me take you back to our trip to Chicago, via a variety of salvage spots.  One of the treasures with which we returned was vintage machine shop table legs we discovered in Indiana.

Over 100 pounds of green painted iron used in a factory in the early 1900's.

We thought a wooden table top on this base might make for a unique piece. This is where James comes in.

    As it turns out, JDS Antique Wood is no more than 12 miles down the road from our current home on Warren Road.  We must have past it dozens of times and, though intrigued by the sign, I never had cause or took time to stop.  We arrived at his workshop with an idea, and James turned early 1900 floor joists reclaimed from a former home on route 301, ironically only 2 miles from Hawthorne Avenue, into a wonderful bread board end table top.  

 

We just love it!  Thanks James!

Please take a peak at what James can do.