About

Welcome to mkfinewoodworking.com. A site dedicated to my hobby (obsession) of building heirloom quality furniture that is unique, functional, and stylish. I take great pride in designing and building furniture my family will interact with on a daily basis. My creations aren't marketed in any way - although I have been known to donate a piece here and there to my children's schools (see Kid's Workbench and Entry Hall Table).

All of my furniture is custom designed and fabricated in my home workshop, which I've spent the better part of the past 20 years dialing in. The shop I'm currently working out of is my third iteration. The 1.0 version was in my cookie cutter house's two car garage. All machinery was built on mobile bases that afforded me the opportunity to still use the space as a garage. The 2.0 version was located in my 1925 bungalow's unfinished basement (with 7 foot ceilings). The 3.0 version is a purpose built, dedicated space, with 10 foot ceilings and ample room for maneuvering. We scraped our prior house to build our dream home. As part of that dream, I made sure to factor in my woodworking passion in the design. My workshop is conveniently located in the space below our oversized two car garage. Space is limited living in the city, so maximizing our utilization was a necessity. My workshop is a true source of pride in our "new" home. On any tour through the house, I save my shop for last!

All of my projects have a specific intent - to fill my family's home with high quality, one of kind, creations that satisfy a functional and/or artistic need. You may ask, "How do you find all the time?". Well, I wake up really early! But the real reason is that I have an extremely supportive family. My wife understands the satisfaction, and stress relief, I get out of spending time in the shop, but she also appreciates all the creations that come out of it. It also helps that she plays the role of "product owner", responsible for prioritizing all of my projects! I strive to make my workshop as "kid friendly" as possible. I've even added a kid sized custom workbench to the shop this year. My two children now have the opportunity to start honing their skills much earlier than I was ever able to.

My tastes have changed over time, but I've always stayed true to my utilitarian roots. My early creations were all inspired by Shaker design. I really appreciate the clean lines, simple ornamentation, and focus on quality joinery that embraces Shaker pieces. As of late, I've been inspired by traditional Mission style (see Hutch, Kitchen Table, and the soon to be prioritized Morris Chair). I've also ventured into the realm of the ultra modern (see my son's bunk bed - inspired by the work of Roberto Gil out of Brooklyn, NY).

I hope you enjoy navigating this site and my creations.

Michael Kazarian