Wind River Woodworking

Wind River Woodworking Owner operated business specializing in the restoration, repair and refinishing of furniture, chair

An owner operated woodworking shop specializing in the restoration of American antique furniture, repair and refinishing of contemporary and antique furniture of all types, chair caning and rush weaving, specialty woodworking and restoration projects. We also offer an in home cleaning and polishing service from a single piece to entire paneled rooms, restoration of architectural woodworking and an antique furniture "search service" as well as piano refinishing and restoration.

Before and after...1800's White sewing machine restoration. This machine has family ties for it's owner and she wanted t...
05/05/2026

Before and after...

1800's White sewing machine restoration.

This machine has family ties for it's owner and she wanted to have it restored to use it as she did as a young girl.

Lots of veneer repaired, and a few structural repairs as well. Removed the machine and did a complete disassembly labeling everything. Gently removed the finish and sanded to preserve the detail. Stained a warm brown and finished with four coats of satin lacquer. Cleaned and lubricated all moving parts of the machine. Refinished the base with satin black and redid the gold lettering. Reassembled and checkered everything for smooth operation, and delivered home to a very pleased client.

What can I restore for YOU...?

Owner repair ...verses professional repair.Do you see all that glue ? And no clamp was used in this repair. A simple job...
04/22/2026

Owner repair ...verses professional repair.

Do you see all that glue ? And no clamp was used in this repair. A simple job that turned into a pain in the butt. All that glue has to be removed, because glue sticks to just about anything....except old glue. Not to mention that a wood to wood joint requires just enough glue to cover both surfaces. Oh, and did I mention there were pieces missing ?

But, don't worry...
"we repair what your husband fixed"

The second two photos show the same break properly repaired....at roughly twice the cost. I have to undo what you've done before I can start my work.

Take the glue away from your handyman and call me. Please.

Before and after...This beautiful, large bus station bench found it's way to the shop from a new client in central Vermo...
04/21/2026

Before and after...

This beautiful, large bus station bench found it's way to the shop from a new client in central Vermont.

There were a few repairs, but the trick here is to use the existing, weathered look and NOT try and make it look brand new. My client agreed.

After the repairs we cleaned the surface with a gentle solvent. After drying it was gently sanded twice for a smooth feel on the hands. I used Minwax natural to deepen the color, a good choice, as it really brought out the grain.

Finished with four coats of satin lacquer sanded between coats and a final polish.
Added nylon glides as requested by my client.

It's now beautiful and good for another life in my client's home.

I love what I do

What can I restore for YOU...?

Before and after This sweet little oak rocking sette was purchased for $50 looking sad, weathered and worn out. Good thi...
04/09/2026

Before and after

This sweet little oak rocking sette was purchased for $50 looking sad, weathered and worn out. Good thing I can spot a diamond in the rough.

Disassembled, cleaned all joints and reglued and doweled everything. No finish to strip, it was already worn off. A good comprehensive sanding, and stain with English chestnut. Four coats of lacquer sanded between coats. And a final polish.

Recaned using ash splint, stained with golden oak.

Simply beautiful.

I will be at the Keene Home and Garden Show this weekend with this and many other pieces to display and sell.

I hope to see you there.

What can I restore for YOU...?

This week at Wind River Woodworking... Beautiful mahogany 2 over 3 chest of drawers with bookmatched drawer fronts. Thi...
02/21/2026

This week at Wind River Woodworking...

Beautiful mahogany 2 over 3 chest of drawers with bookmatched drawer fronts. This piece came in to the shop in pretty desperate condition. Much of the veneer was loose or missing. The carcass and most of the drawers needed work and the top was split down the middle. Big gaping holes in the bottom, where castors had been and the finish so old and dark that you couldn't see the wood .

After many hours of repair work, the finish was gently removed by hand. The mahogany drawer fronts were simply amazing, as were the shoulders on the front of the carcass. A fine sanding with 220 and a bit of color to enhance the depth of the grain, and off to the finish room.

Four coats of satin lacquer, sanded between coats, and a final polish before replacing the polished locksets and brass escutcheons. The wooden k***s are all original to the piece. I plugged the holes on the bottom of the frame members from old castors that were missing and installed a set of period correct castors that I had in stock.

Delivered back to one of my good clients in Jaffrey today, she was very pleased...as am I.

What can I restore for YOU.....?

Before and after.....Remember those big old dressers in your parents bedroom when you were growing up ? Big enough to st...
02/05/2026

Before and after.....

Remember those big old dressers in your parents bedroom when you were growing up ? Big enough to store just about anything, and rugged all hardwood drawers. The finish so thick you weren't sure if it was even wood.

Well, here they are. Mahogany man's and woman's chests of drawers. Removed that thick opaque finish to reveal the wood hidden underneath. A few small repairs, and some gentle sanding.

Stained with a red mahogany as per the client, and finished with four coats of satin lacquer, sanded between coats. The client chose new black satin hardware that looks fantastic.

My client was very pleased, so am I.

What can I restore for .....YOU ?

Before and after....Another cute cherry child's table and chairs. Chairs disassembled, all nails removed, cleaned all jo...
02/04/2026

Before and after....

Another cute cherry child's table and chairs. Chairs disassembled, all nails removed, cleaned all joints and reglued and clamped.

Table disassembled, unfortunately the separation in the top could not be closed due to a previous, incorrect repair on the underside.

Everything gently stripped and sanded. Stained a warm chestnut color and finished with four coats of satin lacquer, sanded between coats.

Very cute, going to make a lucky child very happy.

What can I restore for YOU....?

Cute little kids kitchen found in the swap shop, that I restored for a friends grandchild. This is going to make one lit...
01/22/2026

Cute little kids kitchen found in the swap shop, that I restored for a friends grandchild.
This is going to make one little girl very happy.

Not everything we do is furniture, this was a fun project.

Before and after...Mahogany breakfront bookcase with cupboard bottom and glass doors, all original glass (c. 1830-1850)T...
01/21/2026

Before and after...
Mahogany breakfront bookcase with cupboard bottom and glass doors, all original glass (c. 1830-1850)

This beautiful piece was rescued by the owner, but not before the base had deteriorated beyond repair and had to be remade. Someone had lined the inside of the top with 1/2" plywood and done a few other similar repairs.

So many repairs, everything was loose, missing or repaired incorrectly. Many pieces of dentil moulding replaced, carcass repairs, doors repaired, each piece of glass had to be masked off individually, on two sides before stripping, loose mouldings, the list goes on...

Then a gentle finish removal and cleansing with solvent. Sanded twice and stained to bring out the mahogany grain. Finished with four coats of satin lacquer, sanded between coats. Replaced missing hinge and key escutcheons from stock. Cleaned and polished all brasses and cleaned every piece of glass individually, on two sides before assembly.

This beautiful piece goes home today and will last another 200 years.

What can I restore for YOU....?

Before and after....Beautiful mid 1800's Douglas Fir entry door with original beveled glass for a home in Brattleboro. ...
01/09/2026

Before and after....

Beautiful mid 1800's Douglas Fir entry door with original beveled glass for a home in Brattleboro. This door had 4 heavy coats of paint over a few coats of varnish. The detail in the moldings was almost unnoticeable and the lower panel and moldings surrounding it were rotten.

A careful hand stripping using brushes, dental tools, steel wool, rags and compressed air, and a LOT of time and we got it clean. Lots of small repairs on both sides, and fabricated a new lower panel and moldings to go around it on both sides.

Carefully sanded twice, and stained with a warm English chestnut color before being finished with 4 coats of spar varnish, sanded between coats and polished then reassembled.

We usually do a number of entry doors every year as well as architectural woodworking projects. They are challenging, and usually in pretty rough shape. But with knowledge, patience and the deep desire to do top quality work the job gets done.

Rehung the door this morning after cleaning all of the hardware and "fine tuning" the lockset.

I think that it looks great, and my client was very pleased as well.

What can I restore for YOU....?

Address

18 Split Oak Road
West Chesterfield, NH
03443

Telephone

+16033638220

Website

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