“One of my greatest learned experiences from woodturning is that the object’s form is always number one. Colour and figure fade with time, but form is forever“
Woodworking means much more than just making things to North Carolina-based Kendall Cahan – it is a spiritual journey
‘Making things has always been part of my DNA, and somewhere along the way I fell in love with the fine craft of woodworking and woodturning,’ Kendall Cahan writes on his website. Based in Blowing Rock, North Carolina, Kendall makes bowls, vases, furniture and other pieces as a way to create something sustainable and express himself. ‘Creating beautiful objects with my hands gives me the greatest sense of purpose in life and a deeper understanding of myself and the world around me,’ he writes.
Kendall was interested in making things out of wood from an early age, but didn’t have the means to pursue it until he was in his late 20s. ‘I’ve spent the past 25 years living in North Carolina, experimenting with different creative outlets throughout the years, and woodworking is what stuck,’ he tells us. ‘My background is primarily in furniture making, with a more recent shift towards box making and items for around the home. I am completely self-taught, although I did take a 10-week course in woodturning at my local university. We live in a time when access to information is essentially limitless: if you want to learn about something, nothing is stopping you.’
It was David Charlesworth’s videos that first drew him to making furniture. ‘His level of craftsmanship and attention to detail is unparalleled. He was an incredible teacher and a big inspiration for me,’ Kendall says. He started out by making simple designs using the tools and materials he had available at the time. ‘I pretty much eat, sleep, and breathe woodworking, so it wasn’t long before I was acquiring tools and really pushing my abilities,’ he says. ‘I drowned myself in videos and books on joinery, understanding proportions, and the characteristics of wood. The rest came with experience.’ The first project he completed was a storage cabinet for vinyl records, and he says: ‘It was just as bad as you’d imagine it to be.’
He turned his hobby into a business in a bid to supplement his income. ‘I started small, designing business cards, telling friends and family about my business, and honing my skills all the while. Since then my business has been primarily through word of mouth and social media.’ And he says it has become about far more than money: ‘It’s what gives me satisfaction in life and a sense of purpose. It’s really a spiritual journey for me more than anything.’
Keeping it simple
Kendall keeps his work free from embellishments and frills, and is drawn to the simplicity of the Shaker style. ‘I believe simple is almost always best,’ he says. ‘When you look at pieces that are timeless, functional and beautiful, they almost always share that characteristic. The usefulness of an item and the quality and detail of its construction are where the beauty lies for me.’
He gets much of his inspiration from nature. ‘My wife and I enjoy hiking, and there are endless ways to be inspired by what’s around you. Sometimes it’s as simple as a texture or shape, but more often than that I’m inspired by a feeling. An old, strong tree inspires me to make something totally different than a patch of wildflowers. I think it’s important to allow inspiration to come from natural things,’ he says, adding: ‘The guiding principle behind my style is that I want my work to stand the test of time. To be something that feels familiar and humble, yet refined – simple designs done well.’
He describes his workspace as ‘a typical garage workshop’, adjusted to suit the way he works: ‘I’ve put a lot into making the workflow functional and the environment comfortable and enjoyable to be in,’ he explains. ‘I work with ambient light and a candle going most of the time. Just because you’re in a garage doesn’t mean it has to feel like one. For me the shop is not just a place to earn income and enjoy the craft, it’s a place to renew myself and my spirit. I’ve been in this workshop for about three years, but hope to move to a slightly larger space when the timing is right. I like the intimacy of a smaller space, but there are many times where having just a bit more room would help me work more efficiently and have things organised to my liking.’
Kendall works mainly with hand tools. ‘There’s a lot of noise and chaos in the world, and hand tools give me a sense of peace, stillness, and a deeper connection to my work,’ he says. ‘I typically work in complete silence, letting the sounds of the tools themselves be my entertainment and enjoyment. I work slowly most of the time, realising that fine work can rarely be done in a hurry.’ His go-to tools are Lie- Nielsen hand planes, chisels and saws, because he likes the way the company operates and gets pleasure from using high-quality tools. ‘I don’t avoid any tools in particular, but I’m not interested in junk that doesn’t function well and needs to be replaced every few years,’ he says. ‘I’d rather buy the real deal and enjoy using the tool the rest of my life. You can do a lot with just a handful of quality tools, so start with a few and let the rest fill in as needs arise.’
His design process usually starts with sketching and he works almost exclusively with domestic woods. Kendall explains: ‘I believe we have a responsibility as woodworkers and human beings to use our resources wisely, and working with readily available domestic species plays a part in that. I’m not interested in wild exotic woods. When your palette consists of just a handful of woods, you get to know them through and through. Cherry, maple, oak and birch are a few of my favourites. I also like incorporating pine when I can get it. It’s an overlooked species, but is one of the most beautiful. The way it ages is unparalleled.’ In future he hopes to incorporate other materials in his work as accents.
To finish his work he uses natural oils and wax exclusively. ‘What I like most about using natural oils is that they really bring out the natural beauty of the wood, smell great, are safe to use and handle, and are easy for clients to touch up down the road,’ he says. ‘My clients appreciate that their pieces actually feel like wood and don’t have a plastic-like surface. It looks and feels more authentic, because it is.’
Turn, turn, turn
As well as his bowls and vases, many of Kendall’s furniture pieces also incorporate turning, and he loves the contrast it makes to his other woodworking. ‘It’s a lot of fun to take a subtractive approach to creating as opposed to an additive one. Instead of putting two pieces together with dovetails, I’m finding a form within a larger form and guiding it into existence,’ he says. ‘The characteristics of the particular piece of wood I’m using will often dictate the form too, which is sort of like nature having its say in the finished piece.
‘One of my greatest learned experiences from woodturning is that the object’s form is always number one. Colour and figure fade with time, but form is forever. Even the plainest bits of wood are elevated to fine art through good form. Once I began to put my emphasis on designing flowing shapes with pleasing proportions and weights, that’s when I started to really grow as a turner.’
The biggest challenge he faces from turning is the mess using a lathe can make. ‘Turning is one of the messiest things you could possibly do in a workshop, right up there with using an electric router,’ Kendall says. ‘Coming from a hand tool background with very minimal clean- up, a lathe is a major disruption to all of that. I’ve had to implement a couple of different ways to collect debris and dust flying all over my meticulously tidy space. It’s worth it, though.’
His advice to fellow woodworkers who would like to incorporate turning into their furniture making is to get started with the minimum of equipment. ‘Just know that you don’t have to have every piece of equipment or every kind of turning tool to make good work in the beginning,’ he says. ‘Start with the bare minimum and add the extras over time. For tools I recommend mastering the skew chisel first. If you can master the skew, you can master any of the other woodturning tools, no problem.’
Kendall does around 75% of his work on commission and a quarter for his own collection, but he prefers working on his own pieces and hopes to change that proportion in the future. He is currently building up inventory for craft shows and his new online store – mostly vases, bowls and boxes – and has some furniture commissions he’s looking forward to in the pipeline. ‘My website has a shop feature where I sell from my own collection,’ he says. ‘I’m most passionate about making pieces of my own design. When a customer wants a piece that isn’t something I enjoy personally, it takes away from the enjoyment of making it. Don’t get me wrong, I love getting to work the way I do; it’s just a lot more fulfilling when customers are interested in my own designs and creations. There’s more room for self-expression when you can sell from your own work.’
Looking to the future, he would like to eventually work exclusively on his own collection. ‘I’d like to get into some local galleries and boutiques as well. In addition to selling my own work, I’m looking at doing some private tutoring or small group workshops where I can teach hand tool woodworking and possibly some woodturning too,’ he says. And when he’s not working, he likes to go out with his wife collecting inspiration on walks and hikes around Blowing Rock. ‘We’re fortunate to live in such a beautiful place in the mountains. It’s a great place to get outside and enjoy each other’s company,’ he says.
PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF KENDLL CAHAN