Mary Marsh

Coffee and side tables in English Elm for the Skeltons

When the Skeltons found me they had been searching for six years for pieces to replace their existing sitting-room furniture. They couldn’t find anything quite right and so decided to commission bespoke pieces. I was very happy to visit their home and get a feel for what they liked and what might fit in with their existing furnishings. I designed very simple pieces and was pleased when they chose elm as the timber which seemed very appropriate for their Buckinghamshire home.

They are very pleased with the results and wrote : - “We cannot thank you enough - it will give us many, many years of pleasure.”  

(DVD cabinet : Length : 1350mm; Height : 555mm; Depth : 460mm)
(Coffee table : Top Length and Width : 800mm; Height : 410mm)
(Side table : Top Length and Width : 460mm; Height : 530mm)

Portfolio Piece - Console Table in Longleat Ash

This console table has been created as a new portfolio piece for Origin – The Contemporary Craft Fair at which I will be exhibiting my work in London in September 2011.

I originally had an idea for a table top which would be carved out of a single piece of wood and have two level surfaces at slightly different heights joined by a gentle slope in the middle. Within some olive ash boards purchased for other projects, I found this beautifully figured timber which was just asking to be used for something special.

I have made a feature of the border between the olive and the white ash, particularly across the drawer fronts and also tried to show off the wonderful burr patterning throughout the piece.

Length : 1200mm; Height : 900mm; Depth : 300mm

Margaret and David's Dining Table

My clients were in the process of building a new dining room onto their house when they came to me to design them a cherry table to fit the space perfectly.

They wanted the legs right at the corners and rails as narrow as possible to allow plenty of leg room for diners. In order that the strength of the table should not be compromised by the length of the long rails, the visible frame conceals a robust lattice of inter-connecting rails reinforced with corner blocks for strength and a central hinged leg preventing sagging. The solid 8” by 3” top overhangs the frame by just enough to allow for shrinkage and the overall effect is of a remarkably delicate table for its size.

Length : 2440mm; Width : 920mm; Height : 735mm

Coffee Table in English Walnut

The design of this table developed during my first term of life drawing. The six sides of the top reflect the gentle, convex and intersecting curves of the human body and its asymmetry is reminiscent of a person standing with most of their weight on one leg. The original design was for a mirror, however when I bought the wood, I realised that the sweeping curve of the grain was asking to be used as the long sides of a table and perhaps the glass in the centre reflects the original mirror idea.

(Length : 1050mm; Width : 450mm; Height : 390mm)

Coffee Table in Olive Ash

This simple table is based on the earlier design made in walnut but with a plain solid top which shows off the beauty of the rich tones of Olive Ash to great effect.

(Length : 1050mm; Width : 450mm; Height : 390mm)

Carola's Dining Table and Shelves in Olive Ash

My clients quite literally grew their own dining table. The ash tree at the bottom of their garden had to be cut down and was stacked in their drive way for several years to season.

I worked closely with the clients to get the table design just right for the dimensions of their dining room and their existing chairs. Once the boards had dried out further and I was able to mill them up to see what we had, the clients came to the workshop to decide on the arrangement of boards for the top. The table now resides within sight of its birthplace and fits the space perfectly.

There was not enough timber in their tree to make the shelves as well so I obtained further boards of olive ash and made these simple shelves for storage of an extensive map collection as well as books. The design of the shelves echoes that of the table with square uprights in olive ash and shelves showing light ash edges just like the table top.

Length : 1780mm; Width : 810mm; Height : 760mm; Thickness of Top : 34mm