5
Vent: A client in Charlotte asked me to build a cabinet with no visible joinery at all
I was finishing a kitchen remodel for a couple last fall, and the husband, Mark, was very specific. He pointed at a drawer front and said, 'I don't want to see a single screw, dowel, or dovetail. It should look like it grew there.' It forced me to get creative with sliding dovetails and a lot of careful clamping from the inside. Has anyone else had a request that pushed you to hide every single mechanical joint?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
hill.stella1mo ago
Honestly, it feels like that's everywhere now. People want things to look perfect and seamless, like magic, with none of the work showing. Tbh, I see it with houses too, where folks want a roof line or a finish that hides every nail and seam. It's like we're all supposed to pretend things just appear, not get built by someone's hands. Makes the job ten times harder for that "invisible" look.
5
the_nathan28d ago
I read a piece last year about a custom furniture maker in Vermont. He said clients kept asking for tables with no visible joinery, like the wood just grew that way. He called it the "magic trick" problem, where the skill gets erased so the thing looks effortless. It actually takes way more time and stress to hide all the seams and screws. That demand for invisible work makes people forget the craft involved. It turns building something into a secret you have to keep.
8