Candy stores
Everyone has a favorite “candy store.” For me, it was a place called Handloggers. They are still in business but have moved and morphed into more of a flooring store….
Everyone has a favorite "candy store." For me, it was a place called Handloggers.
They are still in business but have moved and morphed into more of a flooring store. But they used to be a small shop offering a very limited selection of the most amazing wood ever seen.
They had several slabs of the quilted Honduras mahogany (at five grand a pop!) that was pulled out of a ravine in the 1980's and that became known to woodworkers everywhere by virtue of an article in Fine Woodworking. I used to go there at every opportunity even though I could rarely afford the woods they had.
There was another outfit in the Bay Area that was run by a guy who was a collector of antique tools and rare woods. His vast exotics showroom was a sight to behold. Rows of tall, pyramid racks each holding a different species. Small 3/4” x 3/4” x 12" sticks on one end; 4"-thick, 3’-wide, 16' long planks on the other. Every piece perfect and unflawed. Didn't even want to ask the price! Around this was a mezzanine filled with glass display cases holding one of the finest collections of rare and antique woodworking tools ever assembled. Every one in perfect mint condition.
I would dream about being given all those tools, pointed at the wood and told to make something.
D.D.
David DeCristoforo possesses an extensive resume as designer/maker of fine furniture, high-end cabinetry and architectural woodwork. His experience in professional woodworking spans a period of 35 years. For the past 20 years David DeCristoforo Design has been located in Woodland, California. During this time David's shop has ranged in scope from a "full on" cabinet production shop with as many as 15 employees to a small fine furniture and custom millwork shop, working with his son, David RBJ, a highly skilled maker in his own right.