PaulsSpecialties

Paul's Specialties was started more than 35 years ago when we were expecting our first child. We bought a house with a two door garage to house my wood shop. It has always been a family business, Nancy worked the planer and band saw along with me as we started the business, doing local crafts shows around town. It wasn't long until I had a proper wood shop built and I was attending craft shows up and down the east coast and our daughters started "working in the shop". When my girls were little, 5 and 8, they worked in the shop to earn their allowance, sweeping sawdust and "dipping buttons" for key racks. Yearly summer crafts shows in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia doubled as family vacations. As Nancy and I worked the booth, Katie and Christine ran around the fairgrounds, watching the storytellers, eating popcorn, and playing with other crafters' kids. As they got older, they learned to work the booth and wait on customers.

The girls moved out some time ago, but if Christine wasn't calling for a custom designed monogram for decorating her wedding, Katie was home raiding my cutting boards. It has been some years since Nancy worked the drill press, but she has taken on the role of being my web master and sounding board.

I started Paul's Specialties to make simple, clean, elegant furniture and have the flexibility to spend time with my family. I have switched from making furniture to smaller items such as cutting boards and lazy susans. My own home, as well as those of both of my daughters, are filled with the furniture and items I have made over the years. I now use the flexibility of having my own business to be able to visit my daughters and their families and enjoy them when they come to visit. I strive every day to develop new items and improve the designs of previous pieces.