Andre is a magician! We have a massive antique piece of furniture that was sitting in our kitchen area for a month as two separate three person moving teams were unable to haul the piece up a flight of stairs and into our bedroom. We had come to grips with the reality that the only way to keep it was to cut a leg or two off and screw it back in. I, therefore, contacted a number of antique carpenters/ furniture and antique refinishing and repair service providers and, after extensive back and forth, we elected to move forward with Andre.
Right off the bat, Andre was incredibly responsive and I appreciated his determination to keep the piece intact before changing it. We exchanged pictures, texts and spoke live about it in detail. After we agreed to move forward, he arrived -- early to on time -- with a huge smile on his face and full of optimism. He walked us through the options and explained the various tools and hardware he had as he was conscious of not compromising the integrity or aesthetic. Before employing any of those tools, however, Andre and his colleague first attempted to bring this massive, cumbersome and extremely heavy, all wood piece up the stairs. With great tact and dexterity they managed to get the piece up, over our banister and in the bedroom without harming the furniture or the surrounding walls/ banister. Therefore, while we didn't get to see his wood working skills first hand, he grossly exceeded expectations with the outcome.
Net net, some of the reasons we decided to go with Andre and would encourage anyone to do the same is: clearly he respects your belongings and wants to provide the best and least invasive solution; he knows what he is doing and is a master craftsman and artist (see pics and we trusted his approach/ technique after my handy husband asked him some technical questions); he is incredibly responsive and not only followed through but was early; he seems incredibly trustworthy and like a wonderful, positive person with a great attitude. We have a few other pieces we are looking to refinish at a later date and, when we are ready, Andre will be our guy! read more