02/03/2026
Hello people. I’ve been contemplating doing a behind the scenes post for such a long time now. I was always waiting for the suitable project, the suitable time and the convenient sash. I think I found one. Right amount of restoration needed, right candidate for the project and slightly better time frame that will allow me to actively take photos/ videos and write descriptions. Think of it as a tiny peak into the world of a restorer. My main aim of doing this is simpler than you think and it tackles one of them main problems that the entire restoration sector faces: the shortage of willing apprentices/ wannabe restorers. Be it a stone mason, a stained glass restorer, a furniture restorer or someone like myself who devotes their entire working time to restoring sash windows; properly. It is so easy to add a bit of glue, drive a nail or screw and/or slap some filler /repaircare or similar products. It’s a repair but simply not a restoration. Unfortunately there’s a lot of this going on. I won’t get into the reason here/now. I fully understand and am aware of it. I am more concerned with getting the new blood into the pool, showing that it could be done properly by showing how I do it. I am not trying to say that I am the authority on the subject, far from it. I am just the one who is willing to show it, explain why, show other ways of doing it. I have been influenced by many other restorers, their way of work, their preferred materials to use. The one thing I can guarantee you is this: their are /were all master restorers, at the top of their game and all of them are Very old school. I was lucky/privileged to have met some of them/ worked with some and took notes of what they said /explained. I believe I still have a decade in me to carry on doing this, maybe. So this is the time to offer my knowledge that I gained from several people who were much better than me. People who honed their tools without jigs, people who turned a piece of timber into a stile only using a moulding plane. People who could tell you that you are 2mm out just by looking. Far better than me. So keep your eyes peeled for the next few posts. I will be back.
