Kendal
Restorations
A chair belonging to
Florence Nightingale, the Grill Room at the Savoy
or a complete house full of furniture in the South of France
Terry Brazier undertakes them all
 If
you ever have the good fortune to meet Terry Brazier, please do not
refer to him as a Conservator. Doing so is likely to illicit a swift
repost! "It's a daft American term which doesn't mean anything to
me. I'm a furniture restorer - that's what I do, restore furniture."
Such a precise description sums up Kendal
Restorations, the business Terry founded 21 years ago. When you step
into the non-descript factory unit, something changes, suddenly the
world seems at peace, life slows and you feel that you have stepped
back in time. This is a place where time-honoured traditions and
methods are a matter of course. No quick fix solutions or
laser-guided tools here.
So how do you become a Furniture Restorer? A
love of woodwork at school and an O-level in the subject led to a
three-year course at the London College of Furniture. However, it
was not quite the route Terry had in mind. "I was put into furniture
design instead of furniture restoration but I decided to stick with
it." During the course he had to design an item of furniture but all
the tutors had to OK the design before he could go ahead. One tutor
disliked the design of a particular joint and said it wouldn't work.
Terry said " I made the joint in my own time to prove that it worked
then resigned from the course."
Terry persuaded a North London restoration
company to take him on even though they had no vacancies. "I said
I've got my own tools and all I want is somewhere to work. I don't
want much money; I just want to learn the trade. I started two days
later, my tools consisted of a screwdriver, a pair of pincers and a
hammer that belonged to my father, the rest of my bag was taken up
with my lunch." One of the first commissions he worked on was a
nursing chair that belonged to Florence Nightingale.
 After
six months he moved to another London company with showrooms in Bond
Street and all was well until seven years later when work became
scarce. Terry was laid off for three months having just acquired his
first mortgage. He took on private work and continued to restore
during his own time in his parents' attic. This gave him a taste for
self-employment and the rest as they say is history.
"I would like to thank you again for
the marvellous repair that was made to my antique sideboard door
which had been so violently kicked in by burglars. "
- Customer from Stonely near Huntingdon.
But the name Kendal? For the answer you have
to go back to that mortgage on a derelict cottage in Offord D'arcy
near Huntingdon. He renovated it and moved in carrying on the
business from a lean-to. The previous owners had christened it
Kendal Cottage reminding them of their Lake District honeymoon.
As the business prospered Terry took on Gary Batterbee as a trainee
furniture restorer two years later. The pair first worked from a
barn in Great Paxton then from an industrial unit in St Peters Road
Huntingdon before moving, in September 2002, to the current premises
in Letchworth Garden City.
Today it's rare to find real teamwork; people who enjoy what they do
and support one another. Meeting the Kendal's team is a breath of
fresh air. Upholsterer John Baker, who has 26 years experience,
joined Terry and Gary in 1989 when Terry purchased an established
local upholstery business. In total the Kendals crew runs to six,
including two trainees. Apprenticeships are rare; there is no queue
of people wanting to learn these traditional skills and wages cannot
compete with modern careers.
 These
days the work is varied and includes modern furniture perhaps just
two or three years old. If junior spills orange juice and the
laminate plays up, Kendals will save the day. Clients come in all
sizes from Mrs Lipton's tea caddy to historical pieces like the
Catterick Table in the Officers Mess at RAF Honington which ran to
nine separate leaves and two end sections. Five tables in the
boardroom of HMP Holloway were completed in double quick time (no
pun intended) and University Colleges up and down the county also
provide a steady stream of commissions. Two hundred chairs were
refurbished for the St Ivo centre in St Ives recently. Even gym
equipment is returned to new condition after constant use.
The company recently played a major role in
Californian designer Barbara Barry's controversial renovation of the
Grill Room at the Savoy.
The work involved re-upholstering banquette seating much favoured by
Winston Churchill, Maria Callas, Noel
Coward and Sean Connery, in black and brown railroad striped fabric.
A tough job for .John because of the stripes running horizontally.
Another Savoy banquette regular, though rarely seen was the late
Richard Harris. He refused to don a tie so a screen was placed
around his table, ostensibly to give privacy, but mainly to avoid
encouraging similar rebellion amongst fellow diners.
Apart from wear and tear, or as Terry puts it
"children, cats and central heating" furniture arrives at Kendal's
for a variety of reasons. Fire, flood and vandalism provide a steady
flow of work. Heirlooms in need of a facelift are frequent
commissions. "We always tell people we can make their furniture look
as good as old" chuckled Terry.
"I would like to thank you and all your
staff for the excellent service you have given us. From the lady
on the telephone to the drivers they were all very courteous and
helpful and nothing was too much trouble for them. This was
particularly appreciated after the trauma of the flood. In this
day and age it is especially pleasing to be treated so well."
- Customer from London NW9
Kendal's will carry out work on new items too.
Recently an avant-garde furniture designer brought in his latest
creation to be upholstered, it was a bale of straw, which was
covered in padding and calico and finished in various animal hides.
They can also make furniture, anything from a table leg to a chair,
to complete a set. "And you won't be able to tell the difference
between the old and the new," said Terry.
 One
Friday a very distraught lady from London called demanding urgent
attention to sort out a broken leg. Terry explained that his London
day was Wednesday and he would be pleased to call in then. She was
crying and near hysterical saying it was disgraceful and she would
report him. Terry tried to calm her down and explained that
Wednesday was the earliest he could get there. "That's no good" she
said, "My dog can't wait until then" before hanging up. A few days
later, realising her mistake, she did call again and apologised.
Needless to say, for all the things Kendal's can do, they can't mend
living items -at least not yet!
Traditional materials and methods abound,
animal glue still seals joints, bespoke hides come from Scotland
whilst the range of fabric is vast. Velvet, silk, chenille,
tapestry, calico, hessian, moquette and all in a myriad of fire
retardant hues and patterns. Horsehair (from the tail) is still used
as an albeit expensive, upholstery material. Rubberised horsehair
(hair/rubber mix), hog hair and even coconut fibre are available.
The natural materials are John Baker's favourite, "they mould much
better and last fifty to sixty years. A modern suite is just a wood
frame covered with foam which will probably not last ten years." You
would think upholstering a bale of straw qualified as unusual but
John sites refitting the inside of a horsebox as holding that
particular crown.
Tools are just as important of course and
Terry is scathing about modern versions. "We still use traditional
jack planes and moulding planes, in fact the only machine we use is
a band saw to assist in speeding up cutting operations. Using a
modem laser method would detract from the value of the furniture. It
would be immaculate and antique furniture should never be so. For
instance if it's hand made you can always see where a little tiny
hole was drilled to get the saw blade in to start cutting the
marquetry. You wouldn't see that with a laser, it would be just cut,
pressed and done, no joins. It's too clinical."
"Very many thanks for the wondeiful job
you did restoring all our furniture. Both my husband and I were
so pleased when each piece returned as shiny as a new coin. Your
work has added much pleasure to our daily life; your handicraft
is greatly appreciated."
- Customer from London W9
Gary Batterbee agrees, he much prefers using
old tools and buys them from car boot sales because modern
equivalents just don't cut the mustard. Much of the work involves
preparation, for example: stripping old finishes and removing glue
because new glue will not stick to old glue.
His most unusual job was renovating a chair
covered in pieces of bone. "It was like assembling a jigsaw puzzle:"
Occasionally work has to be completed off site. One particular
commission took Terry and Gary to the South of France for two weeks.
A removal company had damaged all the customer's furniture on the
journey from England. They crammed ten weeks into a fortnight by
working 14-hour days without a break.
As you would expect every conceivable type of
wood is available and all from sustainable sources, but English Oak
is still favourite for its varied grain, hardness and longevity.
Sometimes furniture beyond renovation is dismantled and recycled.
And when it comes to metal work Kendal's can dismantle a lock and
cut a key to fit.
"The attention to detail and the
quality of the work you have done for us is of such a high
standard that we would appreciate it if you would also convey
our thanks and congratulations to the craftsman involved"
- Customer from Colne near Huntingdon
Perhaps you own a treasured family heirloom;
something you gave little thought to until it passed into your care.
It may have seen better days and be in need of some TLC. You can
make no finer investment than to seek advice from Kendal Furniture
Restorations: it costs nothing to ask, and it could be one of the
best investments you ever make.
Originally Published in Elphicks Centenary
Magazine, 2003 pages 24-25 |
