Project description
We are looking for an experienced woodworker to design and hand-carve a decorative fireplace mantel surround for our living room — corbels, a run of carved molding, and a solid mantel shelf. The firebox opening is 42 by 30 inches, and the surround must clear local fire-code minimums: at least 6 inches of combustible-material clearance on each side of the opening and 12 inches above it, with the shelf itself set back enough that a non-combustible hearth extension stays exposed in front. Please confirm these clearances against your reference table before cutting.
Wood species should be chosen for heat-adjacent duty rather than picked for looks alone — we are leaning toward a dense hardwood such as oak or maple that won't cup or crack near the firebox, but we are open to your recommendation if you have a better-suited species on hand. Please share a short design draft first: profile sketches for the corbels (we like a scrolled acanthus-leaf motif, but a simpler bead-and-reel band is fine too), the molding run along the top edge, and the overall shelf dimensions relative to the opening — we'd like roughly 6 inches of overhang on each side.
Construction should be solid joinery, not applied ornament glued onto flat stock — mortise and tenon or dovetailed corbel attachment where practical. Finish: a hand-rubbed oil or low-sheen varnish that can tolerate radiant heat without yellowing or blistering; no paint. We can supply photos of the room and exact opening measurements once we agree on scope. Timeline: two to three weeks from approved design to delivery and on-site fitting, including sanding, corbel carving, dry-fit, and finish cure time between coats.
Wood species should be chosen for heat-adjacent duty rather than picked for looks alone — we are leaning toward a dense hardwood such as oak or maple that won't cup or crack near the firebox, but we are open to your recommendation if you have a better-suited species on hand. Please share a short design draft first: profile sketches for the corbels (we like a scrolled acanthus-leaf motif, but a simpler bead-and-reel band is fine too), the molding run along the top edge, and the overall shelf dimensions relative to the opening — we'd like roughly 6 inches of overhang on each side.
Construction should be solid joinery, not applied ornament glued onto flat stock — mortise and tenon or dovetailed corbel attachment where practical. Finish: a hand-rubbed oil or low-sheen varnish that can tolerate radiant heat without yellowing or blistering; no paint. We can supply photos of the room and exact opening measurements once we agree on scope. Timeline: two to three weeks from approved design to delivery and on-site fitting, including sanding, corbel carving, dry-fit, and finish cure time between coats.
Web development Cash, Bank transfer
