About your furniture maker

We are an Ontario small business owned and operated by a carpenter with over 25 years of experience working with wood .

I bring my experience to your advantage and handcraft custom furniture tailored to your requirements

 

 

 

ABOUT ME AND THE START OF WESTERN PRIDE WOODWORKS
Western Pride Woodworks is a small local live edge and custom woodworking shop located in Innisfil, Ontario.
The company name, Western Pride Woodworks, is derived from my family’s proud prairie roots in Saskatchewan. My proud Ukrainian side. 
My Name is Derek N Lunau, a formally-trained artisan carpenter. I have been perfecting my craft for over 25 years.  My work can be seen in various residences throughout some of the most prestigious areas of Toronto, the GTA and Simcoe County. I was born and raised in Richmond Hill, Ontario.
Brought up from childhood in the world of General Contracting working for my father, a German master carpenter.
I became a finely tuned finish carpenter with a plethora of high-end custom building experience. I have built some extremely unique homes and commercial buildings in my career working for the man who trained me. I decided to leave a successful family business  which I worked extremely hard to help make succeed  for the majority of my career. I decided to make a huge, bold and scary change for my personal well-being and opened my own successful high-end renovation company.  Then the pandemic hit hard. I was forced to pivot and this time the decision was made for me.
I have since broken everything right back down to my love of hands on creation and working with wood every day.  It is my craft, my trade, and also my passion. I have opened Western Pride Woodworks and work full time crafting unique furniture pieces that are one of a kind and made custom to order for you. Sometimes returning back to basics is the most rewarding move you can make. It has served me well in all facets of my life.
Your satisfaction and enjoyment of your custom piece of furniture is held in the highest regard with me.  I strive to make you feel included in the process, respected and treated equally regardless of who you are.  ALL ARE WELCOME TO CONNECT WITH ME AND MY BUSINESS

derek-lunau-western-pride-woodworks

Derek N Lunau Owner and craftsman

 

how ancient woodworkers sculpted civilization

Humans have a remarkable relationship with trees. Trees not only provide the oxygen we need to breathe, but also wood in its rawest form. For millennia, woodworking by carpenters, turners, and joiners have transformed this basic material into objects that have made a huge contribution to the advancement of civilization. 

Right up to the present moment wood is still being worked into buildings, furniture, and ornamentation. It’s more than likely you’re sitting on, working on, or sleeping on a wooden structure, despite the emergence of plastics, steel, and concrete alternatives.

Our amazing relationship with wood began with the Neanderthals and it’s never ceased. The origin of woodwork and its development throughout history is a fascinating subject. Woodworkers have enabled overseas travel ,  created communities, improved personal safety, and built everything we needed to live and flourish.

 

Why Carpenters Were So Important To Civilization’s Advancement

Every culture that has left evidence of its existence has recorded woodworkers in pictorial form or writing. Although we tend to picture carpenters as humble manual workers, they have held an important place in society throughout the ages and across the globe.

Pre-historic man created essential wooden tools and lined wells with joinery to serve communities. Later woodworkers made homes, ships, weapons, and furniture from one of the few materials available at the time, so it comes as no surprise that carpenters’ guilds were established in the Middle Ages.

These guilds created quality regulations, provided charitable gifts and pensions, and trained apprentices. One such guild was the Carpenter’s Company of London which protected member interests when the Great Fire destroyed London in 1666, and parliament decreed all houses be made of bricks. In 1685-94 the Carpenters Company took on 54 apprentices from all walks of life and kept a standard of work through quality inspections.

The Personal Account Of An 16th Century Carpenter

In 1999 the account book of a 1700’s American pioneer carpenter came to light.
The lucky finding, discovered in the concealed drawer of a Victorian bureau, provided historians with the daily accounts of a skilled woodworker helping to lay the foundations of modern-day America.
The account book records the life of a carpenter called Ezra Bryan. He made chests, tables, chairs, beds, clock cases, window frames, cheese presses, tool handles, and even buttons. A particularly interesting account lists the household furniture purchases of a newly married couple to the value of £10 (about $10 at that time). A few months later a coffin for the couple’s child is added.

In the cold months Ezra employed townsfolk to help cut trees, split planks, and weave rattan seats for chairs. He taught apprentices and paid employees. The carpenter Ezra catered to everyone and made no end of essential objects with his skills. In the summer months when presumably the harvest was king and townsfolk were busy, he made furniture without assistance.

Ezra’s account book is a valuable contribution to personal history. It indicates how woodworkers improved lifestyles and in the case of the newly married couple, Ezra catered to the fortunes and misfortunes of their life path.

Who could live without the skills of a good woodworker throughout history?

Source :

https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-ancient-traditions/woodworking-0011950

Canadian Made solid wood Tables & Furniture

Built To Last Many Generations – Very Durable But Able To Be Repaired – Can Change To Suit Different Needs Later

 

 

Below is an interesting little bit of information on  Furniture waste “F waste”

F Waste , What is it ? It is the 10+ Million tons of furniture waste that fills our landfills each year. “Fast “Furniture” is the culprit.

Made as cheap and as light as possible for shipping it is usually flat boxed for you to assemble and comes from over seas. It is made to last 1-5 years and wind up in the landfill.

Sound like “Fast Food” ? same principal , quickly fills a need but leaves our body with no supply of good nutrients for future use.

Then comes a great question …

How likely are you to throw away something that holds great value ? Answer : YOU WONT !

Your table or custom piece of furniture is more often than not a 1 of 1 creation made by an artisan from the highest quality wood available. This translates to high value retained for money spent.

 Nothing We Create is “Fast Furniture” It is made to last indefinatley with the right simple care.

 HOW I PREFER TO WORK :

Respect and kindness that flows back and forth evenly between both parties is the KEY to a enjoyable custom furniture experience with outstanding results on delivery day. Being totally honest, at this stage of my career this is the only way I will work ! 

On a budget ?  We love budgets !!!

Be open with your budget if at all possible !  We want to help you as much as we can ! This allows us to use our expertise to suggest options for you based on your comfortable spend. Everyone has a budget even if it is a large budget .If your budget is higher than what a fair price for your project is , I will tell you, ask some of our previous clients!  I will do my best to get you as much as I can for your budget. Sometimes we cannot offer you our services for what we have to work with, thats ok too, we will be upfront and honest. We dont squeeze you to increase it, or shame you if your budget does not align with your ask. It takes alot to offend us , so dont be shy about being open, this is the best way I have found to do business over the years of my career.

                                                

MY PROFESSIONAL OPINION ON JOINTS IN LIVE EDGE TABLE TOPS

Being a trained carpenter one of the most important things you are taught is  NEVER PUT JOINTS IN YOUR WORK IF THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE!  Sometimes joints are unacceptable from both the aesthetic side and more important the structural side of building. Live edge slab tables look absolutely stunning when they are produced from a single seamless slab. As far as I am concerned this is an example of achieving the highest standard in the look of your table. If you purchase a joined live edge table top it is not that you are buying something that is not structurally sound if made correctly by a trained artisan, but you are purchasing a live edge table with a joint that you can see when there is an option to purchase one without!

Single Slabs are harder to find, harder to work with because of size , but offer a premium finished seamless product.  A single slab live edge table is our recommended choice to achieve the highest level of design. 

We think it is better to be seeking the wood of the large trees that are approaching the end of the life-cycle, have completed it or have outgrown there surroundings and need to be felled for safety reasons. Lets leave the smaller trees to keep growing and benefit all that depends on them. For some interesting information on the highly coveted Black Walnut Tree and how important it is in our ecosystem have a look at this link BLACK WALNUT A VERY SPECIAL TREE “

We found this information so interesting that we are committing to plant one black walnut sapling for every single slab  table we create helping to preserve this precious resource for generations to come.

I do offer superb joinery services as well for all other table and custom furniture designs, if you dont see it listed , I can probably craft  it so please ask !

I hold the utmost respect for the beautiful trees that inhabit our earth. They are just as alive as we. Unfortunately, trees do not stand forever. Some have completed the life cycle, some are sick, some become dangerous and have to be felled. We give new life to all of the above in the form of quality furniture that is passsed on from generation to generation. 

 

 

  

CONTACT US

FREE CUSTOM FURNITURE QUOTE

Contact me for a quick and free quote on your custom furniture requirements.

Please use the contact form below or email/call me directly

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705.896.4840

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Your First Step To Hiring The Right Craftsman And Purchasing Environmentally Responsible Furniture

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LIVE EDGE TABLES

RUSTIC OR MODERN TABLES
CHAIRS BENCHES STOOLS

CUSTOM HANDMADE FURNITURE

 

 

We offer a 15% Discount to all women on all custom furniture orders , all year every year. 

Canada and US Wide Shipping 

Western Pride Woodworks is a custom woodworking shop in Ontario Canada. Handcrafting stunning live edge tables, live edge furniture and all other styles of tables and custom solid wood furniture. Our diversity ,expertise and personal customer service is what sets us apart from other wood shops in the province. We offer spectacular results at some of the best price points around. Contact us for a free and honest quote on your requirements.  We are located in Innisfil Ontario at 7681 10 Sideroad.