The workshop

bespoke shaker is operated by Lamb and Shirley, the company who introduced Shaker shops to the UK in 1989. The great triumph of Shaker design and craftsmanship is that their furniture, conceived 150 years ago, is as beautiful and practical now as it was then.The Shaker expression ; ‘Do your work as if you had a thousand years to live and as you would if you must die tomorrow, was an instruction to take as much time as you need to make something perfectly ; it will be a testement to your life. Our workshops share that philosophy and apply it to their work.

bespoke shaker is made in England using mainly american timbers which are certified and from sustainable sources. We use the same three workshops who worked for the shaker shops before that business was sold to Fired Earth in 2005. bespoke shaker is a purely made to order service. Each table, bed, cabinet or chair is made especially for you.
No two trees are alike. As a result, there is a unique grain pattern on each piece of furniture we make and there is a natural quality to solid timber, which adds to the charm of the products.
The workshops go to enormous efforts to ensure that there is a visual consistency with the timber we use and we go to extreme lengths to match up colour and grain textures. This attention to detail and the perfection we pursue, make bespoke shaker products very special and excellent value for money.

American cherry remains the most popular timber we use; it has a wonderful warm quality which becomes darker as it is exposed to light until a deep rich colour results. Maple is another very popular choice. A very pale wood with an interesting grain pattern which gives even the most classic of Shaker pieces a very modern appearance. We also use American Oak, (red and white )Walnut, and a number of other interesting timbers providing they can be certified. This means knowing the timber from source to end user. In addition we have introduced a very dark stain over oak to simulate African Wenge as it is not possible to guarantee the source of Wenge.
There are occasions when, for technical reasons, it is advisable to use veneered panels. These are not visible and we use them to improve the function of the piece, not to make cost savings. Our larger storage boxes use plywood faced with Birch veneer, which enables us to produce them in big sizes. It is technically not possible to use solid timber for these larger sizes. The Birch we use matches Maple very well, and can be stained to match Cherry and Wenge.

Traditional construction methods are used throughout and combined with modern technology to make such things as dovetail joints perfectly. To prevent table tops warping, the early Shaker craftsmen used a construction method whereby the top planks were set into mortised end boards. This allowed the planks to react to humidity and temperature changes; as they expanded or contracted, they would move within the ends but not twist. Thanks to modern drying and manufacturing techniques it is no longer necessary to use this construction method, but it is an interesting visual feature which we make available as an additional option.

The craftsmen - The history