about

A childhood spent playing in the woods and a father who holds a deep respect for trees and the natural world are what connect me, at the deepest level of my being, with wood and woodworking. Seeking a meaningful relationship with work that makes me excited to get up in the morning is what led me to pursue furniture making later in life.

Sam Slaby in color, framed by a border of black-and-white portraits distorted through rippled glass Sam and his wife leaning together at sunset beside the water a crevassed glacier seen from a rocky summit ridge pale dahlias with lavender-tipped petals among cosmos Sam in the shop wearing ear protection, beside a curved piece in progress a small cherub figurine tucked into a hollow in an old, lichen-covered tree trunk the Seattle skyline under heavy autumn clouds a friend in a tie-dyed space t-shirt holding a ratchet in the warehouse a hole in a wall turned into a face with sunglasses and a mustache sunrise over Lake Washington beneath a monkey puzzle tree an end-grain board with repeating leaf-shaped grain on the bench a jagged rock spire above a glacier and a turquoise alpine lake a close-up of fresh tomato and peach salsa a long shadow beside a chalk arrow on the street

early work

I'm always seeking new possibilities — new styles, new techniques, new processes, new expressions

carved sycamore headboard with rippling grooves basket weave coffee table in a living room walnut-framed mirror
light staved vessel held in hand a stacked khaya cone among plants tapered elm wastebasket with rows of drilled holes staved vessel with its base
staved pine planter holding a tall plant sapele credenza with slatted doors beneath the walnut mirror basket weave table beneath a lamp and plants
dark textured staved vessel basket weave tabletop with a plant and bowl figured walnut of the mirror frame beside a lampshade faceted staved vessel on a workbench

urban hardwoods

Urban Hardwoods specialized in salvaging trees felled by arborists in the Seattle area and revealing their hidden beauty by building custom furniture with them. We worked with some species you can't find readily at lumber yards, like Sycamore and Madrona. And usually the material we were working with was BIG. So I got an invaluable education on how to work with large, heavy slabs. I do miss the quality and scale of the material, but now I prefer to work on a smaller scale. C'mon, who needs a 30' table?!

walnut slab table with a black river round dining table on splayed legs walnut slab bench with a natural split, on black steel legs
very long walnut table with a clear river very long pale conference table in the shop live-edge walnut table on black steel legs round tabletop upside down, showing its splayed base
long walnut slab tabletop in the shop long walnut conference table pale slab tabletop with a dark river between two halves

let's make
something.

a bonsai treecontact →