Dovetail Scotland was founded in May 2000 by Steve McLean. All of our designs to date are by Steve and unique to us. Although trained as a Civil Engineer he also enjoyed a keen interest in Art, design and carpentry which he taught himself through books and practical application. He initially started designing and building furniture needed for the family home, creating practical but beautiful, solid wood furniture from local timbers capable of withstanding his five young children! Coffee tables are in fact dance floors, sharp corners magnets for small heads and chairs always tested to their limits and beyond!
We have been asked to build many individual pieces of furniture over the years, both commercial and domestic. Generally we are given a rough design brief which we interpret and then communicate through the drawing process. Over the years we have designed and built some unique pieces of furniture from revolving bookcases to full libraries to large corporate tables to small dovetailed boxes. So if you have an idea and you're not sure where to start, come and have a conversation, maybe Dovetail Scotland can help turn your idea into reality.
Kitchens are probably the most important room in the house with most days beginning and ending here. As such it should be both practical and beautiful, making it a pleasure to spend time and work in. The design process here at Dovetail is the most important aspect of creating a new kitchen. Good design starts with a conversation, whether an individual or architectural team. We will explore every aspect of its purpose, who it is for, expectations etc. The conversation usually starts with an email, a telephone call, a visit to our studio or face to face meeting.
As an advocate of the circular economy, our workshop is in fact a recycled mobile doctor's surgery! It was in a poor state of repair when it arrived, but with a little hard work we rebuilt it into a fantastic humidity controlled workshop space. Wood being a hydroscopic material is always moving in service to balance with its environment. For example if you put a piece of furniture outside in the rain the doors and drawers will swell up and stop working. Equally the same piece exposed to a hot summer's day will distort and crack.
Initial Enquiry: All projects begin with an initial enquiry to establish a guideline cost, helping determine if Dovetail is the right maker for you. In most cases this is done quickly via email. If you wish to discuss your project in more detail we encourage a personal visit to our workshop. This allows you to meet our team, have a tour of the workshop and see first-hand, the different timbers we can offer. If you are happy with your visit and require something a little more tangible we move to the design stage.
Our own Darach Mhor Raw honey now on sale. Pop into pick up a pot
An interesting Commision, to design a musician's Cello stand. The beautiful hand made Cello pictured was kindly lent to me by my local luthier, William Kelday. I was lucky to have a fantastic curved piece of Scottish Elm in stock which perfectly matched the curve of the cello when set at 15 degrees.
Beautiful Scottish Olive Ash cloakroom. 35 double brass hooks with a basket shelve for hats and gloves. and rack below with a comfortable seat to put them on or take them off. #scottishwood #scotland #scotlandlovers #handmadefurnitu re #scottishtimber #bespokecabinetr y #scottishfurnitu.
Scottish Elm wall units and worktops compliment beautifully figured Olive Ash base units. All finished with hard wax oil with a final coat of bees wax. #bees #beeswax #scottishwood #scottish #original #originalcharact er #originalwoodwor k #handcraftedfurn iture #creative #creativeart #.
More than 80% of the UK's wildflower meadows have now disappeared, lost to urbanisation and modern intensive farming methods. These wildflower meadows were once havens to bees, butterflies and many other insects, which in turn supported many small birds and mammals. The plight of many of these.
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