Manly Workshop

Manly Workshop Woodworker, fabricator, maker, fixer, designer with decades of experience.

Bring me your broken furniture, your minor home repairs, your upcycling project, or that thing no one else will do.

It's time to address some structural issues with the buffet. My client plans to store heavy cookware inside. The thin pl...
04/30/2026

It's time to address some structural issues with the buffet. My client plans to store heavy cookware inside. The thin plywood bottom will sag without some braces. And removing the center panel removed the main support to keep the top from sagging. So I added a couple of stiles to support the top and provide a place for door latches to mount. See photo captions for details.

04/28/2026

Because the door k***s for the buffet are mounted in the center of each door, the old magnetic catches made opening the doors awkward. They required quite a tug to open using the k***s. This is probably why one of the k***s was broken. My client and I discussed options and decided to swap to this push-to-open style catch. Opening the doors will require much less effort. The downside is that the latches can only be used singly in the middle of the doors. So they are more conspicuous. And they require a vertical stile behind each door to mount to. But the stiles were needed anyway to support the top in the absence of the original fixed panel. So it worked out. This is just a mock-up to make sure it will work.

While I'm waiting for door latches for the buffet to arrive, I tackled the back side of the new middle door. When it was...
04/28/2026

While I'm waiting for door latches for the buffet to arrive, I tackled the back side of the new middle door. When it was a fixed panel, no one cared what the back of it looked like. So the back was just a scrap piece of plywood. Now it needs to be a complete finished panel. So I made a new one from plywood to match the others. Staples were good enough for the original, so that's how I attached this one. I reattached the backs on the other doors while I was at it.

04/25/2026

I got the middle door mortised for the new knife hinges. It works better than the others.

More brain-bending buffet work. Tonight I started tackling the biggest challenge, turning the fixed center panel into a ...
04/23/2026

More brain-bending buffet work. Tonight I started tackling the biggest challenge, turning the fixed center panel into a third door. The first issue is that the door panels are 3/16in shorter than the center panel to allow them to swing. From what I could tell, all of the panels used the same mold, but the doors had thinner top and bottom flanges. So I modified the panel to match the others by using the bandsaw to trim off a sliver from both ends and various sanders to straighten and smooth the edges. I also got some knife hinges similar to the ones already used, and got them mounted so I could test fit the new door. See photo captions for details.

Back on the buffet. It's time to try and save the water-damaged MDF top and repair the doors. The doors turned out to be...
04/21/2026

Back on the buffet. It's time to try and save the water-damaged MDF top and repair the doors. The doors turned out to be an unexpected repair, because the hinge screws stripped when I removed them. See photo captions for details.

I have a client that collects antique glass insulators. He has about 50 of them and wanted them hung on the wall. I made...
04/20/2026

I have a client that collects antique glass insulators. He has about 50 of them and wanted them hung on the wall. I made these simple hangers from cedar boards and dowels.

I started on this piece over the weekend. A family member asked me to make a few changes to this buffet she just bought....
04/19/2026

I started on this piece over the weekend. A family member asked me to make a few changes to this buffet she just bought. She wants it a different color, and different hardware. The biggest change is that she wants the center panel to be an operating door, like the other two. Now for most clients, I'd say don't bother with this piece. It's not an heirloom quality antique. It's made from MDF and plastic. But for family I'll accept the challenge. See captions for details.

New light fixture for client's dining room. Replaced a builder grade 6-lamp fixture with this beauty. LED bulbs should l...
04/18/2026

New light fixture for client's dining room. Replaced a builder grade 6-lamp fixture with this beauty. LED bulbs should last a long time, and drop power usage from 360W to 40W for 10% more light output.

I got the new sign installed. This one should last, even with our wind. More to come (the other hooks are a clue).
04/11/2026

I got the new sign installed. This one should last, even with our wind. More to come (the other hooks are a clue).

I've been away for a bit, on a much-needed vacation. So I've been out of the workshop. Now that I'm back, I've got a pro...
04/09/2026

I've been away for a bit, on a much-needed vacation. So I've been out of the workshop. Now that I'm back, I've got a project to replace a yard sign that was damaged when a basketball goal fell on it. I'm the client this time. See captions for details.

I had to get creative with this repair. This client has three antique chairs with woven seats. One had developed a weak ...
03/14/2026

I had to get creative with this repair. This client has three antique chairs with woven seats. One had developed a weak spot, and was in danger of tearing. Rather than spend more on repairing the seat than the entire chair is worth, I added a foam cushion below to support the seat and hopefully extend its life. The client and I agree, the chair is more comfortable than before! The client loved it so much, she had me "upgrade" the other two. Details in the captions.

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Landrum, SC
29356

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+18645066377

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