Thomas Moser Los Angeles Showroom Opening
March 9th, 2008
by Scott Daniel

It is probably an overstatement to call my friend Vicki a "furniture groupie", but when she heard that Thomas Moser was opening a showroom in Los Angeles, she told me about it with more than her usual high level of animation. She has been to the Moser headquarters in Auburn, Maine and toured their factory long enough to know a number of the faces at the LA opening. "That's the man that grows garlic," she said of one of the craftsmen that were demonstrating in front of the store.

Thomas Moser Speaking at Los Angeles Showroom Opening

Someday, when Vicki's kids are through college, she will own a Moser dining room set. She has the exact set picked out and priced and when the last tuition check is written, it will be hers. I hope it can live up to the expectations resulting from long anticipation. My guess is that it will and that her children and their children will enjoy it as well. For now, she will have to content herself with a book signed by Mr. Moser.

Vicki Tests a Sam Maloof Chair

I expected a small number of ardent woodworking fans to attend this event, but was surprised to see hundreds of people seated and ready to hear a small group of woodworking luminaries speak. It was heartening to see the craft elevated from the dusty garages of a few fanatics to what looked like an LA art-scene event. Many of us don't realize that this has happened largely in the last 30 years. Veterans returning from WWII wanted things fast and cheap and handcrafted furniture was something done by your grandfather and not associated with quality. Now, thanks to the efforts of craftsmen like Sam Maloof and Thomas Moser, the woodworking is appreciated by a much larger audience.

Thomas Moser spoke first and showing slides that depicted the growth of his business from a small shop with a few apprentices to a substantial business with many craftsmen. Moser's business is unique because his designs are those you'd expect to see coming from smaller shops and studios, but he has achieved sufficient scale to use manufacturing techniques that achieve a price-point that a small shop cannot match. It is hard to say whether Thomas Moser (the business) is a very large craft studio or a small manufacturing operation. It seems to achieve both and that makes it unique in the furniture world.

Jim Ipekjian Speaks on Green & Green Furniture

Mr. Moser was followed by Jim Ipekjian, a craftsman and authority on Green & Green furniture. Perhaps Mr. Moser was wise to show his respect for California based design and craft by inviting speakers to talk about the history of furniture here, but as a Californian, I was more interested in hearing about his business.

Sam Maloof Speaking

For me, and many others in the audience, the real highlight of the event was seeing Sam Maloof approach the stage. At 92, he still shines brighter than any woodworker in America today. Perhaps a hundred people stood and applauded before he had spoken his first word. He is the Mick Jagger of furniture, the Johnny Depp of the craft world.

I've met Sam and heard him speak a number of times. I've attended his workshops and been through his house/museum enough times I was invited to become a docent. On two of my visits, Sam was with the group and you could not ask for a more personable guide. He is the real deal. I am a big fan.

Sam Maloof Gets a Toolcritic T-shirt

My goal for this event was to give Sam a Toolcritic t-shirt and I'm happy to say I pulled it off. I waited patiently in line behind the folks waiting for his signature, but I already had both of his books and a piece of walnut from the floor of his shop signed and secure at home. It was my turn to give him something.

I hope he wears that shirt to work and that someday, after it has been through the washer enough times, it's torn up and used to rub his finish on a rocker destined for a museum somewhere in the world. A better fate for a Toolcritic t-shirt, I cannot imagine.