Home Dept f17
By Mary Beth Schwartz
When I was little, I used to toddle along with my father on part-time jobsites. I would sit by his side and be amazed as he drove nails with two hits, sometimes one. The sweat would be pouring down his face as he worked. I mostly remember the wonderful aroma of the freshly delivered lumber. I would watch the sawdust pile up on the ground as new projects took shape. Recently I had the opportunity to interview Jared Schulberger of J. Schulberger Studios, a craftsman who also appreciates the art of wood.
Jared always has been surrounded by special heirlooms. Growing up his family collected antiques. He would admire the Early American furniture that adorned his home. “I would look at a piece and realize that the wood was 150 years old. It was still functional and beautiful,” he says. When it was time to go to college, Jared decided to study Fine Art at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania. His love of the great outdoors and hiking beckoned him, however, and he switched to a degree in Forestry at Paul Smith’s College, The College of the Adirondacks. After graduation, he worked with the U.S. Forest Service and the Conservation Corps. “Once I got out of college, I soon discovered that there was a perfect marriage between carpentry and woodworking.” Jared learned the trades by being an apprentice and working at local shops. He loved using the native wood species of Pennsylvania like maple, cherry, and walnut. One trade that Jared studied was bank barn conservation. He resurrected barns in the counties of Bucks, Berks, Northampton, and Lehigh, neighboring New Jersey, even in California. “The way that a barn is built is like a piece of furniture, only on a bigger scale. Every piece is mortised and tenoned together. This was very influential to my craft. Through the barns there was the ability to reclaim and recycle antique materials, which is something that I do now.”
He made the decision to start his own business seven years ago and focus on smaller custom objects—home offices, built-ins, kitchen cabinetry, bathroom vanities, and home furniture—entertainment centers, credenzas, side tables, coffee tables, and the like. Kitchen and dining room tables are extremely popular. “Whether I am putting my own spin on a design or coming up with something from scratch, it comes naturally. I need to work with my hands and design. I have a real love of wood.”
From design to finish to delivery, Jared is a hardworking, one-man operation. If you are a new client and have an idea but are not exactly sure, Jared can work one on one with you to create a design and explore different options. At the beginning stages the project is called a bid. He will do a hand sketch that is transformed into CAD. Once the design is approved, it is built. Jared obtains his woods from sawyers (the guys cutting down the trees) at local sawmills. “Many times if I know in advance what the client would like, the sawyer can cut it for me specifically and have it dried and ready. It is locally sourced and harvested.” Jared takes the wood to his countryside woodworking facility featuring such equipment as a table saw, shaper, jointer/planer, and band saw. He will work with the natural characteristics of the wood to bring them out in the finished design. Jared enjoys using varying custom top coat finishes on such styles as Modern, Mid-Century, and Traditional.
Jared likes to term his projects commissions. He was commissioned to design and build a tiger maple dining room set for a client in Northampton County. One part of the set was a table that was nine feet in length. The table was actually three tables that locked together. Two of the tables could be broken off to create side wall tables. The other part of the set was a matching corner cupboard. Another client, the Vincera Institute in Philadelphia, wanted a conference table 14 feet in length. According to Jared, the top of the table was constructed with reclaimed barn beams. The bottom of the table was made from a welded metal arched stretcher to give the table a nautical feel.
In the future, Jared would like to bring his custom furniture to trade and major craft shows. He has some smaller pieces, such as butcher blocks, cutting boards, and office lamp tables, that he would like to bring to market. His main goal is to continue building interesting and well-built heirloom furniture. You can see his online portfolio at jschulberger.com. “Everything that I do is different. There are rarely two pieces the same—there are no two people the same. When I finish a piece, I have so much satisfaction. It will last forever. It has function. It is something to admire. Best of all, it adds warmth to the home.” You can call Jared Schulberger of J. Schulberger Studios at 610-428-0596. His email address is jaredschulberger@gmail.com.