Woodworking is a fairly wide open subject that could cover anything from house carpentry to cabinetmaking to fancy carving. So, what does it take for someone to say that they engage in unique woodworking in PA? Some may say that this would be very difficult to achieve the real meaning of unique to be one of its kind and not like anything else (from the Latin ‘unus’ meaning one). However, a true artist who specializes in wood carving would beg to differ because each sculpture produced is different from the one before and, therefore, unique. Similarly, a furniture maker producing high end, individually designed handcrafted furniture could say that each piece is unique (even if the differences are quite small). These examples are talking about individual handmade items but, once the manufacturer is mechanized, subsequent items of the production line could well be thought of as duplicates and in no way unique.
special or Unusual
In today’s usage, the word “unique” can be used in a less precise sense to describe anything that is special or unusual. In the two examples above, if the carving or the piece of furniture were to be mechanically replicated but only on a relatively small scale – then each (identical) piece could still be described as unique without giving any misrepresentation.
On this premise, those engaged in unique woodworking in PA area would not be carpenters constructing a frame house or laying a wooden floor. Neither would they be working in a factory turning out thousands of identical kitchen cabinets for mass market sale through the likes of hypermarkets.
First and foremost, they would be skilled craftsmen with a highly developed artistic flair. They would be able to “see” the finished item in their heads and (probably) put it down on paper as a drawing. From this, they would then proceed to shape pieces of raw wood into a unique finished “work of art”. They would also be equally at home in translating somebody else’s vague concept into a finished item.
Limited Editions
Should they decide to produce (say) 50 pieces from one creation; the people engaged in Unique Woodworking In PA will also possess good knowledge of the required manufacturing techniques. Be it saws, laser cutters, drills, routers, etc. they will know which to use for which affect and when to use it. These days, they will also possess the computer skills to program their machinery using CNC methods so as to ensure reliable duplication of the original.
