SPECIALTY WOODWORK . 206.524.8410 . BUILT IN BALLARD
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Jim Miller grew up in Oregon. Early on he began commercial fishing (a dory with oars only - no motor!) along with developing his hand at woodwork.
Russ Smith grew up with building and craft. His grandfather had sawmills on Camano Island; his father was a builder extraordinaire.
In the mid 60’s with Ted Brown Music in Tacoma, he learned to restore and refinish pianos, and later in Ballard spent several years at Grisim Finishing acquiring the skills of antique restoration and refinishing.
After studying architecture and design at Cornish in Seattle, Russ created an architectural millwork company that specialized in stylish residential interiors and commercial tenant improvement. In 1982 he and Jim Miller teamed up combining their diverse skills in their 6000 sf shop on Westlake Avenue.
In the 90’s, making a move to general contracting he worked with several of the top architects in southern California on the Newport Coast building hillside homes in, and around Laguna Beach.
In ‘99 it was back to Seattle, joining forces, once again with Jim Miller, this time focusing more on the kind of projects that got him started in the business to begin with – vintage woodwork, whether it be restoration of the old or building new to seamlessly integrate with the old.
In the mid 70’s, on a trip to Orcas Island fate took over. He found himself in front of a nearly sinking 65’ wood boat built in 1915 and in desperate need of an admirer. Jim, with his “can do” attitude was just that admirer and there began the second phase of his career as a woodworker. Anyone who knows wooden boats knows that these projects are ongoing and not for the faint of heart.
Self taught, he put it all back together and for the next 25 years, fished her in the summers as far north as the Bering Sea. The rest of the year he put those skills to work in his wood shop in Seattle producing countless pieces of custom furniture, as well as creating luxurious yacht interiors. He was a member of NW Fine Woodworking Cooperative for over 15 years.
In over 35 years of project design, fabrication and management, he has handled countless projects running crews of 5, to over 20 craftsmen. His wide range of experience, excellent craftsmanship skills, not only in wood, but all things that work, are an asset to every project. His friendly, no nonsense management style will get your project completed to your satisfaction, leaving no detail behind.
Specialty Woodwork - Jim Miller and Russ Smith have been building custom projects together in Seattle since 1982. Among the more notable ones are the top two floors of Skyline Towers in Bellevue, custom furniture for the private banking floor at the then new Rainier Tower building downtown, custom interior work for the Boeing hydrofoil along with numerous unique pieces for many of the top law firms in Seattle.
It seems we’ve come full circle. After teaming up in ‘82, building larger and more complex projects encompassing many different styles, we seem to have wiggled into a very happy niche, not unlike where we started . We still build interesting kitchens and other cabinets, but our love of the old, and richly detailed woodwork drives us. The curious and unique woodworking projects seem to find our door too.
CABINETRY . FABRICATION . RESTORATION
OODWORK
Premium Craftsmanship
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SPECIALTY
206.524.8410
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