Hello. My name is David Saltmarsh and I am a Windsor chair maker living in West Dorset. I live and work on my smallholding, Fivepenny Farm near the Devon/Dorset border, where my wife, four daughters and I keep pigs, cows, sheep and chickens and grow vegetables. We are an organic farm and sell our produce on Bridport market and to local restaurants. To make ends meet my wife also makes preserves, cheese and herbal products. I make Windsor chairs.

I started off making straight copies of traditional windsor chairs. Now after a few years at it my chairs have evolved somewhat but I still aspire to the old styles and techniques. Power tool use is kept to a minimum. Having never connected with machines in a big way i prefer to use mainly handtools. I make chairs because I love woodworking, the simple connection between a clean piece of wood and a handful of traditional tools.

I work primarily in oak, selecting trees for their straight grain. After sawing to length logs are cleft into sections before being worked down with axe and drawknife. Oak is a joy to work with, cutting smoothly and cleanly when green and then drying to an enduring finish.

I was awarded Best In Show at the Association of Pole Lathe Turners annual craft competition in the years 2007 and 2008. Look in the gallery to see photos of these chairs.

I use a pole lathe to turn legs and spindles for the chair. Pole lathes have been in use since at least 500BC and had no real competitor until the 14th century when wheel driven lathes came into use. Pole-lathes were still in use until the 1940s. Workers know as 'bodgers' would erect their lathes amongst stands of beech trees, usually bought at auction. Here they would fell the trees, cleave the timbers and make chairlegs and spindles by the cartload. These turned parts were sent away to the framing shop where the chairs were assembled.

Before the age of cheap plastics and metal these wooden chairs were common in the workplace and home, with large orders being made for schools and hospitals. Windsor chairs had to stand up to the wear and tear of everyday life and therefore had to be robust yet lightweight and attractive. Many of the chairs from this period still exist standing testimony to the skill of the carpenters of yesteryear. Many chairs died of neglect but most were destroyed in the quest for all things modern.

There is still a huge market for cheap furniture which often lasts less than a decade. There is however a growing number of people who choose to invest in a craftsman made object.

My chairs are loosely based on traditional Windsor designs. Each chair is unique, no two chairs are exactly alike. The finished result is a chairs that takes many hours to build and will last for generations if cared for.

Although I will make chairs to order, I am not a factory and the chair design often evolves during the creative process. It is often best if possible for clients to visit my workshop or at the least speak on the phone before commissions are made.