Charleston, West Virginia
Custom-crafted doors and furniture. Made in the heart of the Appalachians.
Our story
Born and raised in New Zealand, Aaron Saxton moved to the USA in 2010 to live with his future wife, Maria, a West Virginia native. She introduced him to Mid-Century Modern furniture and design which quickly became an all consuming passion. He became an avid collector and eventually they opened a store selling restored mid century modern furniture and art.
Aaron learned how to restore and refinish the furniture from restoration of pieces from some of the greatest designers of the 20th learning what separated them from others with their quality of construction. He met a group of renowned local cabinet makers and master carpenters who shared their time, knowledge and amazing workshop space with him and since 2013, he has been refining techniques for his signature work, the radial pattern. Radial by and in itself is not a technique that requires years of training, however much like how any wood could be used for intricate designs or patterns, he noted something was amiss with the offerings being made by others.
It came down to how many pieces were being used, the geometry deployed and how the wood was cut in the process that was leading to mediocre results. The results of his signature technique imparts a unique appearance where geometry and alignment of the pieces results in a flowing pattern with similar but not identical segments. The material and time intensive process results in the elimination of "sectors" that draw the eye to where the wood meet, rather than the entire amalgamation. The radial technique is attractive providing a sum that is greater than it's parts. Aaron's argument is radial pattern symmetry only creates a precise technical pattern and removes the beautiful organic flow inherent to wood grain. He captures natural organic symmetry inherent to the wood by making cuts that create a flow between the segments instead of duplicating precise geometric pattern.
After a decade of building custom crafted wood doors and fifteen years of restoring fine furniture from some of the world's best designers he decided to start designing and building custom furniture and hopes to bring a wide collection to market in 2026.
Living in Appalachia and learning from local master craftsman Aaron became captivated with the heartwoods of the USA and in particular Black Walnut. Aaron's special radial pattern doors and furniture created via his technique could never be duplicated in mass production.
Honest Architecture
Honest architecture embraces the concept of "honesty in materials". It means authenticity, refraining from artifice and pretense. Wood that is actual wood, brick that is indeed real brick. Materials are what they intrinsically appear to be, without deception or alteration, truthfully displayed.
Authentic. Aaron believes the same principles of honesty in materials should be applied to furniture design.
We are currently restoring our home which is a Usonian house by architect Howard Johe. Aaron is also an avid orchid grower and is one of the few people to get a ghost orchid (Dendrophylax lindenii) to bloom outside of its native habitat.
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The Emergence Collection of hand-crafted furniture
Starburst kits to adorn your door
20th Century Designer furniture
What we build
Modernist Entrance Doors - all Custom to your specifications
We design and build custom higher end doors for new builds and for retrofitting to an existing home. Each door is entirely hand-crafted by Aaron Saxton start to finish at his workshop in Charleston, WV.
The Emergence Collection
We hand-craft pieces based on our unique technique utilized in production of radial patterns seen nowhere else.
Emergence Collection Information
Starburst kits for Interior and Exterior Doors
Starburst kits for Interior and Exterior Doors
A kit produced from either solid brass or stainless steel (or custom color) for new flush doors or vintage doors. Learn More
Visit our 1stdibs store
Restored and Original Items
Our shop on 1stdibs includes all pieces for sale, new and vintage, located at our workshop in South Charleston WV. Contact us directly with any questions.
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