Wood & Wires

A Trade Built on Many Trades

My working life has never followed a straight line — and that is precisely what makes it useful. I began at eighteen as a guitar tech in the live music industry, touring nationally and internationally, learning how to work under pressure, solve problems fast, and hold my nerve when everything is on the line. Alongside touring, I studied tour production and management at college, and spent my time off the road labouring on building sites.

As touring wound down, I spent time working under a plumber, then an electrical firm, then a bricklayer — picking up groundwork, setting out and bricklaying along the way. My love of guitars never left me, and it was the ambition to build them properly that drove me to put myself through college as a carpenter and joiner. I qualified with a City & Guilds Level 3 and worked in the trade for a number of years — until a back injury took me off-site.

That chapter led me back to the electrical firm — this time in the office. I taught myself CAD and went on to pioneer a technique using 3D laser scanning to build accurate models of commercial buildings for energy performance contracts, helping clients get the most from their lighting upgrades. When COVID arrived, I returned to carpentry and joinery, and have since built a steady client base of repeat customers and personal recommendations across West Sussex, Surrey and Hampshire.

Every job begins with a visit. I'll measure the space using a 3D scanning app, build the design in SketchUp so you can see exactly what you're getting, and only once you're happy do we move to a quote. I'm comfortable working with clients who know exactly what they want and those who are still figuring it out — translating a spoken idea into a finished piece is one of the things I enjoy most about this work.

I work alone, but I keep a trusted contact list of other trades for anything a job might need beyond my own remit. What I won't take on are large civil or groundworks projects — my focus is on the detail and craftsmanship that comes with smaller, considered work.