Summary
Heritage Restoration recently re-purposed and refinished the furniture for St. Thomas Church in northern Illinois. The altars, credence table, pulpit, and baptismal font were rebuilt using a mixture of marble inserts and the original pieces' woodwork.
In Depth
It was decided the furniture pieces to be created for the church would be a composition of finished wood and marble paneling. The white and orange contrast between the two materials creates an engaging look that avoids both monotony and over-extravagance. To achieve this effect in a cost-saving manor, the client and Heritage agreed to use the existing altars and pulpit as a base, and build the new elements into them. For the pulpit, the original base column was composed of open slits. These were replaced by marble slabs banded by wooden columns. For the front face, four emblems were carved on Heritage’s CNC machine. Each symbol represents the canonical Gospel writers Matthew Mark Luke and John. This same marble-wood hybrid style was also used to freshen up the baptismal font, sacrificial altar, and high altar.
A new wooden case was created to house the tabernacle. This piece was given the same colorization and moldings as its high altar in order to seamlessly blend in. The tabernacle used in this project was originally found in a discarded state. To make it serviceable, the metal was replated and tooled. Next two credence tables were created for use during the church’s liturgies. As a final touch, an antique INRI sign was given a detailed paint coating and added to the top of the church’s main crucifix.
By allowing Heritage to reuse old furniture items, rather than starting from scratch, the church was able to receive fresh appeal at a lower cost. These projects are truly enjoyable for the creativity such alterations entail.
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