Located in Oxford, Massachusetts, Wilson Language Training provides expert education in literacy and language for students with dyslexia of all ages and have championed the science of reading for over 35 years. Continental was tapped to move this project forward by helping to design and craft the bookcase cabinetry in the conference room that displays WLT’s retail books. The challenge of this project was needing to figure out how to maximize the space available to get 32 feet of shelving on a 20-foot wall. The solution included wrapping the walls bump-out features with shelving units as well to be able to cover the entire area of the wall with the exquisite maple finish used throughout. To top off the project the Continental team created a CNC carved owl from WLT’s logo in the top center of the casing.
New York Public Library
As part of a $200 million renovation, Continental Woodcraft was called upon to produce custom architectural millwork for three spaces within the Historic New York Public library: the retail store, café and the library itself.
For the retail store, Continental had a hand in helping create the versatile shelving and cabinetry units, the center glass display case as well as repurposing three existing hand carved quartered oak tables. The versatile cabinet units feature a removable red backing pin board for staff to easily switch to slats for hanging products. The upper square compartments are also fitted with acoustic paneling to help dampen the sound in the space. The antique oak tables, were resized and refinished, cut down from 12 feet to 6 feet to accommodate the retail area needs.
In maintaining some of the original design and architecture with the updated look, at the architects’ request, the fronts of the antique card catalog cabinets were replicated to be incorporated into a new retail display fixture. In addition, to allow for new, modern LED lights, solid walnut rings were handcrafted for retrofitting into the existing antique, hand-carved French walnut ceiling. The ceiling itself was damaged beyond repair so Continental was also tasked with replacing some of the paneling to match the wood architecture.
Showcase Superlux, Chestnut Hill
Just outside of Boston, Chestnut Hill’s Showcase Superlux Cinema offers movie goers a luxurious experience mixing high-end entertainment, technology, design, and fine dining all under one roof. Continental Woodcraft was brought on to build out the woodworking details of the lobby, back bar and wall panels, concierge desk, and stairwell areas of the space. Working within a European design plan, materials were imported from overseas. Area’s such as the back bar, back wall panels, column covers, and lobby slats were consistently crafted from solid oak. And details such as the wainscoting, bars, booths, suspended soffit, cabinets in ceiling were made from walnut. However, the stairwell wall boasts over 50 different types of materials going up two to three stories high.
BlueHive Exhibits
While corporate interior buildout projects are more of a specialty than a norm for typical millwork companies, Continental was happy to oblige the request of BlueHive Exhibits in building out the office of the company’s CEO, Paul Hanlon. (And not just because Paul is the President of Continental Woodcraft, of which BlueHive acquired in 2009.)
In this one of-a-kind office space, old-world style meets new-world technology; raw materials were shaped and formed with care by the diligent and hard-working hands of Continental cabinet-builders, who called upon their collective experience of over a century when creating the space. Notable contributions of the CNC machines and their operators can be seen in the Hanlon family crest which sits on the wall behind the desk, as well as in the intricate designs carved into the door and its molding, the cabinetry and even the beam coffers.
Continental even fabricated the president’s desk, a focal point in the room for its custom cut wood panels fit together to make a most unique pattern across the top.
“Our culture fosters the belief that if we can’t do it for ourselves, how can we do it for our clients? The ability to create jaw-dropping spaces is reaffirmed at first glance when looking into this new office.” – Paul Hanlon, CEO
Gotham West Market
Perfectly situated in Hell’s Kitchen within New York City’s Midtown West and located on the ground floor of the 31-story Gotham West luxury apartments, Gotham West Market is a full-service, upscale food court housing renown eateries and offering communal dining space to the public as well as residents of Gotham West. With Continental’s background and experience in high-end residential and amenities, the team was asked to build out the entire interior, from the ceiling to the floor, including some surprising elements.
Though the Market was designed as a rustic-meets-industrial feel with inspiration from European market halls and even the street food stalls of Singapore, much of the interior was fabricated from wood. In fact, the trusses across the ceiling (as inspired by bridge design), the support beam connecting wall to column, the hanging racks and even the bands around the columns were all made from wood. The Continental team paid particular attention to details in texture, including adding rivets, and painted the fixtures to look like faux steel built into the interior. Continental’s expert work can be seen throughout the eatery; the paneled and carved bars and the floating shelves behind, the hospitality station, the dining area wainscoting and even the sculpturesque sliding wood door (inspired by traditional barn doors) that divides the dining space.
Architect: AvroKO
Worcester Country Club
The rebuilding of Worcester Country Club’s prestigious clubhouse bar area required careful consideration and attention to detail as we put forth design as well as millwork services. The building where the bar is located was constructed in 1914 and has been referred to by Worcester Magazine as “a structure which is not too showy, yet most picturesque; not too rambling, yet perfectly adequate for all the needs of such a club for a long period to come.” As such, the woodwork crafted by our team had to be consistent with the rest of the existing structure and its historical value, while still showcasing masterwork craftsmanship.
We incorporated moments of historical significance at the Worcester Country Club in the details of the millwork we designed. This included the US Men’s Open—a renowned and long-running golf tournament—which hosted its first qualifying round at the Worcester Country Club in 1925, and the inaugural Ryder Cup which was hosted at the Worcester Country Club in 1927. In the woodwork mounted to the ceiling, names of significance in the history of the country club were engraved and embossed in gold.