For more than thirty-one years, a completely self-taught and highly talented man, dedicated to fine working in the style of America's 18th century craftsmen, has been creating what are considered to be the finest Windsor chairs available today.

          After a short career in the aerospace industry, Richard Grell followed his woodworking dream and became a Windsor chairmaker.

          From a very early age, Grell displayed a natural talent for working with his hands. His grandfather encouraged his remarkable skills. Today that nurturing is reflected in the fact, as a one-man shop, Grell is involved in every step of each chair's creation. He does not buy parts. His attention to detail is so great that he personally searches his property and other local areas for the perfect straight-grained trees that make his chairs as durable as they are beautiful.

          Working with tools that he made or antique tools that his grandfather presented to him, Grell offers his chairs in an unrivaled variety of styles and finishes. Committed to authenticity, Grell carves each seat from a single piece of wood, meticulously pegs and wedges all joints, hand shapes each spindle, and uses steam to bend bows and combs. The hallmark of each Grell chair is his hand-carved "R. Grell" signature.

          Grell is continually studying the designs and proportions of antique Windsors. This confirms his reverence for the Windsor design and keeps him constantly focused on historical integrity. The knowledge that many of his chairs share space with 18th century museum pieces and are at home in some of the most outstanding private collections in the United States and around the world is his reward for such dedication!

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Richard has his logs sawed, for your chair, on a portable sawmill by his workshop.

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Richard Grell's Windsor chairs have been featured in many books and periodicals, including

 Colonial Homes

Architectural Digest

Country Accents

Country Home

Country Kitchens

Early American Life *

Country Living

Time Life Books

Timber Homes
   

* Judged One of America's Best & Listed in the Directory of Traditional American Crafts, Early American Life® magazine
   

Inducted into The 2003 Country Living Guild

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These web pages tell the story of my business, the way I earn a living. And while I feel the message is important and worth sharing, I also realize there is something missing - the individuals who own Grell chairs. Those people from around the country and the world who have put their faith in me since 1973. To those people I am most grateful. That's something I think they already know. And they know something else, too. Something I feel strongly about and want everyone who buys my chairs to understand. I guarantee my work. Making sure you are completely satisfied with the Windsor chairs you purchase is of the utmost importance to me. If you ever have a problem with a Grell chair, I want to be the first person you call. I stand behind my work 100 percent.

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© 2003 Richard Grell Windsor Chairs
All text and photographs on this site are the property of Richard Grell Windsor Chairs
and may not be reproduced without written permission.