I’ve been making things for as long as I can remember.
I was lucky enough to discover woodworking at school, where I quickly became fascinated by the process of taking a piece of material and turning it into something useful, beautiful and entirely my own. That interest stayed with me, eventually leading me to study physics and then to a career teaching science and Design & Technology.
Although my career took me away from the workshop for a while, I never really stopped making. These days, woodworking is once again a big part of my life, and my workshop is where I spend much of my spare time.
Making something that matters
I make one-off pieces of furniture, boxes and other objects designed around the people who will use them.
What I enjoy most isn’t simply making the thing. It’s understanding why someone wants it.
Perhaps you have an idea that you’ve never quite been able to find in a shop. Perhaps you have a particular space that needs something made for it. Or perhaps you want to mark an occasion with something that will be kept and used for years rather than forgotten once the occasion has passed.
Whatever the starting point, I like working with people to turn those ideas into something tangible.
That might mean helping to develop an idea from scratch, working through sketches and proportions together, or simply taking an idea you’ve already had and figuring out how best to make it. I care about the details, but I also care about making sure the finished piece feels right for the person it is being made for.
How I work
I believe that well-made things don’t need to shout for attention.
I’m drawn to simple, thoughtful design and natural materials, where the quality comes from the proportions, the construction and the care taken in making it. I particularly enjoy working with solid timber and allowing the character of the wood to become part of the finished piece.
Where appropriate, I use traditional hand tools and techniques alongside modern woodworking technology. I’m interested in using whatever method produces the best result, whether that’s carefully cut joinery, a hand-planed surface or a precisely machined component.
The aim is always the same: to make something that feels considered, works beautifully and will still be worth keeping many years from now.
More than making
My other career is in education and coaching, and I think both have influenced the way I approach making.
Teaching taught me to listen, ask questions and explain things clearly. Coaching has reinforced the importance of understanding what someone actually wants, rather than simply jumping to the first solution.
Those things matter when making something bespoke too. Often the best piece comes from a conversation, working out what someone is really trying to achieve, exploring the possibilities and gradually arriving at something that feels uniquely theirs.
I also enjoy passing on what I’ve learned. For those who want to learn through making, I occasionally work with people on individual woodworking projects, sharing the process and skills along the way.
At home
I live in Wickford, Essex, with my two boys, a dog who is usually somewhere nearby, and a workshop that I’m fortunate enough to have close to home.
Woodworking is something I do because I genuinely enjoy it. I like the quiet concentration of making, the smell of freshly cut timber, the satisfaction of a well-made joint and, perhaps most of all, the moment when an idea that existed only in someone’s head becomes a real object they can hold and use.
If you have an idea you’d like to explore, I’d love to hear about it.
Email me at mghaxell@gmail.com to get in touch and start making you dream project come to life.
