Crafty Hands continues to evolve as a hybrid construction and media technology company. The new woodworking shop in Shrewsbury, PA is fully equipped with modern wood manufacturing machines and our cabinet production quality equals or surpasses all previous efforts. The new studio in Winterstown offers 48 digital tracks of recording capability, a new Yamaha baby grand piano, and acoustically correct mixing and live room spaces. Recent projects include a new residence in Pennsylvania, Sonic Adventures Studio in New Jersey, The Dragon Crossing Studio in Annapolis, MD, and a new residence in Culpepper, VA.  We are also expanding into home automation, distributed video, LAN, audio, and security systems striving for a complete technology synergy for our clients.

Construction Consulting and Design.  Studio acoustics and cabinetry focusing on project studio environments. Crafty Hands offers estimating, project management, and design services to the construction industry and to home owners, focusing on elaborate cabinetry and trim for kitchens, bathrooms, and built in applications, trade show installation, setup and management for the music and audio engineering communities. Related services include web design, Internet gateway solutions, sound design for video, and soundtrack composition.

Supervised the project management of high end remodeling projects in Northern Virginia area; estimated and sold projects. Duties included interfacing with customers and crews, materials acquisition, job tracking, preliminary design and estimating, sales, computer template design for tracking, web site development and implementation, kitchen and ceramic tile installations as side projects. 

Designed, built and operated a 7,500 sq. ft. cabinet shop and showroom. This shop specialized in high end custom kitchens and built in furniture. I developed a unique system for cabinet construction and designed all projects using Cabinet Vision CAD. Costs were controlled using several innovative materials acquisition methods, and several custom manufacturing systems were designed and built in house, including dry-kilns, spray booths, and dust collection.

I was the licensed Class B contractor (Equivalent to Virginia Class A) supervising operations for the renovation of several properties. Duties included the design, drafting, permits, scheduling, materials take off and acquisition, hiring subcontractors, and general management of the projects. Properties were luxury tourist accommodations with a focus on marble and intricate woodworking.

ACB was a small sub-contracting company concentrating on framing, roofing, siding and close in for general contractors in Hawaii. ABC Custom Cedar Homes, from California, was the principal employer. I also designed and built two spec homes in this period.

I provided construction management for owner builders and contractors. Services included setting up complete offices for general contracting and all the duties of managing those offices and operations, estimating, purchasing, subcontracting, permits, inspections, accounting, and on site supervision. CCS provided the same services for owner builders and also included drafting, design, and blueprinting.

Virginia Class “A” general contractor. A three division company; new residential construction, home improvements, and commercial/light industrial construction. Built approximately 400 homes in Northern Virginia up to one million-dollar price range each. Ran up to thirteen projects concurrently, performed all the duties of a general contractor, and specifically focused on operations management.

Project foreman for commercial renovations at Pepsico world headquarters, Bank of New York, IBM, and New York Telephone. Worked as a carpenter on HUD renovation in Poughkeepsie, NY for one year.

Renovated brownstones in Manhattan. I supervised all the sub-contractors and was the lead carpenter converting spaces into European styled restaurants.  Romano Valle, a master Yugoslavian cabinet-maker, trained me in shop carpentry. I became full partner in a new company with Romano, European American Carpenters and General Contractors.

Supervisor of field operations and lead carpenter for the Israeli architect Ari Bahat. Projects included the Ed Weiss advertising agency on Fifth Avenue, and the community center at Fire Island Pines, Long Island, NY.

Framing and trim carpentry subcontracting company. We framed houses for Pulte, Corbitt, and Ryan Homes in the Northern Virginia area.

Worked as a rigger and hook-up for red iron structural steel, and then changed trades to carpentry working summers while attending James Madison University.

I have project management experience on over five hundred residential structures, one hundred commercial projects, and several industrial buildings and renovations. I have successfully tested for the Virginia Class “A” Contractors license and the equivalent Hawaii class “B” license.  I am a master carpenter and cabinet-maker, familiar with all the tools and techniques specific to those trades. I am a certified Gibraltor solid surface fabricator and installer, and have experience in logging, sawmill operations, dry kilns, electrical, plumbing, ceramic tile and marble installation, sheet rock and metal stud, structural steel and roofing. I have dealt with all types of subcontractors, clients, inspectors, architects, and have excellent communication skills. I have a “quality first” philosophy.

My management skills include personnel, payroll, estimating, materials take-off and purchasing, scheduling, critical path forecasting, sales and marketing, advertising, construction accounting, manufacturing, design, and company policy. I am trained in Cabinet Vision CAD software, HomeTech estimating software and have an advanced knowledge of software for spreadsheets, word processing, project management, Flash MX, Frontpage, and programming in the Windows environment, Visual Basic and Rational Basic as well as DOS and CPM 86/80.

I am an accomplished musician, and have recorded several albums over the years. I currently have a home project studio and continue to compose. I am a certified rescue diver and love sailing, fishing, poetry, furniture and architectural design.