Michael and Kelly are a husband and wife building and design team. As a young couple, they began a home renovation and construction business in eastern Pennsylvania.
Their shared dream was to buy a small country farm where they could raise their children and have a place for gardening and for their beloved dogs, cats and horses. This became a reality in 2005 when they purchased an 1813 farmhouse in Nottingham, PA.
Michael says that if the house hadnʼt been made of solid Pennsylvania fieldstone, it would have made more sense to tear it down and start over. The house had no heat at the time and the entire electrical and plumbing systems had to be completely replaced.
Old barn was falling down when we bought the property
They were able to put their experience as renovators to good use as their farmhouse has become their biggest construction project to date. Both Kelly and Michael note that, in many ways, it is still a work in progress as they are currently building a large addition which will serve as a new FFTB showroom.
Here is a sneak peak of the addition
Originally, the old farmhouse needed a kitchen table. Kelly knew just what she wanted and after the old barn on the property had to be taken down, she spoke to the Amish carpenters about the wood and discovered it was a valuable and sought-after resource. As Kelly and her dad were pulling out old floorboards from the barn, Kelly dreamed of having Michael build the kitchen table from those rustic old barn boards.
So Michael built a beautiful barn wood table but it never made it into her kitchen!
Someone saw that table and Kelly was convinced into selling it and thatʼs how it began. Another person wanted a table. Then another. The much-in-demand farmhouse tables led to custom cabinetry and other handcrafted pieces of furniture made from reclaimed wood.
A new family business called “Furniture from the Barn” was born. This combined Michaelʼs extensive experience as a builder and craftsman of all types of woodwork and fine millwork with Kellyʼs creativity and passion for designing. Kelly visualizes a project and Michael draws up the plans to build it.
Michael and Kelly are the original team but their “FFTB family” now includes many other team members who have helped them place “Furniture from the Barn” in homes all across the country. While Kelly still works with customers, close associate Reenie often helps customers acquire their own custom, hand-crafted piece of furniture.
In this age of mass production, it is good to know that there are still people who appreciate the value of creating things carefully, one at a time. Additionally, Michael, Kelly and crew are proud to be a part of the movement towards sustainable and environmentally friendly business practices.
