PETER FRENCH FINE WOODWORK

It went very smoothly. We began with a discussion of design and costs, which Peter always does in a creative, flexible, and collaborative way, and the building began as soon as the ground was sufficiently thawed to set footings. At every stage the work was beautifully done, and Peter also made all the necessary contacts with people who did the heating, electrics and so on. We simply watched it happen, and threw in our two cents' worth now and again. The addition is gorgeous and functions just as we had imagined. Absolutely perfect for what we needed.

We were extremely happy with Peter's work and his crew. We got to know the crew and enjoyed having them around for those weeks. It makes a big difference to have crew that is considerate, trustworthy, polite and able to do quality work!

Peter has excellent design ideas to share. Most of the projects he has done for us have been designed by sitting around the kitchen table and talking about what we want. When we did use an architect, he was comfortable working with those plans. He capably handles all the building permits, etc. with the town. His long-time employees are conscientious and respectful. They always take the last few minutes of the day to tidy up the work site. They also are clear about when they need to cause unavoidable disruption or messiness. His subcontractors are excellent - electricians to painters. Peter's work has always exceeded our expectations.

In the winter of 2010, I began working with Peter on a major redesign plan for the kitchen and family room of our 1929 4BR center hall colonial home. For five or six weeks, we met for an hour or so to review drawings that he had prepared and discuss various elements of the design. It was clear to me that Peter understood our multiple goals, including our desire for the kitchen/ family room space to be in sync with the traditional quality of the rest of the house, and he was very helpful in suggesting simple and thoughtful design ideas that proved to be wonderful additions to the space. For example, Peter suggested that we use beadboard below a set of cabinets in a pantry area. He also suggested that we use divided light barn sash doors on a set of cabinets in this space - a cost effective approach (as opposed to custom doors) that created a beautiful space. His drawings were excellent, and allowed us to think through all the details - size and placement of appliances, cabinets, drawers, etc. Peter has a great design sense. Peter's crew began work in the summer of 2010. They first relocated us to a differnet part of the house and installed a temporary, but very functional kitchen. Peter's crew was super considerate and a pleasure to see every day - we had a 2 year old (who loved chatting with the crew members) and a newborn baby, and throughout the entire project never experience any dust or other problems. The work proceeded steadily and it was clear that Peter's crew and the subcontractors had all worked together and there were very few delays during the demolation, structural and framing parts of the job. As we moved into more of the finish work, there were a occasions where i had some concerns about one thing or another - in some cases stemming from decisions that were made on things i would have liked to have reviewed in advance (it should be noted, however, that I am extremely detail oriented; many clients might not have wanted to engage with Peter on these decisions). Some examples include the style of sidelights that were ordered and installed next to our entry way door, the spacing and location of cannister lights in the kitchen, and the grain pattern and quality of the white oak used on our main countertop. In every case, I raised the concern with Peter and the concerns were addressed. In fact, Peter was consistently gracious in his willingness to both acknowledge concerns or problems and take responsibility for fixing them to our satisfaction. I also know that Peter and crew made hundreds of excellent decisions throughout the project, many of which i did not even notice becuase they worked out so well. I believe that challenges in a project of this size and scope should be expected, especially if the homeowner wishes to be engaged in the design process, but the imporant thing is to feel comfortable working through any issues with professionalism and good communication, and that is what we experienced with Peter. Peter hires and retains excellent people - his carpenters are efficient, practical, and very good craftsment. The same can be said for the trade contractors that Peter engages. I highly recommend Peter French. We expect to hire him again and again as we renovate other parts of our house. Perhaps the best thing I can say about Peter French is that since the time his crew left our house , I have not had to call Peter to come back to repair redo or anything, though i have no doubt that he would have done so if there were any problems that needed to be fixed. We have enjoyed our kitchen, family room, and other spaces every day since!

There is a wide choice of builders in our area, but we would call no one else but Peter and his remarkable crew, every one of whom is highly trained, friendly and meticulous. Everyone who comes into our home is impressed with the quality and beauty of the work Peter has done for us. His facility in imagining solutions to difficult problems, his ability to work around the challenges of an old house, and his highly ethical way of working all contribute to an exceptional level of service and a uniformly excellent working relationship. Peter and his crew are, quite simply, wonderful people to have around, and we actually miss them when the work is done! Yes, he perhaps charges a bit more than some of his competitors, but we are convinced that every penny is carefully and thoughtfully estimated and that we are paying for very high quality work. Peter's collaborative working style means that we have been involved in every aspect of the design process and at all stages of building. His extraordinary ability to explain technical matters to non-professionals allows us to make well-considered decisions from a number of possible options. For each option he carefully lays out the pros and cons, and we feel real ownership of the building and design process. Peter French is wholly trustworthy. When he says he will be there, he is there. When he says a job will take X amount of time, it does; when he gives an estimate of costs, he shows us in advance the points at which overruns may occur and suggests ways of avoiding them. We have never had a moment's doubt about his honesty, nor the honesty of any member of his team.We are so grateful to Peter French for giving us a set of living spaces which we enjoy every day, and which we hope to enjoy for many years to come. From start to finish all our projects with Peter were delightful experiences. The difficulties were all handled with grace and imagination and good humor, and the neatness with which he and his crew work make it possible to live through even the most potentially-disruptive building project. We cannot say enough good things about Peter French Fine Woodworking, and we are pleased to have this opportunity to commend him to the readers of Angie's List. If we could give him an A++ we would gladly do it!

Good to work with, planned and executed the job in a collaborative fashion. Gave good advice and followed through on commitments. Crew hard working ans exacting. Good problem solvers. Builder telegraphed needed decisions and laid out options and costs. I have used him and his crew for several jobs and would do so again.

Horrible experience with this contractor. We've hired several general contractors over the years, locally and elsewhere, and Mr French's outfit was the worst by far. Why didn't I check references before I hired this guy?!?! Mr French and his men did a ridiculously bad job of installing the floor. For one thing, they didn't leave an "expansion gap" around the floor's edges and plumbing inlets. How could any contractor not know about expansion gaps? There were too many other problems to list them here. The new floor looks awful. Subsequent contractors have told us it's fundamentally unsound, and they can't guarantee any part of their work which depends on those floors. Once we have the time and money to do so, all of Mr French's work will need to be ripped up and redone. Billing was another problem. Mr French put us on a cost-plus contract. Well, it turns out that's considered unethical, by many local contractors, and is actually illegal in many states like Massachusetts. The bills we received were inaccurate and vague, and Mr French drove them higher with unnecessary work. Just one example, while my husband was out of town, AFTER the floor was installed, a large group of men showed up. They removed all the doors in our house (why?!), spent hours unscrewing the hinges from the doorframes, instead of just popping out the hinge pins the normal way which takes about a minute. Then they returned to re-hang the doors (which they also did wrong - one even fell off its hinges in the middle of the nights). That's when we finally fired him. Mr French was a nightmare to deal with. He was pleasant when we interviewed him, but quickly became aggressive and belligerent, especially when my husband went out of town. He bullied me into paying him early, telling me he was running out of money to pay his own personal bills (!). In the end, I was so frightened of him, my husband had to return to town and tell him to stop work. It's partly my own fault for not checking Mr French's job references. If I'd done that before (rather than after the job), I would never have hired him.