Journal

The Thos. Moser Continuous Arm Chair

Design

The Thos. Moser Continuous Arm Chair

When Tom Moser embraced furniture making, he revived the Windsor chair with a modern design that became iconic for Thos. Moser.

LEARN MORE

Design

The Harpswell Chair

Tom and Mary Moser didn’t fall in love with Maine the typical way. Before the arrival of their second son, they packed themselves, a tent, and a few provisions into their car for a long weekend. Being unfamiliar with the area and exhausted from a day of driving, they pulled over for the night and pitched their tent. Much to their chagrin, they awoke to a man’s voice saying they were blocking his driveway. Instead of being curt, the gracious man helped them move their tent aside and invited them to stay. They stayed for four days, and nearly thirty years later, they planted their roots on a spit of land not far from where they landed on that first trip to Maine. Above: Table Minimus - Oval & Harpswell Arm Chair with Back. Developing A Classic Around 1990, Tom strolled down the driveway to his Harpswell workshop and began working on a new chair design. He created a round chair with a quarter-round back, but he wasn’t happy with the initial result. After a bit more tinkering, the rounded seat became a U-shaped seat. “Eventually, I added a curve and tapered back leg,” Tom recalls. “And one day, I discovered that the round cafeteria chair I began making in my shop a few years before had morphed into this very pleasing piece.” The new design’s most magnificent appeal was an exuberant back carved from a solid piece of wood that intentionally displays the wood's natural beauty, where no two are alike, revealing the mark of an heirloom. Eventually, the chair would incorporate an upholstered slip seat that rests directly in the chair’s frame and an often-requested upholstered back. Above: Tom Moser in his workshop. From Humble Beginnings to Dignified Design Aptly named after the location of his home studio, the Harpswell Chair was introduced in 1992 and became an instant classic. Its modest cafe chair design and refined details bring quiet distinction to any space. The versatility of the durable Harpswell Chair has made it a favored choice for countless family dining rooms, community colleges, and Ivy League libraries. In 2008, the Harpswell Arm Chair would be selected as Papal seating and chosen as the signature piece to grace the George W. Bush Presidential Center in 2013, where, during the dedication, five living presidents would be comfortably seated. Above: The Harpswell Chair at the opening of the Presidential Library and the chair for the Papal visit. Incorporated in 1758, the town of Harpswell boasts the longest coastline of any town in Maine. This rugged coastline, purchased with a pound of tobacco and a gallon of rum, has cultivated generations of self-sufficient families who worked with their hands; fishers, farmers, shipwrights, and now, a furniture maker. From the humble beginnings of a simple cafe chair to a dignified design sought after by Popes and Presidents, the Harpswell Chair is a natural fit for every home and any occasion. The expressed growth rings found in the crest celebrate the weathered-tested years of a strong tree and embody the spirit of a community nestled along this section of granite coastline known as Harpswell. Tom and Mary Moser at their home in Harpswell.

LEARN MORE

Design

More Than Ink on Wood

Mason Faucher’s eight-year journey at Thos. Moser, starting in 2015, showcases his evolution from a woodworking graduate to a skilled, versatile craftsman.

LEARN MORE

Design

A Golden Guide to Interior Design

The Golden Ratio, often seen as the 60/30/10 rule, guides interior design to create balanced, cohesive, and inviting spaces.

LEARN MORE

Design

East Meets West

Our Eastward collection honors George Nakashima, whose clean designs revealed wood's raw beauty and deeply shaped our design ethos.

LEARN MORE

Design

The Mower That Moved Us

In a field along Cobb’s Hill Road, across from the old vestry that served as Thos. Moser’s first showroom rests a rusted 1800s sickle bar mower. Frozen in place, it harkens back to a sweltering day in late August when a farmer sat upon its cast-iron seat, guiding a team of plow horses to harvest his final crop of hay. Throughout New Gloucester, country roads are dotted with these snapshots into the past. A glass gallon jar that once held haymaker's punch sits propped against the wheel of the tractor. Along these roads, we catch a glimpse of history when men and women worked the land, developing communities of self-sufficient farmers and craftspeople who settled into this landscape. Incorporated in 1774, New Gloucester, Maine, was a town comprised mostly of early settlers from Gloucester, Mass. Hence the name “New” Gloucester. Drawn to the rich soil, New Gloucester developed into a prosperous farming community. Resplendent with orchards, gardens, and wide-spreading elms, the early settlers utilized the land and its natural resources to support a growing population—including six sawmills, two tanneries, and gristmills. The Rise of "Working Comfortably." In the 1850s, as New Gloucester began to grow from its initial sixty inhabitants to nearly thirty times its size, the Industrial Revolution was taking shape, making significant advancements in technology for the farming community. Until the mid-1800s, farmers were still manually harvesting hay with sickles and scythes. The advent of the sickle bar mower was the first step in making the hot and dusty work of haying by hand less brutal, more efficient, more productive, and even more comfortable. Lending to these newfound machines’ comfort and productivity was a flat wooden board for a seat. In the mid-1850s, manufacturers began adding cast-iron supports to the wooden board, and by the 1860s, almost all tractors had seats made entirely of cast iron. The earliest version of the cast iron seat was solid— meaning they held water during inclement weather and became blistering hot as the tractor sat in the mid-day sun. Born from necessity, tractor companies began designing seats with holes for drainage and ventilation— creating a form of agrarian art. Artisans created the seat by first carving the shape and design in solid wood, and then, from that wooden mold, the seat was cast in iron. Over 100 years later, the purity and austerity of the traditional handwork in these iron seats captivated Tom Moser. In 1978, Tom began carving the first iteration of the High Stool, which he called the “studio stool.” Made from two or three, twelve-quarter blocks, the seat, cut from the same log to ensure color and grain match, reflects the old tractor seats and western saddles’ defining characteristics. The hand-sculpted seat features a rounded cantle, the back edge of the seat, and a gentle and smooth pommel to cradle the occupant. Unlike its industrial cousins, the High Stool makes no use of metal screws or bolts to hold the seat in place—the old iron seats would be attached to the tractor using a metal bolt and washer placed through the middle of the seat! In the High Stool, tapered ash legs, used for their tensile strength, pierce through the bottom of the seat and join the top with a wedged tenon made from either cherry or walnut, creating a conscious design moment. Once the tenon has dried, it is sanded to match the seat’s grade; the beautiful joinery creates a secure hold and unimpeded seat. The sculpted movement on the top of the stool travels over the rounded edges to the seat’s underside, where an inverted cut in front highlights the dramatic rise of the pommel. There is an inherent beauty to old farm machinery. Perhaps it’s the way the sunlight strikes the rusty hay rake and iron seat resting unmoved for decades in an open field. It’s a reminder of days long gone, when agriculture and hand-crafted items dominated the economy, and families made their living from the fertile land. In many ways, we have come back to celebrate this way of life that honors the local community and its farmers and values the sustainable beauty of a handmade piece of furniture that gets better with time and is made to be used for generations.

LEARN MORE