Custom Design Built-In Cabinets

We ordered a dining room table top from Chris back in July. We finally received it today, eight months later. There are multiple problems: the finish quality is awful -- it almost feels like sandpaper when you run your hand over the top. There are several places where dirt is embedded under the finish. The maker said he was sending this out to a finisher with a spray booth, so that the finish would be perfect. This clearly didn't happen. There is a gouge out of the veneer on one end. The joinery at the corners is very crude.
This is the kind of quality one would expect if buying something for next to nothing at a seconds sale. If the maker hadn't shipped this piece all the way across the country, we would certainly return it. Deeply disappointed.

Chris was great and the table turned out awesome.

The table Chris crafted is absolutely stunning! He even added some extra touches to make it better than what I had initially asked for. Really happy with the finished product.

Christopher made us a beautiful custom bookcase (10' wide x 8' tall) distressed solid white oak, with barn doors and built in baseboard radiator covers. We are extremely pleased. We spoke over the phone a few times and used text messaging to confirm that we were on the same page with the design. He was always easy to reach and very responsive. He mailed a very carefully drawn/professional drawing before starting to build it, and his assistant personally came to our house to install the bookcase. Thanks Chris!

These came out great and are exactly what I wanted. I'd absolutely work with CL again. He is clearly a master cabinet maker who takes pride in his work. Communication was spare- frustrating at first but I just think this is his style. He did respond each time with only one brief delay. Some little details were lost but nothing important. Like the others my pieces were a month past the date. Seems timing might is his one issue but that's not terribly unusual. I give the benefit of the doubt to craftspeople who have to take many projects on to make any profit. Next time though I would stay on top of the process a bit more if time is of the essence. I weigh priorities with all of these aspects. In this case the finished product was most important to me and I was delighted with that.