Fireplace Mantel Surround - Fire And Rain

Our experience with Richard was topic notch right from the very first email. He clearly made this very easy every step of the way. It's not always easy to communicate what you want not really understanding the logic of what your asking for. Watching so many different steps of our table being built through photos kept us engaged and excited. Richard's patience and great communications with us made this a great experience. Our banquette table for our bench seating is truly a piece of art. It matches the bench seating as if they were built together. We couldn't be happier with our table and the professionalism of Richard and all the workers who were apart of this project. The shipping crew were also very professional and a pleasure to welcome into our home to deliver our table. Cheers to all of you!!!

All very positive
Fixture is still in crate, but what I can see, looks great

My wife and I had a very specific design and style in mind for our fireplace mantle and surround.
After a lot of hunting around and receiving we found Richard with Dovetails and Stitches, from the very beginning I knew he was different than everyone else that reached out to me.
After a couple conversations and a little looking into Dovetail and Stitches I decided to move forward, I've done a little finish carpentry work, enough to know that Richard knew what he was talking about and was asking me all the right questions.
My wife and I are extremely pleased with the outcome, considering that I live many states away and Richard had to do everything based on my measurements I am really impressed, I wish I could upload some pictures to go with the review.
The only reason I didn't give 5 stars across the board was for one minor adjustment I had to make.
Very glad I went with Richard and Dovetails and Stitches and highly recommend them.

Richard is probably one of the best communicators and flexible project managers I have ever worked with. He seems to truly enjoy his work and is passionate about providing the best outcome. Dynamic in approach. Highly recommend

This is a difficult review. I contacted several people thru CustomMade regarding building a cabinet for under our TV that would hold all the related electronic equipment. I chose Richard Louis with Dovetail and Stiches. The good: Richard was easy to work with, helped with the design, and was quick to answer any questions. The finished product was beautifully crafted and well made. The bad: The stained finish is not quite what I wanted and does not match the example photos I sent to Richard. The colors in the photos he sent me of the finished product before shipping don’t really match the unit in person. This is not necessarily Richard’s fault, just disappointing. Chaulk it up to the camera or the computer monitor. This is the problem with having something built where you can’t check on the product as it is being made. I will probably try to sand the unit down and re-stain or paint it. The ugly: After it was complete, Richard sent photos of the finished product. Two sections of the wood framing the doors were significantly darker than all other parts of the doors and of the main cabinet, which looked terrible. Richard said that was just the nature of wood, but for an additional $330, he could change it! His claim of 100% customer satisfaction came at a cost. Additionally, when it arrived there was a small stain on the top that did not seem to come from the crate the unit was shipped in and was not shown in any photos. Bottom line, I could have bought a similar piece in a retail store for half the cost, and considering the extra charge to address what should have been done right to begin with, I would not recommend Dovetail and Stiches.