Boston Globe on the Shaker-Chilton-Tappan Partnership

The Boston Globe recently published an article on the new collaboration between the Sabbathday Lake community of Shakers, Tappan Chairs of New Hampshire and Chilton Furniture to produce a series of Alfred chairs.

“My own experience has been that most businesses that have come here in the past have tended, whether intentionally or not, to want to exploit the Shaker experience for their own benefit,” said Michael Graham, executive director of the United Society of Shakers. “I knew Chilton was different.”

Chilton was bought in September by Jennifer and Jared Levin of New York, who shared the enthusiasm for Shaker styles. They talked with Gobeil about creating new versions of historic Shaker designs, hoping the Shakers would partner with them in producing the Alfred chairs.

“We wanted to do something that would celebrate this unique community,” said Jennifer Levin. “We’ve been influenced by them and we thought it would be nice to find a way to bring attention to a small yet vibrant and active group.”

Read the complete article “Shakers outsource chair making” at BostonGlobe.com