After completing a Forestry degree in 1983 Rupert Peploe decided to change direction and served an apprentice as an Antique Restorer to a craftsman working for the National Trust in Wiltshire and Somerset. An early commission was the complete overhaul of a set of faux Regency dining room chairs once used by the famous pioneer Henry Fox Talbot at Lacock Abbey.

 

He set up in Bristol 3 years later and has subsequently worked for many historic Bristol Institutions including The Merchant Venturers, The Clifton Club, The Georgian House, John Wesley's chapel  and The Wills Memorial Hall of Bristol University. He has recently completed an interesting job for Buckland Abbey, the National Trust house in Devon.

 

However, a great proportion of his work continues to derive from private customers who have inherited a much loved family piece which needs preserving for a future generation. Sometimes cabinet work is required to make sticky drawers work properly, or repair the loose mortise and tenon jointson achair. Veneers may need re-laying where they have come unstuck, or replaced where sections have been lost altogether, and Rupert has an extensive collection of period timber and other materials to sort out any problem that is presented. Once the structure is sorted out Rupert can revive or re-finish using a medium appropriate to the style and age of the piece.

 

Furthermore, metal work restoration can be undertaken where brass handles or hinges have become cracked or distressed, and often new items can be made altogether using traditional methods.