Hudson, the dog, is quite deaf and oblivious to the restoration work which happens all around him as he snoozes on his blanket in the sun.

Multi-talented tradesman Rohan Ardern has enough energy for the two of them though and beavers away on an antique shelf without waking his companion.

The shelf is old and needs repairs, but when Mr Ardern is done it won’t need to be touched again for many a year.

Such is the result of any job worth doing.

Mr Ardern said his work was not the sort of thing which would make big headlines or catch a huge amount of attention.

“It’s rewarding to be able to repair something and put it back into service,” he said.

Repairs are a specialty, custom-made furniture is too.

Fixing things, however, is what Mr Ardern thinks he does best.

He said his repairs were one of two things.

Restoration, where he might strip furniture put on a layer of shellac and replace dodgy parts.

Or conservation, which Mr Ardern said he preferred.

“Its about saving old polishes and old structure as much as you can because that's where the originality in a piece lies,” he said.

Mr Ardern’s told The Border Mail his training as a cabinetmaker started at the age of 16 in an “old school” joinery shop.

“A lot of cabinetmakers today just make kitchen cupboards,” he said.

“We did the full range, traditional timber joinery, doors, glass work, aluminium work and of course furniture, a lot of those shops aren’t overly common today.

“But, what used to be a whole lot of separate trades has become, through necessity, one.”

Indeed the greatest tool in Mr Ardern’s career is his knowledge of other trades.

There used to be enough demand on the furniture industry for workers to train only as wood turners, carvers or polishers.

These are all skills Mr Ardern has added in his more than 34-year career.

“Shellac is the real substance that is the basis of French polishing,” he said.

“The skill is in the application of it, it was and still is a very involved process to get a really classy result.

“What is done commonly now is the shellac is taken off and replaced with a plastic spray lacquer.

“You may as well wrap a piece of furniture in a piece of glad wrap.”

While spraying lacquer onto a piece of antique furniture saves time, Mr Ardern said pieces would not age as well or as long as they would with a good shellac coat.