French Bliss

The 52-year-old designer wasn't looking for a Southern gallery, but his friends Fran and John Mankiewicz had settled in Naples and were willing to set up a showroom, so Smith brought some pieces in and over the last five years made history in local homes. One of the most popular projects for the Southwest Florida market has been huge, custom-made wall units. "Some people need a TV armoire, others want a complete home office that closes up at night, and others need bookcases and china cabinets," explains John. "We can do it all in any finish and any style, so long as it's historical." Prices for wall units average between $8,000 and $12,000. Smith can drag out a color catalog with all available designs.

Barley twist gate leg tables ($9,000) are popular because they are space conscious, making them a practical option for a compact condo, and everyone loves the Windsor chairs. So nice for a waterside cottage. Price about $560. Smith is licensed to reproduce red pottery and several pieces of furniture from the prestigious collection of the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA). And they are picky people when it comes to allowing artisans to reproduce their Yankee holdings.

Smith has made a separate (and successful) reputation in kitchens. His custom-designed installations have appeared frequently on the covers of Country Living magazine and on H>V network programs. All his kitchens look decidedly vintage down to the hinges, but each is new and custom made to the space requirements and personalities of the homeowners. He's also a genius at concealing appliances behind furniture so that the entire room looks furnished over time.

Smith bought his first antique at age 19 in Lebanon, Ohio, and began producing furniture in 1970. He employs about 40 skilled craftspeople at his village of work barns on a farm in Morrow that belonged to his grandfather. Smith lives and works there with his wife, Lora. His son Jason is a carver and craftsman (and now lives in Naples), and his two daughters are potters.

Besides discovering furniture at the 13th Avenue store, browsers will want to notice the exquisite baskets, pottery, weather vanes, carved fish and other gift and small home decor items priced at $10 and up.

When I first ventured into The Workshops of David T. Smith in Naples, I assumed it was going to be cutesy-folksy and full of cottage-quaint bric-a-brac. Well, I ditched that notion fast when I laid eyes on a Mt. Lebanon Shaker six-drawer low chest in curly maple that would be a standout in any high-concept contemporary penthouse dwelling in New York, Naples or London. Snoop around the gallery; you'll see what I mean.