Stephen Bisaillon

Let me just say that Mr. Bisaillon is a first rate old-world craftsman in time when nobody wants to do things right.  I heard about him from a friend in Connecticut and took a chance and flew him down to New Orleans for a fair amount of custom work at the house.  I was not disappointed.  He is, quite possibly, the finest finish carpenter in the country. 

I hired him to create a large pantry out of some dead space in the living room that abuts my kitchen.  The whole job is custom...from the drawers and sliders to the door floor and molding.  My wife and I wanted to keep the dark mahogany wainscoting and the "Look" of the kitchen as is...so he came up with "hidden" doors that perfectly blend into the wall...he kept the original wainscoting, built doors and recessed them just enough that all you can see is a micro-seam...if you're looking for it.  He did the most beautiful mosaic for the floor space (he had to take up carpet in the living room down to concrete) at the bottom of the pantry that its practically a work of art. 

It was a big job, and took 10 days to complete...his perfectionist approach was just right for both the job and my wife's attention to detail (she couldn't find a single thing to complain about!).

Here's the kicker...he had quoted me a price and the job turned out to be easily 3 times more difficult than his price (10 ft ceilings with hardwood stained ceiling and 6inch custom molding and apparently they don't make the stain anymore and the house doesn't have a plumb wall anywhere) but he refused to let me pay him more.  seriously. He even went so far as to buy various stains on his own and blend them himself to match the old stain exactly for the molding and trim pieces. 

Would I recommend him again?  Yes...a thousand times over...yes.