​Conservator Talk
Turning Back Time on Two 19th Century Sleighs:
A Talk with Conservator Mike Mascelli
Sunday, October 15, 2023 | ​2 to 3:30 pm
At the Shepherd Barn, 66 Bridge Street
Join conservator Mike Mascelli to take an up-close look at two horse-drawn sleighs made around 1890 and now on exhibit in the Shepherd Barn. Mascelli will discuss the history of sleighs and then focus on how he restored each sleigh--both the process and materials--to return them to their original beauty.

Limited to 15 participants.
Sliding Scale Admission: $10-$25.
Two late nineteenth-century sleighs in the collection of Historic Northampton were restored
with funding from the City of Northampton Community Preservation Committee.
Conservator Mike Mascelli restored two
sleighs now displayed in the Shepherd
Barn at Historic Northampton
MIKE MASCELLI has been a student and practitioner of the upholstery trade for over 45 years and divides his time between the worlds of classic cars and classic furniture.  He has provided upholstery for national champion cars and furniture that is on display at the United States House of Representatives and numerous historic homes and collections. He actively lectures and teaches and has instructed hundreds of students in basic and advanced upholstery techniques at the Connecticut Valley School of Woodworking, the Marc Adams School of Woodworking, and numerous other schools and organizations both in person and on line. 
 
He contributed an essay on 18th century upholstery techniques for Roubo on Furniture by Don Williams (Lost Art Press). Mike has also published a number of articles on various aspects of upholstery in the Journal of the Society of American Period Furniture Makers (SAPFM) and Fine Woodworking.  He has also completed several instructional videos on upholstery and finishing for Popular Woodworking and Fine Woodworking, and was a presenter at the “Working Wood in the 18th Century” conference at Williamsburg.

He is the Director of the Professional Refinisher’s Group, a national organization founded in 1998 to connect professionals in the refinishing and conservation trades, and a very active grandfather of two boys.