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The Inception of the Tokoly Tables
When patrons enter "Tokoly Tables," located on the second f loor in the
historic Ketchum Building in the French Market of downtown Navasota,
they remember a past era of long ago. Tokoly Tables will breathe old
world charm and beauty into any home, while taking it on a journey to
the days of the paintings of Giotto, the poetry of Dante and Chaucer,
the travels of Marco Polo, and the architecture of Gothic cathedrals such
as Chartres.
Stephen Tokoly was inspired to build tables that could compete with the
grandiose French and Spanish antique tables. However, before "Tokoly
Tables" was born, he began building tables using power tools, screws,
and glue to attach and assemble the tables. It took Stephen approximate-
ly a year to become proficient in mortise and tenon joinery, an ancient
technique that has been used for thousands of years. The joinery is an
intricate technique and the application even more so. This technique re-
quires the assemblage of furniture without nails or screws. Even though
the joint may be glued in place, Stephen does not adhere to using any
glue in his furniture. "I have gone to great lengths to avoid the usage
of glue or any form of metal joinery on my tables. If it cannot be accom-
plished strictly with interlocking wood, I will not do it," Stephen says.
Stephen built his very first table, naming it the "Do Not Drop Table" be-
cause "one of the skirt boards came off of an old cargo container and had
a stencil with `DO NOT DROP' on it." Stephen recalls, "I didn't sand
the stencil off and it's still on the table." This marked the beginning of
"Tokoly Tables" and an extraordinary journey of building furniture that
breathes passion, allure, and a forgotten time of long ago.
The Future of Tokoly Tables
Stephen recently included the "Barroco" design, rococo-inspired scalloping into his tables. At first, he was hesitant
to embrace stylized carvings into his tables for fear of departing from
the delicate simplicity he had
always assented to; however, after creating a "Barroco"
table, he realized the stylized
carvings only enhanced the beauty of the
old-world tables. Stephen in-
sists that the "European artisans knew
what they were doing. If
it was good enough for a castle and a
king, it is good enough for
me" he said.
"My tables are influenced by my love of European
Gothic literature and architecture."- Stephen Tokoly
By Nicole Walsh
For information on "Tokoly Tables," visit Stephen Tokoly's blog he created this year at www.TokolyTables.com,
where he documents the building of his tables with photographs and instructional writing that is easy to understand.
Red Door Bed & Breakfast
Full Gourmet Breakfast Served
in Formal Dining Room
915 E. Washington 936.825.7482
Bogart's Casa Blanca B&B
Weddings and Events
www.bogarts.org
936.825.1969
Preferred Properties ­ Lynn Hildebrandt, Broker
Historic Navasota and Beautiful Grimes County
preferredproperties.texas@gmail.com
936-825-6113