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Rosemarie and Thomas Cannell Photos by Linda Smolek
homas Cannell is in the business of making beautiful, useful things. A native of Newcastle, England, Cannell is the expert woodworker behind Block & Bowl, a new venture he launched with his wife Rosemarie in April to merge his passions for cooking and carpentry. As a youngster, Cannell spent weekends building things in his grandfather’s backyard woodworking shop. He also loved to spend time in the kitchen and intended to become a chef upon graduating from high school. But his mother insisted he learn a trade. Cannell set off on a two-year carpentry apprenticeship that turned into a five-year job as a cabinetmaker—in between some work in local kitchens. In 2010, Cannell decided to travel. He moved to Whistler, a Canadian resort where he quickly found restaurant jobs. He also found the love of his life, meeting Rosemarie on her annual Whistler snowboarding trip. He followed her to Los Angeles where she finished pharmacy school at USC. After moving for Rosemarie’s job—first to Seattle in 2014, then Sacramento in 2018—Cannell admits carpentry became more of a hobby while he focused on his dream to attend culinary school for baking and pastry arts. Though he flexed his woodworking muscles doing home renovations, he didn’t make carpentry his fulltime focus until this year, when the pandemic gave him time for his workshop at the couple’s Land Park home. “The transition back into carpentry has really worked out,” says Cannell, who creates beautiful kitchen and home goods, such as chopping blocks, serving boards, egg holders, muddlers
Cutting-Edge Creations WOODWORKER BRINGS ART INTO THE KITCHEN
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JL By Jessica Laskey Open Studio
