Andrew Nixon Millworks LLC
These days Andrew Nixon gravitates to walnut and white oak, but his affinity for wood has roots in the family tree. Both grandfathers were experts: one with a backyard woodshop where Nixon spent childhood weekends learning the craft, the other a contractor who schooled his grandson in home construction — including plenty of carpentry. That fieldwork combined with detailed woodworking knowledge gave Nixon a unique perspective on millwork and furniture making. He adds an eye for detail and artistry (he’s also a painter), plus a joyful approach that motivates him to tackle challenges and share his hard-earned knowledge with others.
Nixon’s early career had him working for himself and others through various stages, building his skills. He learned from mentors including those at former employer Gus Hartdegen & Sons. As Nixon recalled, “I was around 25. I thought I knew everything, then started working for this other guy and realized I didn’t know anything… He’s the one that taught me how to cut the knives to make moldings, and how to build freestanding staircases… I owe a lot for what they taught me — it was a whole different level of carpentry.”
Throughout this period, Nixon was also struggling with drug addiction, and at age 33, reached a turning point. He went to Bridge House, put in a lot of time and effort to get clean, and has been sober for more than a decade. Nixon shares this part of his story because, as he said, “It might help somebody else that had the same problem — and they can see that you can come out of it.”
Nixon’s next rebuilding step was buying a raised house in Chalmette and creating his own shop underneath. Now, along with three colleagues, Nixon puts out some of most artistic cabinetry and furnishings in the city, crafted with details that matter to him — like mortise and tenon joinery, continuous cabinet fronts (meaning no visible lines between cabinets), and painstaking dovetailing.
“It’s like a really nice pair of Italian shoes,” said Nixon. “You can’t really tell what the difference is – you can look at them from a distance, and they definitely look a lot better than regular shoes, but when you come up close, you see the fine details.” In his work, that might translate to real 22-karat gold leaf on a bow front poplar chest with black mirror finish or a kitchen island with strikingly curved drawers made from walnut (one of Nixon’s favorite materials).
He can’t imagine plying his trade anywhere but within the [crooked] walls of timeless New Orleans homes, filled with the architectural details he appreciates. Nixon’s goal is to ornament these homes with handcrafted furniture that serves as “usable sculpture,” and maybe a “really cool staircase” conjured from his imagination.
He also strives to teach others the craft of woodworking, in the way it was passed to him. Here Nixon references a saying learned from AA: “You’ve got to give it away to keep it.” As Nixon believes, “It works for everything in life.”
