Jason Bragg: Milton resident finds the art in carpentry

When he was a young boy growing up in Sussex County, Jason Bragg dreamed of being just like his dad.

Bill Bragg, who is now retired, was a hard-working custom carpenter. And when Jason showed interest in the trade, his father started him off slow. His first tool: a tape measure.

“He was a custom carpenter, and from the age of 9 or 10, that's what I wanted to do,” Bragg said. “And I wanted to do it all from day one.”

Now Bragg is a 38-year-old Milton resident with his own family, and he's finally reached that goal.

With on-the-job training at his father's side as a young boy and teen, it was only natural that Bragg would pick up decades of experience in woodworking, especially cabinetry and trim, and later his own custom-made pieces, from mirrors and clocks to dining room tables.

“I enjoy working with wood because I think there's a natural beauty to it,” he said.

Bragg has had his own business since 2007, but he is now expanding the reach of Union Street Woodwork, with the hopes of securing a downtown Milton workspace in the near future.

For now, Bragg mainly works out of his garage and driveway, in between contracting jobs.

His wife, Katie Bragg, said she adores seeing her husband finally branching out and doing more of what he loves.

“He's so hard working,” she said. “He's up early out there doing things in the driveway, and we are having a blast.”

Bragg's attention to detail, and the time he takes making sure each piece is perfect – no matter how large or small the project– is what sets him apart, Katie said.

“For sure, he is the most detail-oriented person I've ever met in my life,” she said.

That attention to detail is critical in the artistic approach Bragg takes in his designs.

“My style is versatile if anything,” he explained. “Once upon a time, everything had to be oak, had to be a certain stain, had to be a certain color. Now, there's definitely a renaissance of being able to use older materials, whether it be the same vein it's always been used in or a completely different application.”

The effects of time and weather on wood cannot be duplicated by any kind of stain or paint, he said, and using older pieces for custom orders often provides some artistic license that he may not get with a brand new, plain pine board.

“It allows you to use what time and weather have done to the material, to age it and change the color, and keep it as natural as possible,” he said. “There's a trend toward using something that's naturally weathered, and the beauty of that piece, which once upon a time might have been discarded, is now being sought after.”

In a custom pole barn kitchen and bar on the outskirts of Milton, Bragg combined new and old materials, creating a contrast of colors and textures that would be difficult to find on the shelves of a hardware store. Old oak and poplar pallet boards work together with both new and reclaimed pine pieces to make a patchwork countertop that seems to fit together like a puzzle.

“There absolutely is an art to it,” he said. “I can navigate between something very tedious and time-consuming, or a fine finish versus a rough finish. Whatever it is, it's my goal now to make you happy.”

For more information about Union Street Woodwork, go to www.unionstreetwoodwork.com.