September 24, 2004
By Deborah Rose
STAFF WRITER
New Milford Spectrum

The coppersmithing workshop of Al Ferris is a hidden gem.

Large windows in the workshop, located in a barn behind his New Milford home, overlook flower beds and a rolling hill that leads to the edge of his yard.

When Mr. Ferris looks out over that rolling hill, the East Aspetuck River, where he often fishes for trout, is clearly visible.

When he looks out his workshop door window, he sees some of the first pieces of copper works he created, including a sailboat he made in the mid-1980s, on display in his yard.

The quiet, almost-secret country setting inspired the name of his business, The Secret Copper Shop, which is located just a few minutes north of the center of New Milford.

So why does Mr. Ferris work in copper?

"I love the way [copper] reflects light," he explains. "I love the way it's relatively easy to shape... It's a beautiful thing, and longlasting."

Since the mid-1980s, Mr. Ferris, 54, has crafted an assortment of copper items at his workshop and sold many pieces at craft shows in the region and at his former store on Main Street in town. When he first began coppersmithing, it was a hobby of sorts and drummed up some business, but it wasn't his career.

Mr. Ferris said he spent the past 26 years working for Home Oil Co. until a restructuring earlier this year cost him his job.

Since then, Mr. Ferris has turned his attention more toward coppersmithing, and he said he hopes to "grow [The Secret Copper Shop] into a viable business."

"I'm hoping to have orders every day," Mr. Ferris said in a recent interview at his workshop. "I would love it, to be six weeks backlogged."

The Stamford native designs one-of-a-kind lanterns, candlesticks, chandeliers, sculptures, weathervanes and custom items. Each piece is signed, numbered and dated.

He also does repairs.

Michael Gold of New Milford, who owns Geron Nursing and Respite Care, Inc., loves the look of copper and patronizes Mr. Ferris' business.

"He's a local guy, which is very important, and he's wonderful," Mr. Gold said.

"His work is exceptional...he's not a maker, he's a creator," he said.

Mr. Ferris, who served in the U.S. Army for a year and a half in Germany, said he likes to spend a bit of time with a customer to learn about his or her visions for the item being ordered. Often, pictures are used to design original copper pieces.

Once he knows what the customer is looking for, he makes sketches and creates a layout of what materials will be used and where they will go.

Then he cuts and forms the pieces of copper, assembles the copper, and finally polishes the item.

About 10 percent of the time he spends on a project is spent polishing, Mr. Ferris said.

The craftsman said he prefers to sell items that are polished, so they are bright and shiny. But some customers prefer to buy items that are aged and have a rich patina - a green coating copper that develops naturally over time, especially if it is outside braving the natural elements.

Mr. Ferris is able to age products with chemicals should the customer desire that look.

One of Mr. Ferris' favorite polished pieces in his workshop display is the "Copper Chopper," a handcrafted motorcycle that may be placed atop a weathervane.

In addition, a race car, another motorcycle, a plane, a rose in a vase, candle lanterns and a variety of weathervanes are on display."

Mr. Ferris' brother, Doug, often helps out at the shop. They joke that Al Ferris is in "sales, design and management" while Doug Ferris is "research, development and polishing."

When Al Ferris gets "stuck" on what to design, he said, he and his brother clean and polish items in the workshop. Usually, that triggers some sort of inspiration, they said.

They also might go fishing, Doug Ferris commented.

Al Ferris began collecting excess pieces of copper after working on sheet metal construction jobs in the 1980s. He planned to eventually recycle it.

But, at the suggestion of his wife, Rebecca, he designed a sailboat from the scraps after envisioning it from two pieces of triangular copper and one piece of rectangular copper he had hanging around the house.

That was it. He was hooked.