Meet the maker

Western Port Woodworks is the workshop of Chris Gassin, a qualified cabinetmaker and registered builder based in Hastings, on the Mornington Peninsula.

Chris grew up on the Peninsula and, apart from brief chapters away, has never really left it. Woodworking came early and never let go — years at the bench making musical instruments and furniture for his own home taught him the patience and precision that fine work demands, long before it became his profession. When his army service ended, he made the craft his trade: a cabinetmaking apprenticeship, a qualification, and in 2022, a workshop of his own.

A material-led approach

Most cabinetry starts with a generic form stretched to fit a space. Chris works the other way around. Each piece begins with the material — reading the grain, assessing its character, and shaping the design to showcase what the timber does best. Proportion is given the weight it deserves rather than being left to chance, and every construction decision accounts for how the material behaves over time, so that a piece is not merely built to fit, but built to last a lifetime.

Every project is designed in consultation with the client or their architect and detailed in 3D before a board is cut — so what is agreed is precisely what is delivered.

From first sketch to final fit-off

As both a qualified cabinetmaker and a registered builder, Chris can carry a project from first sketch to final fit-off — including, where needed, the building contract, domestic building insurance and coordination of other trades. One person, accountable for the whole.