A Historic Landmark - Harlequin Public House

Summary: Harlequin Public House, or The Junction Hotel as it was formerly known, is a historic building on the corner of Montreal and Salisbury Street in Christchurch. Built in the late 1800s, the building unfortunately was severely damaged in the Canterbury earthquakes. Today, the iconic building houses Spagalimis Pizzeria, the stunning woodwork and timber framing you see throughout the interior of the restaurant was one of the first major projects that Ruben’s Joinery completed. This project took just a little over 8 months to complete and we manufactured stunning double-hung window frames and doors using Rimu timber to restore the damaged building to its former character. The nature of this restoration project meant that a lot of detailed work was undertaken, with intricate curvature on the double-hung window framing. The finish had to be impeccable so that the client was satisfied, and that we were proud of the work we had completed. Challenge: A challenging part of this project was the time it took, and the intricate detailing we were faced. We were fortunate to be tasked with using stunning Rimu timber for the joinery and woodworking in this restoration, so that made it exciting for our team. We had to get every detail right, which is why this was such a large project for us. Rimu Timber: Rimu Timber is an iconic New Zealand timber that is rooted deep in its natural and cultural history. It is popular because of its woodgrain and natural beauty, its sustainability and durability. We used the Rimu to create the window framing that covers almost all the walls in the interior and to manufacture internal French-style doors. Double-Hung Windows: Double-hung windows can be opened from the top and the bottom and were chosen in this project to replicate what was formerly there before the building was damaged. They are more a more traditional style of window and require a high level of detail to get right.