Annapolis furniture maker melds form and functionality

Maybe it was a good thing that Joseph Murphy didn't have enough money to buy a good bed when he got his first apartment after college.

Faced with financial constraints and an uncomfortable futon, he decided to make his own bed, so to speak, and the experience of working with wood ignited a passion that still drives him today.

Mr. Murphy, 38, is a furniture maker whose designs are a hybrid of art and functionality. Largely self-taught, the Annapolis resident produces unique handmade stools, benches, desks, cabinets and tables in his basement workshop. He's only been making furniture full time for a short time, but is...