A SOUTH Lakeland business has stepped back in time for its latest commission, which is helping to breathe new life into one of the county's top tourist attractions.

Peter Hall & Son of Staveley has carved out a top class reputation for making high-quality bespoke furniture over the years.

But when the nationally-renowned firm was asked to produce pieces of furniture for Wordsworth House, it proved to be no ordinary order.

For the National Trust wanted to recreate the furnishings of Wordsworth's Cockermouth home as they would have originally looked in the 1770s.

The trust wanted furniture made in the period style, largely using the production methods of the time, but which could be touched and handled by visitors, rather than being roped off from the public and gathering dust.

"Wordsworth House is going to be a hands-on place, where people can experience 18th century life as it was like, with people dressed up in period costume," said Peter Hall & Son owner Jeremy Hall.

His firm has produced a total of 28 pieces of furniture, including a covered stool, a copy of Mrs Wordsworth's bed, an oak-framed kitchen table and benches, a dough trough (early version of breadmaker) and a rocking chair.

"It's been a fantastic project to be involved with," said Mr Hall, whose staff have been working on the various pieces of furniture on and off for some seven months.

Painstaking research was needed to recreate some of the pieces, notably the closed stool and the bed, of which there are very few period examples still in existence.

Mr Hall was full of praise for the National Trust for initiating the project, which will see a redisplayed and reinterpreted Wordsworth House reopen to the public next month.

"I think it's great that the National Trust has been prepared to let people see what 18th century furniture was like. It takes a huge amount of courage, and it will make it much more interesting for visitors," added Mr Hall.

As well as creating new furniture, Peter Hall & Son has also carried out restoration work on a number of antique pieces for Wordsworth House.

The business, which employs 18 staff including three apprentices, is looking forward to an even busier year, with a full order book for the next few months.

It has just earned a coveted award for excellence in craftsman-ship and design from the Guild of Furniture makers in London, in recognition of one of its latest commissions.

The one-off piece of furniture has central drawers that swing round on ball bearings to reveal secret compartments, and features intricate markings. Made out of a combination of European burr walnut, India rosewood and ripple sycamore, it took more than 200 hours of production manager Tim Smith's time to create.

The piece, which cost a five-figure sum, is destined for a client who is celebrating turning 60 as well as his wife's 50th birthday.