''Nothing is plumb, level or square''

"Perfection," says master stone mason Peter "Billy" Cleland, "is not of this world."

Restoration carpenter David Adams animatedly chimes in: "If you want perfectly plumb, level, square, buy a new house. An old house is not going to be perfect. What you have to ask is 'how much does the imperfection impinge on your life?'"

This talk of living with imperfection seems somewhat odd coming from craftsmen who are recognized as masters of their trades. Adams and Cleland are accomplished practitioners who have spent a lifetime honing their skills, paying meticulous attention to detail, and demanding not perfection, but the best work possible.

"If you walk across your old floor and get splinters," Adams, says to elaborate, "that's not acceptable. But can you live with a little slope to the floor? It's not realistic to think that a floor in a 200 year old house is going to be level."

Steve Roy, Adam's partner in Adams & Roy Preservation Contractors of Portsmouth, NH, says "Nothing is level, nothing is plumb, nothing is square on the houses we restore. People hire us to have our work disappear -- to blend in so well with the old that it doesn't seem like new work."

Blending is integral to the art of restoration, says Adams. "We use the same materials, the same tools and try to use the same thought process as the original craftsman."

The panel was part of the Smithsonian Institute's annual Folklife Festival on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Each year, the two-week event takes an in-depth look at three cultural areas. This year's festival highlighted New York City, Bermuda and Masters of the Building Trades.

The building trades portion of the festival "celebrates the extraordinary artistry...in the building arts," according to the festival publication. "These master artisans -- stone masons, carvers, carpenters, plasterers, balcksmiths...have enriched our world with the work of their hands."

Marble mason Frank Baiocchi, whose mastery is evident in the elegant marble floors of Washington National Cathedral, is asked as part of the panel discussion how he goes about finding apprentices.

"I look for someone who loves the work," he says simply. "Everything else but love can be taught."