Our Materials

Reclaimed Wood:

Reclaimed Flooring from the Packard Plant in Detroit     Quarter Sawn Oak Flooring Reclaimed from Detroit     Working on the Table Saw     Making Valet Trays in Detroit

Abandoned storefront to dining table. Flooring to photo frame. How do we do it? It’s not just a matter of picking up some wood, cutting it to size and nailing it together. The transformation process has several steps, and is labor intensive to say the least. It takes far longer than driving down to the lumber yard or home improvement store.

Take our photo frames. The wood may be free to us, but we have to process and store it before we can take tools to it. We pull nails, remove old paint, measure, cut, shape, glue, clamp, nail, drum sand, paint, sand again, stain, cut glass, include origin info, assemble, hand screen print, and oil each one. It’s a two-week process and it’s definitely not “just” a frame.

Why do we do all of this? Not just because we care about reusing and recycling materials, although of course we really do. The wood we collect is wood that you just can’t get anywhere these days. It’s from old growth trees. It’s denser, heavier, stronger and has a feel, a look, a natural iridescence that you just can’t find anymore.

Recycled Paint:

                                                                                Recycled Paint Rainbow Wall

What’s missing in woodworking? Color. We’re not just talking trim either. We mean washes of blue, splashes of orange, stippling of purples and reds and yellows. All while letting the natural grain of each piece show, in some ways more clearly as the color draws you closer.

We find our customers love when we add hues to our hand-made products. People like shopping with color in mind, imagining where to place and how to use each piece. It makes our work stand out, inviting conversation over where the wood originated. We love that. Continuing our commitment to reuse, we don’t buy paint either! Yes, we also use recycled paint...most forgotten cans in your garage will do. In our workspace you’ll see a wall of clear containers brimming with color, combinations mixed in house, varying with the seasons, some hues only to be seen once and then gone forever.