When we set out to find materials for our pieces, we make sure to put the health of our forests above all else. This is why we only find trees that have died naturally while still retaining their quality. After a tree has been selected, we work to get it out of the forest without damaging any of the surrounding plant and animal life. While this isn’t always easy, we work diligently to assure that our impact is minimal.

After we have managed to get the tree out of the forest, we then mill the logs as needed in accordance with design specifications for individual pieces. Then the pieces are transported to the dry barn, where we stack and sticker the slabs in preparation for the long air-drying process. Our dry barn currently houses enough wood to last for the rest of Shawn’s (hopefully) long life.

This process of honoring the materials we gather is heavily inspired by George Nakashima. We share that same reverence for the natural world and believe he said it best when he stated:

“There is a spirit in trees that is very deep and in order to produce a fine piece of furniture the spirit of the tree lives on and I can give it a second life.”

A Word on Walnut

In our dry barn we currently have a large amount of Walnut. We were fortunate enough to acquire this Walnut from an old collection. This 100+ year old walnut was harvested in the 1960s from a large orchard in Big Bend, California. The trees that were harvested were twisted and dead, which has created beautiful patterns within the wood itself. These trees were milled in the Big Valley Mill in Fall River Mills and have been stickered and air-drying ever since.

Orchards like the one harvested from Big Bend were among a plethora of orchards planted in California during the Gold Rush era. They were planted in order to provide the influx of new prospectors with an adequate food supply. These orchards have thus garnered the nickname of “Gold Rush Orchards.”