Artisans, artists, designers, wood crafters and even undefined people at home “DIY-ing” are enjoying living during a time when their quirky or creative talents can not only bring them great joy, but can also craft their way into the public eye. Such is the case for Made By Woodhand, a new company started after the founding owner’s woodworking talent garnered a big company’s interest.
Made By Woodhand specializes in tabletops designed from pieced-together salvaged and reclaimed wood found all over New York City. The founder started making her tables just out of personal DIY hobbying. But soon she was spotted by Frye Boot Company and commissioned to create some of her beautiful handiwork table tops for their retail stores.
The woodworker is from Alabama and uses her southern roots for design inspiration. The results are gorgeous and clearly reflect that inspiration of old quilt patterns laid out in beautifully aged and distressed wood.
Made By Woodhand in now based in Brooklyn, in a studio enabled through the Frye company’s commissioned work by the artist. So now she can continue her mission of finding wood materials to transform into artistically amazing pieces of quality furniture.
Of her talent, the founder says that she has “always been a maker of one thing or the other, a tinkerer, a builder, a dumpster diver, and general scavenging packrat.”
First using wood to construct tree houses, the artisan realized after she finished college that she wanted to find a more practical and useful purpose for her salvaged wood designs.
For economic reasons, she started using old wood collected from all around New York City. She used those to piece together intricately patterned tabletops, decorative panels and even custom items like an indoor treehouse for an acquaintance’s art show.
Retail stores have been a great source of interest in her work. Several brands have commissioned her work for various projects and purposes.
The Frye Company was the most notable of those retailers, commissioning her to create a series of tables designed from reclaimed wood for their stores.
Made By Woodhand then became official as a legitimate business and formulated trademark design techniques used for each of their projects.
The owner’s roots in Birmingham, Alabama have clearly served her well, as her quilt inspiration threads through each piece the company completes.
But the founder also admits other sources of inspiration are at play within her collection.
Most people remark upon the intricacy of her geometric designs, each looking like a quilt from days gone by.
Symmetry and angles both play together to bring old fashioned appeal with a vibrant, modern twist.
It was only after she had completed a few pieces, that the founder realized she was so inspired by quilts from youth.
Each table is designed from multiple pieces of salvaged wood in order to ensure each tabletop is a “kind of puzzle to create the design I had in mind with the tones and colors of the wood I had left.”
