Old Tree

09/29/2025

This one’s a throwback—side tables I built a few years back when I was living in Idaho. Nothing too fancy here, just simple boxes with a couple of drawers and some clean hardware. But what makes them stand out to me is the color.
Normally, I don’t like adding color to wood. I’ve always believed the natural tones are beautiful enough on their own. Covering them up feels a bit like throwing a tablecloth over a nice table. But this client wanted black.
I could have just painted a cheaper material, but if I couldn’t highlight the natural color, I at least wanted to show off the grain. That’s why I chose white oak for this project—it has such a strong, defined texture that adds depth and character even in a simple design.
For the finish, I went with my favorite: Rubio Monocoat. First, I laid down their “Intense Black” pre-color for the bold undertone, then topped it with “Charcoal” Oil Plus 2C for protection and a matte sheen. The result? A rich, bold black that still lets the oak grain shine through.
Honestly, I was really happy with how these turned out. I’ve since used the same combo on a set of dining chairs, and I liked those just as much. Sometimes stepping outside your comfort zone pays off—you never know what you might end up loving.

09/24/2025

Sometimes the hardest part of building furniture isn’t the woodworking—it’s the photography.
My last post included some photos of my Windmill Stool design, but for some reason the caption I spent so much time writing never published with it. So, I decided to take the post down and start fresh.
Here’s the new one…
Photography has always been one of the biggest challenges for me in running Old Tree. I wear a lot of hats—woodworker, metalworker, CNC operator, designer—and I like to think I do each of those fairly well. But taking great photos has always been the one skill I just couldn’t quite figure out.
I’ve spent more money than I’d like to admit on cameras, lighting, and gear. I’ve watched countless tutorials, tried all kinds of setups, and put in hours experimenting… but no matter what, my photos never seemed to capture my work the way I envisioned.
Thankfully, I finally got some help. My cousin Tiffany () happens to be an incredible photographer. For years we lived across the country from each other, but now that we’re in the same state, I asked if she’d be willing to take some photos of my Windmill Stools. Without hesitation, she said yes.
When she sent me the finished photos, I was blown away. They are everything I’ve been chasing since I first started trying to learn photography on my own—clean, professional, and able to show my work in the best light possible. I’m beyond grateful for her time and talent.
Thank you Tiffany for capturing my work so beautifully! If you haven’t seen her page yet, definitely check her out—you’ll see why I’m so impressed.

08/25/2025

08/18/2025

Old Tree has always been about building — but not just furniture. It’s been about building a business, a craft, and a life I enjoy.
Over the years, I’ve wrestled with the direction of this business: do I focus on one-of-a-kind custom furniture, or stick to manufacturing a few consistent designs for my online shop?
The truth is, I can’t pick just one. Both have their ups and downs.
🔨 Custom furniture keeps me learning and stretching my skills. Every project is unique, and I love the challenge. But it’s hard to create consistency, keep materials stocked, and nail down estimates.
⚙️ Manufacturing, on the other hand, gives me structure. Estimates are simple, efficiency becomes the name of the game, and it’s easier to predict what’s coming next. But it can get repetitive, and making it profitable requires volume and strong marketing.
So, I’ve decided: I’ll keep doing both. They balance each other out, and both give me what I need — joy, income, and stability. When one slows down, the other often picks up. And at the end of the day, I love what I do, so I’ll keep doing what it takes to keep Old Tree alive.
This photo is of a sign I cut on my CNC router for a friend who runs a local woodworking business. His client wanted a big sign, he built it, and I handled the CNC work. It was good to help him out and make a few bucks in the process. Soon, I’ll be offering CNC services locally here on Florida’s Forgotten Coast — another way to keep building and growing.

08/04/2025

"Every good business needs a little patience."

About a year ago, after we finally got the shop set up from our big move south, I knew it was time to start putting myself out there again. So I made some booklets—just a few pages showing the kind of work I was proud of, with solid photos and simple descriptions. Honestly, they turned out better than I expected. I hit the road, driving all over Tallahassee, stopping into shops and interior design studios, dropping them off anywhere that seemed like a good fit.

Then… nothing. Not for weeks. Not for months.

It was about 6-8 months later when I finally got a call. It was from an interior designer who remembered me. She said she usually didn’t have a need for custom furniture like mine, but if something ever came up that felt right, she’d reach out—and thankfully, she did.

That job turned out to be one of my favorites to date. A small round meeting table for a financial planning office. They had a vision—solid wood, round top, unique base with a concave groove around the pedestal. I’ll be honest: I didn’t have much to do with designing the concept, but I was excited to figure out how to build it.

I’m no expert on the lathe, and I didn’t plan to become one overnight. So I came up with my own way to create that groove and made it work. I documented the whole thing too—hoping to start posting build videos on YouTube sometime soon. (Patience)

This table was a blast to build. It was different—round top, pedestal base, made entirely from solid walnut and finished with Rubio Monocoat. Modern, with a little retro vibe. The clients loved it. So much so, they hired me to build their conference table too—which I’m working on now.

Huge thank you to for taking a chance on me, and to for trusting me again. I’ll do my best not to let you down.

07/28/2025

“Another first for the Old Tree shop.”

A few months back, a couple pulled up and asked if I could make a door for their home. Instinctively, my first thought was nope—not a door guy. Doors are tricky. Big, heavy, solid slabs of wood that have to fit just right. And if they swell or shift with humidity (which they often do), they can quickly turn into a headache.

But instead of shutting it down, I asked a few more questions—Is it for inside or outside? Does it need to fit in a jamb? Turns out, they wanted a barn-style sliding door to cover an interior hallway. No jamb. No weather. No tight tolerances. Just a beautiful statement piece for inside their home.

That changed everything.

I’ve got a rule when it comes to custom inquiries: I never say “no” right away. I always try to say yes, or at least let me think about it. This time, I thought about it—and I’m glad I did.

Fast forward to today: the door is done. It’s solid mahogany, my first time working with the wood, and let me tell you—it’s gorgeous. Rich color, works like a dream. I built it as a three-panel door, one panel of glass and two made from floating solid wood to account for movement. Even the glass is held in with a flexible, clear strip so it looks clean and can handle a little flex.

I’ll be installing it soon and will definitely snap some good photos once it’s in place. First door—checked off the list. And honestly? I’d say yes again.

07/23/2025

I’ve been caught up in the rhythm of summer lately—family time, beach days, and probably not as many long days in the shop as I should be spending. Somewhere in all that, I missed my usual Monday update. So here’s a little peek into what’s been on my mind lately.

I’ve been thinking about exploring a new direction on the side—fish-inspired wall art. This piece is just a small-scale concept, but the idea is to carve abstract fish designs into larger wood panels, maybe even in sets of three like this layout. It’s different from my usual furniture work, but still rooted in the same love for texture, form, and natural materials.

Not sure yet if I like this idea—but I wanted to share it here and see what you all think. Could you see something like this living in your home? Should I put something like this in my Etsy store? What price point feels right for a piece like this? Or maybe it sparks another idea?

Appreciate the thoughts and support—I'll be back next Monday with more of the custom furniture work I've been meaning to share from this past year.

07/14/2025

Quality always wins out over speed. This one took me all winter to finish—about two or three months past the original deadline, if I’m being honest. It all started with the holidays. Between family in town, festive chaos, and a surprising spike in Etsy bar stool orders (which was great, just…bad timing), things started slipping. Then, just when I thought I could catch up, Florida decided to throw me a curveball. We had one of the worst ice storms I’ve ever seen—and I’m from Idaho. Power was out, deliveries from my wood supplier got completely thrown off, and everything just stalled.

As the deadline got closer—and then passed—I had to make a choice. Push through and rush it, or take my time and do it right. I chose the second option. Way late, yes. But I poured everything into the work. And when my clients finally saw the finished piece, they were thrilled. That made all the delays feel worth it. I’m also lucky they’re some of the most understanding people I’ve worked with.

This was a custom bookshelf I built to fit a specific spot in my client’s home. It’s made entirely from solid walnut. I probably could’ve saved some time by using walnut plywood with edge banding, but I decided to glue up solid panels instead. Not the most efficient route, I’ll admit—but there’s just something about the look and feel of real solid wood that I couldn’t pass up. It has a presence that veneer just can’t match.

The louvered doors were a first for me. They were designed that way for a reason—behind them is the air intake for the AC, so I had to make sure air could still flow through. The only place I used plywood was in the middle set of doors. I needed them to be thinner so they could slide past each other without eating up too much of the interior cabinet space.

It was definitely a challenging build, but I pushed through and picked up a lot along the way—especially when it comes to the balance between quality and time. Still working on nailing both at once.

07/07/2025

Trying new things is the best way to learn new skills.
This is a picture of the first custom project I acquired since our move to North Florida. I donated a coupon to a silent auction event here in Panacea, for a discount on any custom piece of furniture I am pretty sure only one person bid on it, but fortunately one person was all I needed to make a good connection. This person was super nice and a great customer. Originally he and his wife wanted a set of simple side tables for the end of their couch, but I was able to design something that was much more interesting and more of a conversation piece for their room. The end result was even cooler than I expected. I designed and built a couple side tables with doors that open by sliding through a curved track. The doors are made from wood slats, backed with felt, allowing them to bend as they slide around the curves of the track. Similar to train cars on a track or an old bread box door. I made the entire thing out of my favorite wood, walnut, including the feet and the door pull. This was another first for me, but along with my customer, I was very pleased with the result. In fact, months later, the same customer came back to me for another project, which I will share with you in a later post. A few years back I had seen a credenza/cabinet made with doors like this and ever since then I had been really wanting to make something similar. Thanks to my customer for allowing me the opportunity, I was able to do it. As always, I learned a lot from this project, and I will definitely be making another piece of furniture with a similar design component. Again, I gained another skillset for a future project, while broadening my design capabilities. I think it is important to keep trying new things, in work and in life. New experiences are what creates growth.