Why I Create

I did not inherit my drive to create; no one in my family was a craftsman. Still, I find immense joy in transforming raw materials into objects others value. From the fusion of images and typography as a graphic designer to the alchemy of flour, water, salt, and yeast for a great Neapolitan pizza, or the artistry of joinery, form, and function in furniture making, creating has become my lifelong journey.

My Journey

When I was five, my dad got me a kit to build a wooden toolbox. I have no idea why he got it for me, but I was sure proud of what we built. Wanting everyone to know what it was, I wrote “TOOL BOX” on the side in red magic marker. My toolbox spent the next 50 years holding Dad’s tools in my parents’ laundry room. Now, it is in my shop and has become one of my most cherished “tools.”

At ten years old, I disassembled and converted my 1974 gold Schwinn Stingray into a “Shit hot dirt bike.” (at least, ten-year-old me thought it was shit hot) In middle school, I was already interested in woodworking. I was very excited to take Woodshop and found great pleasure in using the power and hand tools. I remember finishing my assignments early, and for extra credit, I turned a pair of drumsticks on the lathe. I was already an overachieving wood nerd, trying so hard to be cool.

My First Love

In college, I fell in love with two-dimensional and three-dimensional design. Had I chosen to study industrial design, I could have started my furniture-making career decades earlier, but in the late 1980s, Graphic Design looked way more exciting. I earned my BFA in Graphic Design from the University of Illinois in 1991. I then enjoyed a 25+ year career designing digital experiences for automotive brands like Porsche, Nissan, Lexus, and Acura, as a graphic designer, an art director, and eventually becoming an executive creative director.

My Second Act

In 2015, I stepped out of agency life and refocused my career on designing and building furniture. I had grown tired of creating ephemeral digital experiences and wanted to create tangible objects that would last decades. I love to learn, and woodworking provides constant opportunities to deepen my knowledge of the craft. I have gone to school, put in hours of deliberate practice to acquire knowledge, refine my skills, and deepen my understanding of the materials with which I build. I am pleased with the results of my efforts to date:

2023:

  • I earned my Furniture Making Certificate from Cerritos College.

  • My “Nautilus Table” was accepted by The Association of Woodworking Furnishings & Suppliers Fair into their national juried furniture competition, “Fresh Wood,” in Las Vegas.

  • I began teaching as an Assistant Teacher in the Furniture Intensive Certificate program at Cerritos College.

2024:

  • My Merrill Game Table received top honors at Cerritos College’s end-of-year woodworking celebration.

I am a solo maker working out of my small studio in Long Beach, CA, building five to ten pieces annually. I like to have fun while creating furniture, and I enjoy taking my clients on the journey of designing and building pieces of furniture they can cherish for generations.