"Twig Furniture" Business Thrives On Rustic Look
For 22 years, Gary Daniels and his family have been making "twig furniture" from willow and birch. They displayed some of their creations at last year's Farm Progress Show near Alleman, Iowa, where he talked to potential customers with a constant stream of puns. Such as, "I just stick around." "I'm always going out on a limb and I never get stumped." "I started out as a tree doctor, but I couldn't stand the sight of sap. Then I realized I'd probably fall out of my patients anyway as a tree doctor." "If you tie a dog to a tree, is he bound to bark?"
When he gets serious, he explains what they do. "We call ourselves æwillow furniture artists'. We make twig furniture for every room of your home, as well as your deck or garden," says Gary. "Some popular items include picture frames, chairs, bar stools, dressers, armoires, love seats, coffee tables, headboards, beds, bunk beds, cabinets, dressers, wardrobes, and even pool tables. Over the years we've made more than 500 different items."
People like the rustic look, says Gary. "Maybe they have a den with a fireplace and they want to make it look more like a lodge up north. Or they use twig furniture in their sun rooms. Sometimes people with contemporary homes set up rustic rooms using our furniture. From the outside you'd never guess they'd have our furniture inside. We have some clients with multi-million dollar homes. Once a month, we haul finished furniture in a truck out to furniture stores in Aspen, Colo., and Lake Tahoe, Calif."
Gary contracts with the Iowa Department of Transportation to harvest willow tree sprouts. "A highway crew cuts the trees down in select areas, then we haul it away in an old bus. It eliminates the need to mow roadsides," says Gary.
He also grows two different species of willow trees on his own land - fast-growing Australian willows and Curly willows.
He uses small Curly willows to decorate picture frames, and bigger ones to make legs for tables. "People like the curled look of the legs."
He gets his birch bark from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. "We cut and build year around. We take an all-wheel-drive Argo down into steep roadside ditches and use a modified Stihl brush cutter to cut the trees down. The brush cutter looks like a weed trimmer but has a chain saw blade on a round face. We use the Argo to haul the trees to a truck. We put tracks on the Argo so we can use it during the winter."
According to Gary, birch cuts best if the temperature is above 32?. Willows can be cut in temperatures down to zero or colder and actually bends better in winter. Prices range from $12.50 for a 3 by 5 picture frame to $250 for a 42-in. sq. dining table.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Beacon Woodcraft & Willow Works, 307 Kilbourn, P.O. Box 11, Beacon, Iowa 52534 (ph 641 672-1847 or 641 673-2956; email: beaconwoodcraft.com).
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Twig Furniture Business Thrives On Rustic Look FARM HOME Furniture For 22 years Gary Daniels and his family have been making twig furniture from willow and birch They displayed some of their creations at last year s Farm Progress Show near Alleman Iowa where he talked to potential customers with a constant stream of puns Such as I just stick around I m always going out on a limb and I never get stumped I started out as a tree doctor but I couldn t stand the sight of sap Then I realized I d probably fall out of my patients anyway as a tree doctor If you tie a dog to a tree is he bound to bark? When he gets serious he explains what they do We call ourselves æwillow furniture artists We make twig furniture for every room of your home as well as your deck or garden says Gary Some popular items include picture frames chairs bar stools dressers armoires love seats coffee tables headboards beds bunk beds cabinets dressers wardrobes and even pool tables Over the years we ve made more than 500 different items People like the rustic look says Gary Maybe they have a den with a fireplace and they want to make it look more like a lodge up north Or they use twig furniture in their sun rooms Sometimes people with contemporary homes set up rustic rooms using our furniture From the outside you d never guess they d have our furniture inside We have some clients with multi-million dollar homes Once a month we haul finished furniture in a truck out to furniture stores in Aspen Colo and Lake Tahoe Calif Gary contracts with the Iowa Department of Transportation to harvest willow tree sprouts A highway crew cuts the trees down in select areas then we haul it away in an old bus It eliminates the need to mow roadsides says Gary He also grows two different species of willow trees on his own land - fast-growing Australian willows and Curly willows He uses small Curly willows to decorate picture frames and bigger ones to make legs for tables People like the curled look of the legs He gets his birch bark from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources We cut and build year around We take an all-wheel-drive Argo down into steep roadside ditches and use a modified Stihl brush cutter to cut the trees down The brush cutter looks like a weed trimmer but has a chain saw blade on a round face We use the Argo to haul the trees to a truck We put tracks on the Argo so we can use it during the winter According to Gary birch cuts best if the temperature is above 32? Willows can be cut in temperatures down to zero or colder and actually bends better in winter Prices range from $12 50 for a 3 by 5 picture frame to $250 for a 42-in sq dining table Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Beacon Woodcraft & Willow Works 307 Kilbourn P O Box 11 Beacon Iowa 52534 ph 641 672-1847 or 641 673-2956; email: beaconwoodcraft com
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