Designing whimsical outdoor buildings and furniture is a specialty of mine and I love to re-use what’s available. This ‘Alice in Wonderland’ shed was inspired by reclaimed doors and cedar lumber found at Resource in Boulder. I’ll work with you to design and build the perfect piece to match the feeling you’re looking for.
A LIFETIME OF CRAFTSMANSHIP
I’ve been building and fixing things for more than 35 years. Been swinging a hammer since before I could walk. I take pride in my work and take care of my tools like I do my clients. I’ve taught woodworking and technical skills, wilderness survival, life skills, bow-carving, and traditional outdoor skills & primitive technology. I enjoy helping people with projects from installing crown moulding to garbage disposals. I’m a woodworker, cabinet-maker, all-around handyman, and once-and-future coffin-builder.
MY PROMISE
I’ve been called ‘honest to a fault’, which I take as a compliment. I take pride in my work and value true craftsmanship. Whether I’m designing a custom piece for you or installing a light bulb, I promise you that your project will receive my undivided skillset and attention. If I’m not 110% confident in my ability to serve you, I’ll shoot straight. And recommend someone else for the job.
I AM DOUG
I was raised by self-made parents: a Navy veteran/engineer father and a school secretary mother, who believed in hard work and a do-it-ourselves lifestyle. We didn’t have a lot of extra money, so family vacations meant building a shed or clubhouse in the backyard. My teachers were dirt and sawdust. My playthings, hammer and nails. I’ve often said that my hands are smarter than my head. I’m a kinesthetic learner and teacher and impart a love of craft in all of my work.
I’m a classically-trained fine woodworker, with a particular fondness for the wood lathe. Years of projects includes jewelry boxes, lightsabers, ‘Harry Potter’ wands, treasure chests, chess boards, candlesticks, piggy banks, wooden pens, ornaments, goblets, signs, and much more. I couldn’t even begin to count the number of wedding, birthday, or other special occasion presents I’ve made.
Great fun for children and adults, fidget boards make great additions to playspaces, tree houses, waiting rooms, therapists’ offices, the car, or anywhere else you can imagine. No two fidget boards are alike, as each one is customized with different hardware, contraptions, and ‘fidgets’. It’s a tactile delight of textures, twists, turns, and ties. These can be any size, even small enough for the lap during a car ride. They can be handheld, wall-mounted, or even turned into a free-standing table. Get the hands busy and the imagination runs wild!
One of my favorite parts of carpentry is working with each individual bit of grain, piece of wood, or tree to reveal the characteristics that are unique in all of the universe. The beauty and strength of a project is often dictated more by paying attention to the growth of the wood than by my hand.
I love building custom designed pieces and there’s very little that’s more satisfying than building something that will then support you - like a chair, or a table.
In this category, as in others, I love to repurpose materials when I can, which has added benefits including lower materials costs and keeping more stuff out of landfills. Win-win.
Windows, doors, trim, electrical, plumbing…
When you own a home, the list of maintenance (or improvement) goes on and on and on and…
I have experience with most home maintenance tasks and am happy to talk through projects with you. I strive to keep your costs as low as possible while never sacrificing quality. I’ve worked on homes by many of the common builders in the area and am familiar with the materials used over the decades.
If you’ve got a problem that needs fixing, give me a call and let’s look at it together.
I find chickens oddly endearing. Maybe it’s their Jurassic sound. Or that bird-brained head tilt they do. Or that they think with their stomachs. Regardless, I enjoy designing and building homes for chickens. There’s a lot of room for style and incorporating reused materials, so it’s great fun doing a chicken coop.
Whether you have all hens or roosters too, we can design a coop and a run that suits your needs (and theirs!) and is at once practical and unique. Check out the photos below!
Have a kit or project that needs to be assembled, installed, or modified? I’m your guy.
Fences can be both practical and stylized. I’ve mended and built a lot of fences (in as many different styles) over the years. I pride myself in bringing the eye and precision of a fine woodworker to all of my projects, including the ones more often thought of as ‘rough’.
Scroll down for a few fences.
Who doesn’t love cooking with mud? I’ve been designing and building custom children’s wooden furniture, ‘appliances’ and mud kitchens since my nieces and nephew were born — and now they’re in high school! My particular style is a naturalist’s rustic style, using branches, logs, and tree cookies for a mixture of texture, color, and even educational opportunities. Plus - it reveals nature’s beauty even more! I like to incorporate moving parts, like knobs that really twist on a wooden ‘range’ for instance. Incorporate fidgets for even more fun!
Scroll down for more Mud Kitchens!
From masonry and rough framing to decks and stairs, I can design and build your project. Creativity, both in problem-solving and style, is my companion. Let’s develop a creative solution to whatever you need built.
Crown moulding and all trimwork are particular specialties of mine. And they add that ‘finished’ look to a room. I’ve trimmed out bedrooms, bathrooms, basements, even storage closets.
I’m also a cabinetmaker and classically-trained fine woodworker, so I can build you that custom piece you’ve always dreamed of.
Give me a call to discuss your project!
I’m an animal lover and, even though I’m still a dog person, there was this one particular orange tabby named George who taught me to realize that cats can be pretty cool, too. I learned a lot about cat behavior from him and now, four cats later, all of ours have enjoyed customized play spaces. Whether you have vertically-inclined cats, hunters, playful ones, kittens, or seniors, I can design and build you an outdoor (or indoor) play space for your cat(s) to enrich their enjoyment of life. There are tons of opportunities for play, nap, and intellectual spots in a catio.
I have a lot of fond memories of the very first clubhouse I built. It was with my dad when I was barely five years old. It was his design and all wood - right down to the swings’ seats.
Treehouse construction has come a long way in recent years and I love incorporating a whimsical, naturalistic style into the ones I build. Whether you have a mature tree(s) to support a house, want to build it on stilts, or a combination of the two: let’s design and build you your dream (tree) home.
Fun Fact: treehouses aren’t just for kids! What if your home office, she shed, yoga room, or workshop was in a tree?
Need your space to be more functional? Feeling like you need a change?
From unfinished basements to bathroom makeovers, I can help make your dream a reality and your home into your haven. Give me a call to discuss your project!
The scrollsaw is another favorite tool in the woodshop, largely because of the freeform creativity for which it allows. I’m a particular fan of ‘relief’ cuttings on the scrollsaw, as you can see in each of these images: the light tone is hand cut birch plywood that I then frame on top of a deep velvety color, like black (or red), which makes a two-tone imagine really POP. I can take a photograph and reproduce it by hand in wood with the scrollsaw, like you see here. Each piece is a one of a kind.
The scrollsaw also lends itself to other fine work, like puzzles, intarsia, and signs. Feel free to contact me to talk about some possibilities.
I can help you troubleshoot and fix problems with appliances, or replace them altogether. I don’t carry a certification with any of the major appliance brands, so if you have a warranty you probably want to go that route. But it’s often easier (and cheaper) to diagnose and fix an appliance than replace, even in this age of planned obsolescence. If you do have a new appliance, I can install almost any, from dishwashers and garbage disposals to washers and dryers.
If you want a handmade sign for a business, your kitchen, front door, or even a gift, I’m your guy. We can design a sign that captures your aesthetic and keeps those heads turning.
