The Handmade Hangout #140

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DIY Rustic Brown Bar Top

How do we define freedom? For me, its in being an artist. I'm not the kind of artist that paints portraits, but I wish I was. I don't sculpt and I don't really care to. I don't do pottery and when I do, it doesn't feel like art. Most people don't even recognize what I do as art until they experience one of my pieces. Here's what I do. I invent colors and I design furniture. For me, when I'm creating and beautifying a piece of furniture its as simple as taking a breath. The only sensation I can compare it to is that feeling you get when you're sitting on an airplane and the jet takes off and you suddenly find yourself giddy, breathless, excited,  and high above the clouds. Thats when the vision becomes clear in my minds eye. I take that breath and hold it till I can't hold it anymore. Then when I release the vision into the reality of this world for your physical eyes to see, something magical happens. 

The Handmade Hangout #139

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The Handmade Hangout #138

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Oak Kitchen Makeover: Strip & Stain

Now that I've kind of told you guys the business side of my invention, I'd like to tell you about a few books I think will help you. I highly recommend reading, "Lean Start Up," by Eric Ries. I would actually read that book one chapter at a time and alternate between that and Steve Jobs biography. The reason I would do this is because the rules you learn from Lean Startup are all the rules Jobs breaks and how it gives him a lot of obstacles. I'm not sure how many of you know this, but Jobs was kicked out of his own company. Of course he makes a come back, but that's mostly because he learns how to follow these rules. 

The Handmade Hangout #137

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Rustic Barn Shiplap -How to

Have you ever had a dream? I had a dream. I wanted to work with Home Depot. I wanted to be the Martha Stewart of the HD world. When I first started, I imagined an employee wearing an orange apron taking a needy customer by the hand and escorting them down isle 18. Over the paint and through wood, to my stain. I've talked a little about how this journey started. For the sake of your sanity, I'm going to speed it up a little. After I invented the stain, I got projects with some of the largest architecture companies in the world. I instantly began asking myself if my clients wanted the stain or stained wood. 

The Handmade Hangout #136

So glad you are here for this week's linky party:

Handmade Hangout Linky Party