The process and eventual outcome of furniture craft provides a necessary staple around which some of the most basic human needs revolve. Eating, drinking, and socializing. Enjoying these fundamental privileges is only furthered over a finely crafted slab of salvaged cypress or well-designed, beautifully stained surface of laminated spruce. Providing such a service is the pleasure of the following proud businesses.
THE RUGGED ROOSTER
Jessica Morris and her husband Glen moved from Saskatchewan’s seas of grain and rolling hills back to Vancouver Island’s salty shores and rugged reaching mountains four years ago. Originally native to the Comox Valley, the couple returned to the West Coast, re-inspired and thankful to be home, with, as Jessica says, “A calling from God” and a strong desire to surround themselves with family. In 2013, Glen quit his job as a full-time welder, a big leap of faith for their growing family. With fresh designs coupled with fabrication and construction know-how, the husband and wife team began making furniture full-time. The calling seems to have paid off, as Jessica and Glen produce unique hand-made pieces booked months in advance. It was “A huge leap” returning from the plains Jessica explains, “… but the best choice we made in our married life so far.”
On beginning in furniture design, Jessica explains, “We saw an old skid laying on the side of the road and picked it up. We sanded it… and made it into a coffee table. Our first $125 was made … we continued on to make an additional 13 tables through that summer.” Jessica and Glen are passionate about the creative process, and as they continue to build the business, Jessica says she’ll be enrolling in further education for interior design.
When they’re not designing in the shop, Jessica and Glen love travelling around the island with their kids, continually inspired by their faith and by the beauty of the island’s wilderness playground.
HUGHES TIMBER CRAFT
Ryan Hughes began his journey in the wood trade at 16 when he started working in a fast-paced cabinet making shop. Over the years, he took techniques he learned in the shop home with him where he started building custom furniture. His talents in the visual arts nurtured his skills in construction. Admittedly obsessed with the creative process as a whole, wood continues to be his medium of choice.
“It was a combination of my love for nature and utilizing a natural material for functional art that inspired me to apprentice as a carpenter.” Ryan’s practical experience led him to enrol in a technical program in architecture, to satisfy his love for design and building science. Ryan has tested his mettle designing and building timber frames and log homes, and carries that knowledge into building furniture, “the craft has influenced my furniture in a big way as I often see a beautiful timber framed home as a large piece of fine furniture.”
Ryan has designed furniture from off-cuts and salvaged materials that would otherwise be tragically destined for the burn pile, accenting the featured wood material with custom metal work and even stone inlay. Drawing inspiration from the natural world, Ryan enjoys hiking and kayaking, as well as finding fresh tracks in the alpine.
Giving back to the wilderness that informs his time in and out of the shop, Ryan makes a contribution to the Cumberland Community Forest Society with every piece of furniture sold.