The Woodchip Shop

I became interested in woodcarving while watching my father whittle when I was young. About 10 years ago my father became ill and wanted me to think about learning to use his tools. I did and we spent many happy hours together before he passed on. My interest in wood and what could be sculpted from wood eventually grew into a passion. I began entering my carvings into shows and fairs and started winning ribbons. I became more and more excited with each ribbon I won. Then I won a "Best of Show" ribbon and I was hooked.

I quit my full time job and started teaching classes in my garage and started ordering tools and reference books for my students. I started getting more and more students and eventually had to find a new place for classes. I found a wonderful little shop with a classroom beside it and a house behind it in Des Moines, Iowa. It was perfect. My wife's father was a wonderful woodworker and cabinet maker and he was nicknamed "woodchip" He had just passed away when we bought the store and so the store was named in his honor. And the Woodchip Shop was born.

Our Woodchip Shop T-Shirts

I now teach in several midwestern states and travel all across the United States selling tools. books, and supplies. This year I will be bouncing from one side of the U.S to the other. In January I was in Louisiana and saw first hand the after effects of Hurricane Katrina. There were numerous homes just flattened. Then I went Ft Myers, Florida for a show, from there I went to Keokuk, Iowa, then to Santa Barbara, California followed by a trip to North Dakota. After North Dakota I will have a two week break and then I go to Minnesota to teach a 4 day class. It ends on a Wednesday and I have to be at the college in Baldwin, Kansas on Thursday to teach. My schedule is pretty hectic sometimes but I really love it.

If any of you get to the Des Moines, Iowa area be sure to stop and see us. You can also visit us on the web at www.woodchipshop.com. We have a Prostores shopping cart with a link to Paypal. You can shop with any credit card or pay with Paypal when you complete your purchases. At the request of our students and customers we are also now selling T-shirts with a cute logo on the front which is a tribute to my dad who loved to carve birds. You will be able to find these on our website and in our Ebay store shortly.

Please visit our eBay store at http://stores.ebay.com/The-Woodchip-Shop.