By Heather Thorstensen
Agri News staff writer
CANNON FALLS, Minn. — Mark Garner set a goal for himself when he was 38 years old.
He was working as a meat cutter in a grocery store and sick of punching the clock. He promised himself he’d be self-employed by the time he hit 40.
He was living in Menahga and knew a man who owned a log home company. Mark and his wife, Kristi, worked there on his days off. They learned how to make log furniture and Kristi learned how to chainsaw carve. The rustic pieces they created fit well with their love for the outdoors.
“It came pretty easy for both of us,” Mark said.
Just half a year later, they launched their own company and its grown into their full-time business. Garner’s Log Furniture has become a part of art festivals, craft shows and fairs.
In March, Mark and Kristi moved to Cannon Falls to escape northern Minnesota’s harsh winters and be closer to family. They are both originally from the Rochester area.
They brought their business with them, and are looking to get more established in the region.
They make all kinds of furniture, including bedroom sets, book cases, armoires, mantels and benches. Their popular three-foot by six-foot dining room table sells for $594 and chairs with artwork sell for $119 each. Small items, like coat racks, are popular, too. Candle holders range from $11 to $20.
They predominately use pine, white cedar and diamond willow. These are soft wood varieties that are abundant in Minnesota. They hand-harvest the diamond willow in swamps up north. Antlers are also incorporated in some pieces.
Mark makes their products by hand. He uses a power washer to peel back bark, then dries the wood before it’s sanded, glued and screwed together. He can take orders for custom dimensions.
Kristi helps make the furniture if they’re behind schedule, and they’ll work together like an assembly line, but most of the time she’s adding artwork.
When she was a little girl, she would climb on top of her family’s chicken coop, tear off the cedar shakes, paint them and sell them. Now she’s always wood-burning or painting their products. The vast majority of their items have her touch. She has a special technique of wood-burning a design, painting it in and wood-burning around it. It makes the images look sharper.
“No one does what I do,” she said.
Mostly, the art is a nod to nature — animals, birds, pine cones and branches — but she can create any scene a customer likes. She always signs and dates her work because no two are the same.
“Once (customers) see it, they love it, they got to have it,” she said.
Their goal is to have new styles of products or new varieties of wood every year.
They work and sell out of their home. With little overhead costs, they’re able to bring a wholesale price to the retail market. In the future, they plan to cut down on traveling to craft shows and sell more items online. They’re developing a web site. They also sell items at The Woods in Maple Grove, Jim Whiting Nursery and Garden Center in Rochester and Sargent’s Nursery in Red Wing. People may check out their products Dec. 3-6 at Maplewood Mall in Maplewood.
To set up an appointment to see Garner’s Log Furniture products, contact Mark and Kristi at (507) 263-2709 or garnerslogfur@yahoo.com.
Source : http://www.agrinews.com
