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Owners of Rustic Life, Joe and Shannon Hodgson, recline in some of their handmade custom furniture south of Sunriver. The juniper chair on the left took the Hodgsons about three weeks to build.
Dean Guernsey / The Bulletin
Bringing the outdoors into the living room
Sunriver couple handcrafts rustic furniture from twisted junipers of the High Desert
By Kimberly Bowker / The Bulletin
Published: April 14. 2009 4:00AM PSTGnarled, mutilated, turned and twisted are all words that describe the juniper tree in its natural habitat.
Joe, 43, and Shannon Hodgson, 40, co-owners of Rustic Life south of Sunriver, find beauty and function in the twists and turns of Central Oregon’s plentiful supply of juniper trees.
The couple began the log furniture business nearly five years ago, making furniture and home accessories from juniper and lodgepole pine. Rustic Life also sells paintings, home accessories and animal carvings from cedar. Items are sold on the company’s Web site, and custom orders are available.
“I equate it to bringing the outdoors inside,” Joe Hodgson said about the essence of rustic furniture.
“It’s the way nature made something on its own, that is unusual,” Shannon Hodgson, his wife, added.
The Hodgsons have been married for nearly 15 years and were inspired to start the business after working for the U.S. Forest Service in lookout towers watching for fires. This will be their 13th summer living in a tower.
“Being in the lookout towers and being in nature around trees — it was like being in art. Mother Nature’s art,” Joe Hodgson said.
Soon after the Hodgsons were married, they found themselves surviving a cold winter night in a snow cave with a search and rescue team looking for them.
The experience generated a conversation about what they would have missed in life if they hadn’t survived, Shannon Hodgson said. They were inspired to pursue a life they wanted, which included living in lookout towers and concentrating on their artistic goals.
Joe and Shannon Hodgson never had official training in furniture-making, but they dedicated time to research books and learn from furniture store owners.
They both took woodworking classes in high school, and Shannon Hodgson’s first project was built when she was a child and wanted her parents to buy her the children’s Handy Andy Tool Set.
“I built a birdhouse and nailed it to my parents kitchen table,” she said.
Trees used for furniture are harvested from various locations, including private property, permits from the U.S. Forest Service and fuel reduction programs.
“Ranchers hate it,” Joe Hodgson said about the juniper trees. “They can’t get rid of it fast enough so we have a pretty easy supply when we need.”
The Hodgsons classify themselves as earth-friendly and cut only as many trees as they need. They also recycle, compost and the wood scraps eventually go into the stove, but not without an appreciation of the wood.
“We love the twists and turns and grain patterns,” Joe Hodgson said.
His wife added, “We can’t even load the firewood shed without noticing grain patterns.”
Furniture pieces are made with a mortise and tennon method, or joined together with glued wood pegs instead of nails or screws. Metals are not involved, since they can strip the wood, the Hodgsons said.
“There is something about this wood that is a challenge,” Shannon Hodgson said. “It’s a lot different than going out to get a two-by-four.”
Furniture pieces can last up to around 150 years, according to the Hodgsons, and are items that can be passed down as heirlooms to children and grandchildren.
Rustic furniture contributes a unique aura to a room, very different from a room that contains a La-Z-Boy or a piece of furniture from IKEA, according to Shannon Hodgson. The furniture style is sometimes categorized as only for a cowboy or cabin-style home, according to the Hodgsons, but the pieces can fit into many types of decors.
The economy has influenced the small business, and the Hodgsons have responded by lowering prices. The husband-wife team plans to continue as they are and make enough revenue to cover supplies with a little profit.”
“We’re going to ride out this economy thing because it’s fun and we enjoy doing this,” Joe Hodgson said about operating the business.
Joe and Shannon Hodgson sometimes work until the wee hours of the morning in their workshop, listening to music and making creations with wood and power tools that represent Central Oregon roots and lifestyle.
As they did when they started their business, according to Sharon Hodgson, “You got to go with your inspiration.”
The Hodgsons jointly answered the following questions by e-mail:
Q: What contributes to making your products original?
A: When we collect a piece of wood, it may be years before it is used. We never really know what it is going to be until inspiration hits. Then it may be a lamp, a table, a chair, a carving of a dolphin, etc.
Q: What is the process of taking a natural piece of wood and making it into a finished product?
A: Harvest. Debarking. Air drying (sometimes several years). Then the piece has to tell you what it wants to be when it grows up. Sanding (endless hours). Joining and gluing. Finally, finishing which can be simple (usually not) or very complicated and time consuming.
Q: As a small business, how do you compete with large furniture stores and chains?
A: We offer products the public will never see in a large furniture store.
Q: How are the products connected to Central Oregon and the outdoor lifestyle?
A: Central Oregon is a great place to be a rustic-style furniture builder. We have a diversity of woods available that are unique in the world. Although there are 30 species of juniper throughout the world, the old growth juniper in the High Desert is only found here and in the Holy Land. Some get over a thousand years old. Having even a small piece of these treasures on your mantle, bookshelves, or somewhere in your home connects you to the outdoor lifestyle.
Q: Many of the furniture pieces displayed on the Web site are shown in an outdoor setting. Why is that?
A: It is bringing nature into the home. It shows the origins of the furniture as well as the origins of life itself. It is also the best lighting for photographs.
Q: What do you hope customers get from owning a piece of Rustic Life furniture?
A: One of the great joys of life is giving and receiving. We love it when a customer feels as if they found a treasure. One family told us his lamp would be a family heirloom for generations and that it was priceless. Our larger pieces are all signed and numbered in hopes of becoming valued antiquities long from now. We hope to, and have, become friends with some of our customers. It is a great joy to create but even more so when a customer is excited about a piece. No amount of money can buy that satisfaction.
Kimberly Bowker can be reached at 541-617-7815 or kbowker@bendbulletin.com.
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