Notes from Chris

Episode 1429

James Beckerman first moved to Portland, Oregon over fifteen years ago. Upon cruising the highways and visiting some nearby towns he noticed something quite unusual: there are a lot of carved wooden sculptures in the Beaver State.

These sculptures are created from large pieces of timber or logs and carved with a chainsaw. They depict various animals and characters, but the most common are … bears.

James was taken with the unique artform and, soon after setting up their new home, he surprised his wife with her very own ten-foot wooden bear. James presented it to her on their fifth wedding anniversary—known as the wood anniversary—but truth be told, he loved it a lot more than his wife, who found it a little unbearable.

James bought his own chainsaw and spent hours in the evening carving away and learning to make sculptures, especially bears. In a short period of time he developed techniques to carve more effectively. He also learned how to sand and stain his creations so that they looked more realistic and closer to the ones he’d seen around Oregon.

In fact: he had so many sculptures that they formed a bear-ier around his workspace. It was … em-bear-assing.

Like many artists before him, he turned to Etsy and launched his own store. He called it Boji Bear Carvings, the Boji part being named after his dog. His store would offer “custom chainsaw art with heart.” James envisioned clients giving him a brief of what they wanted, and he’d go away and create the exact wooden bear that their heart desired.

Although Boji wasn’t started to be a money-making exercise, James found that people were happy to pay him to create something special. He now receives commissions for all sorts of occasions, and yes, he’s able to ship these creations. The costs range from $200-1,000 depending on the size and other details. Just be patient … quality work requires for-bear-ence.

 

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  MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Try not to smile when you see James's amazing wood sculptures at his website BojiBearCarvings.com.

SEE ALSO:

• Firefighter Uses Chainsaw for Jumbo-Sized Woodworking: Taking advantage of some downtime, this Alberta firefighter picks up a chainsaw and begins carving out life-sized wooden bears. He sells his creations to universities, restaurants, and anyone who wants a unique (and large!) handcrafted item.
• Maniac Pumpkin Carving! This Spooky Side Hustle Won’t Scare You Away: Get paid up to $700 each for carving pumpkins?? Only on Side Hustle School: a love of all things Halloween leads two friends to carve out a chunk of seasonal profits.
• HVAC Craftsman Carves Out Woodworking Income: This heating and air company sales rep had all but given up on his childhood love of woodworking. But after a six-year break and a random Instagram post, he found his interest rekindling.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work! Yours in the revolution,

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