Neo-Traditionalist New Artisans: CustomMade Makers and Craftsmen Communities Featured on EcoSalon.com

CustomMade Artisan Quentin Kelley of Infusion Furniture, featured in an article on EcoSalon.com, relaxes in his "Jersey Chair."

At CustomMade, we love the stories behind the pieces.  Have you ever wondered about the stories behind the artisans?  What did they do before they became artisans, and why did they choose their paths?

More people are leaving behind their traditional 9-to-5 careers to build “functional, artisan quality pieces for the home,” writes K. Emily Bond in her recent article, “The New Artisans: Craftsmen Communities,” for EcoSalon.com.  What Popular Mechanics has referred to as a “hidden underground of craftsmen communities,” Ms. Ward identifies as the New Artisans: neo-traditionalists at the vanguard of the growing trend of makers pursuing “a more sustainable way of being” by producing green products for consumers looking for local craftsmanship.  There’s more good news for the U.S.: “we’re actually starting to make things again.”

With thirteen curved parts, the maple "Jersey Chair" by Infusion Furniture at CustomMade.com is one of the most challenging pieces Mr. Kelley has ever created.

Five artisans from diverse backgrounds are featured in the article. Alyssa Ettinger of Alyssa Ettinger Design was a former magazine editor who now makes “Modern Country” porcelain.  Former web designer Donna Brady opened Re-Surface and now “produces hand-crafted lighting and interior décor objects with ‘Art at heart, and design in mind.’”  Trained engineer Jan Hendzel is now creating cabinets and furniture as part of Hendzel + Hunt Studio.

Two featured New Artisans are members of the CustomMade family.

Quentin Kelley of Infusion Furniture pursued a career in international development out of school. “But woodworking had always been in the back of my mind,” says Mr. Kelley.  “The work is always challenging and never boring because I wear many hats: designer, builder, mechanic, marketer. And it just blows my mind that you can take a pile of lumber and turn it into a beautiful piece of furniture.”

The world of poetry and Classics filled the head of Sean Schieber of Myrtle Grove Furniture in both his undergraduate and graduate careers.  After some time in the corporate world, he became a furniture designer and maker for some of the same reasons he enjoys writing.

CustomMade artisan Sean Schieber of Myrtle Grove Furniture is currently working on this Greene and Greene inspired bubinga dining table, as shown on EcoSalon.com

“There is an ongoing process of refinement, of seeking the most sculptural line to construct a coherent whole,” Mr. Schieber notes. “It is at once meditative and active, requiring attentiveness to the smallest details.”

Black Walnut Maloof-Style Rocking Chair by Myrtle Grove Furniture at CustomMade.com

Congratulations to Mr. Kelley and Mr. Schieber!

If you’re a consumer searching for members of “craftsmen communities” near your neck of the woods, try CustomMade’s “Location Search.”

If you’re a Neo-Traditionalist underground maker, consider joining the CustomMade community, the premier online marketplace for connecting shoppers looking for custom items with skilled artisans.

EcoSalon.com is “the conscious culture and fashion website” for women that celebrates, criticizes, and covers “what’s now – and what’s next – in fashion, culture, shelter, food, and sex.”