Volunteer Woodworker

Kelly Maxwell's artistry starts with the world's most beautiful large live-edge slabs of wood. His experience tells him how to best use that beauty to make a piece of furniture that will be a focal point in a fine home. By celebrating the wood's natural beauty he gives it a new life.

Kerry Smith found himself bed bound and in need of something to do. He turned to carving birds and became an acclaimed master of the art.

Devasted by the loss of loved ones, Myra Orton found a way to channel her grief into purpose by turning beautiful pieces, each with a story to tell.

Alf Sharp left law school and found his niche in furniture making. His furniture can be found in fine homes across the country and in collections at historic homes, like Andrew Jackson's Hermitage.

Grant Batson is more than great at a lot of things. In his own relaxed style, he goes about life making the things that interest him most, like guitars and smoking pipes made from Italian Burr.

Craig Nutt is a garden variety artist. His wooden chairs, tables, and sculptures unbelievably feature corn, butter beans, and other vegetables as legs, stretchers, and back rests.

Described as a genius by many, “What if” fuels John Lucas’s vision and works of art. John describes the processes he uses to create his unconventional works.

Anne Briggs is a social media phenom known as "Anne of All Trades". She is also a farmer, teacher, and woodworker who turns weakness into strength. She tells us how as she demonstrates how to make something for the kitchen from firewood.

Anne of All Trades is a multi-talented woodworker, gardener, builder, and creator of many things. She is a social media star with a huge following because of her "Can-Do” attitude. Her natural ability makes her a fantastic woodworker and teacher. Anne takes us on a tour of her farm, her future woodworking shop, and demonstrates how she carves with an ax and a knife.

Retiring to the perfect tiny house he and his wife designed and built on a Tennessee hilltop, Bill
Lester decided building banjos and dulcimers would make life perfect. We will hear his story,
take a tour of their 600-square-foot dream home and then go to his spacious shop to learn how
he makes his beautiful banjos from bending hoops to inlay.

George Wurtzel was born with a degenerative eye disease that left him unsighted by the age of twenty. The Volunteer Woodworker visits George at his East Tennessee workshop where he shares his compelling story and shows us how he accomplishes his woodworking projects.