About me...

It kind of goes against the grain tooting my own horn, but just to let you know who you are dealing with, etc.

I've loved working with wood since I was a kid, making airplanes from wooden crates and tying a string to the wing and whirling them around. Later in my teens I got interested in wood carving. Years later I saw a book by Harold Enlow and discovered real wood carving. Then came the birds, mainly the eagle. I sold a few carvings, but wanted to do something that would really sell.

I learned how to make cars and trucks and finally the motorcycle. I designed a few, sold 5 at $150 each, but they would take about 40 hours each to construct. My sister got me into craft shows after I made a couple of "lawn Swingers". They were a hit, especially the "Old Crow", but it seemed that I just couldn't get away from about $4 an hour considering the construction time. After about 35 years as a mailman I got to retire and really get into it.

One day I saw an article in Wood Magazine by Peter Chapman, on his new way of making wooden puzzle animals. I made 8 snakes and sold them all about half way through the next craft show. I must have really flooded Las Vegas with snakes, as the sales finally slowed down. A brother in law got me started on lizards, and that's all it took, pretty soon I was designing all kinds of puzzle animals. The good part is that they all sell at the craft shows, as long as you don't price them too high.

About 15 years ago I got my first Atari computer and fell in love. Recently I retired my 600 megahertz computer and bought a new 2.66 gigahertz one, so you can see I'm really enjoying "The Golden Years"! I quit doing the craft shows, just a little tough to handle at my age and am just making a few items now and then for sale on the Internet. My last 'critter' was the kangaroo, now I'm thinking of a dog, using my own pooch for a model? They're all fun, if you sell some it helps pay for the wood, and in my case, the internet service provider charges. I hope you enjoy these as much as I did, that's the main part of wood "work", having fun!

I've just recently added a website just for photos, my old stuff made over the years and pictures I've received from friends. You can check it out at LensCrafts and maybe send me a picture of something you've made?

Leonard Wardle