Review Fix chats with expert woodworker Brandon Kiper, who discusses his Etsy page, which features his replica Jordan shoe boxes and even cooler creations. Kipper also breaks down his goals for 2016 and how he started working in the industry.
Review Fix: How did you start making these creations?
Brandon Kipper: It all started when I bought a dart board and soon realized my friends were turning my wall into swiss cheese when they missed the board. I looked for a cheap backing I could put on the wall to protect it, but I couldn’t find one I liked. I created a frame out of an old pallet I got my hands on and added a cork board to protect the tips of the darts when they hit. After this, I got a little wood working bug and decided I could create more things for myself and others.
Review Fix: What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever built?
Kipper: This is another case of me not being able to find exactly what I wanted for a price I also wanted. I had been looking at getting a pool table for a little while that had a dark wood pattern to match the scheme of the room it was going in. My budget did not allow that to happen of course. I looked up countless ideas of pool tables and jotted down things that I could make myself. After drawing up the plans, I started building a pool table and it turned out to be very level. I just bought the sticks and pocket holders. After I built the dart board backing I never thought I would make anything too crazy, but an 8ft pool table really took the cake for this one.
Review Fix: How long does it usually take you to make something?
Kipper: My highest selling item would be the replica Jordan shoe box storage units. They take about a week of on and off work. The painting and glossing take the longest just by the drying period alone; however, I can draw up plans, cut the wood, piece everything together and install the drawers in about 4 hours. The rest is just detail work.
Review Fix: What are your goals for 2016?
Kipper: My goals for 2016 would be to find a cheaper way to make and ship my items so I can try and sell them at a lower price or reach more people. Also expand into new fields and really extend my horizon. I’ve only been working with wood for a few months now, so I’m really hoping I can start more projects and create things that more people would like.
Review Fix: Where can people find out more about your work?
Kipper: I have an Etsy page where some of my items can be purchased. I’ll also post some of my work on my Instagram page @b_kipper, but that’s mostly my personal life.
Review Fix: Anything else you’d like to say?
Kipper: I’m a 21-year-old college student working on graduate school to get a PhD in Psychology, I do woodworking and creating as a hobby. I’m not in it for the money, I just like being able to create something out of nothing and make someone happy with the final product. I love personalizing orders and making sure the product they get is a one of one creation. In my short experience with this, it makes me very happy to take a person’s idea of what they’re looking for and make it come to life. The positive feedback and pictures I’ve gotten of people using my products trumps any form of money I would like to get from this business.
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