Category: Custom & Collectible

We do take on custom work. Here you will find pieces, stories and more

  • We’re Staying Home for the Holidays (And Bringing Something Special)

    We’re Staying Home for the Holidays (And Bringing Something Special)

    This week in the workshop, Rex discovered something we’d almost forgotten – the joy of sleeping in our own bed while still sharing our craft with an incredible community of art lovers.

    After a year that has tested us in ways we never expected, we’re beyond excited to announce that Sarkanys Rising will be part of Tucson’s Holiday Arts & Crafts Fair at Reid Park this Thanksgiving weekend. For the first time in what feels like forever, we get to be part of something magical right here in our hometown.

    A Fair with Four Decades of Heart

    This isn’t just any craft fair – it’s a Tucson tradition that’s been bringing together artisans and art lovers for more than 40 years. Over 140 vendors from across the Southwest gather at Gene C. Reid Park, creating a marketplace where every single item is handmade, unique, and crafted with the kind of care that’s becoming harder to find in our world.

    When we read that requirement – “all items must be unique, handmade goods” – we knew we’d found our people. This is exactly the kind of event where stories matter as much as the pieces themselves, where customers appreciate the difference between mass-produced and carefully crafted.

    Why This Feels Like Coming Home

    After months of cancelled events due to health challenges and financial pressures that seemed determined to test our resolve, the simple pleasure of driving across town instead of across state lines feels like a gift in itself. No over-packing the van & trailer, no wondering if we’ll have everything we need, no sleeping in unfamiliar places while fighting to feel our best.

    Instead, we get to wake up in our own home, make sure every piece is perfect, and drive just a few miles to share what we love with a community that gets it. Sometimes the best adventures happen closest to home.

    What We’re Bringing (And What We’re Not Telling You… Yet)

    You’ll find our full range of handcrafted treasures – those chatoyant mahogany boxes that shift and shimmer in the light, cutting boards with stories that span decades, pens that turn everyday writing into something special, and pieces that defy easy categorization but somehow find their perfect homes.

    But here’s where we get a little mysterious: we’re also bringing something extra special that we haven’t talked about before. Starting November 1st, we’ll be launching a gift with purchase program that we’re honestly more excited about than we probably should be. Rex has been working on these pieces in between everything else, and seeing them come together has been one of those bright spots that reminds us why we do this work.

    We can’t spill all the details yet (October has its own surprises we want you to focus on first), but let’s just say that anyone who finds us at Reid Park will discover there’s more to the story than what meets the eye.

    The Details That Matter

    When: Saturday, November 29th (9 AM – 4 PM) and Sunday, November 30th (9 AM – 3 PM)
    Where: Gene C. Reid Park, 920 S. Concert Place (west side of the park off Country Club Road)
    What to Expect: Over 140 Southwest artisans, all handmade goods, and the kind of community gathering that makes the holidays feel magical

    We’ll have our full range of pieces, from affordable treasures to investment heirlooms, plus those special surprises we keep hinting at. And as always, every purchase comes with the stories, the lifetime guarantees, and the kind of personal connection that turns customers into community.

    A Thanksgiving Weekend to Remember

    There’s something perfect about spending Thanksgiving weekend surrounded by the work of makers and creators, celebrating what it means to build beauty with your hands and share it with people who appreciate the difference. After a year that challenged us in every possible way, being part of this community tradition feels like exactly where we need to be.

    Come find us at Reid Park. We’ll have coffee, stories, and pieces that are just waiting to become part of your holiday celebrations. Plus, if you’ve been curious about that gift with purchase program we keep mentioning, well… let’s just say good things come to those who show up.

    Mark Your Calendars

    This is our first local event in longer than we care to admit, and we’re ready to make it count. Whether you’re starting your holiday shopping early, looking for something truly unique, or just want to support local artisans doing what they love, we’ll be there with bells on (and probably with Rex demonstrating his craft because he can never resist a good audience).

    Thanks for being part of our story, Tucson. We can’t wait to be part of yours.

    See you at Reid Park, November 29th and 30th. Come early, stay late, and get ready for some surprises.

  •  Limited Edition Handmade Wood Art? – Actually it’s all One of a Kind

    In a world where you can “buy one in every color” and stores stock hundreds of identical items, we’ve been forced to make a different choice. We intentionally make only “one of a kind” items, and we’re going to tell you exactly why.

    First, there’s the simple reality of our materials. When Rex finds a beautiful piece of Australian red gum burl, there’s only so much of it. That burl grew on one tree, in one place, with grain patterns that will never be repeated. When it’s gone, it’s gone. We could try to approximate the look with different wood, but it wouldn’t be the same piece, so why pretend it is?

    Dawn faces the same thing with her resin work. When she develops a color combination using P-Town Subbie micas — maybe a deep blue swirl with metallic highlights — the exact ratio of pigments, the way they flow together, the ambient temperature of the workshop that day, all contribute to the final result. She could make something similar, but never identical.

    But there’s a deeper reason we keep things small, and it’s about you, the person who chooses our work. When you pick up that Maple & Walnut French Rolling Pin, you’re not getting “item #4,327 off the production line.” You’re getting one of maybe three or four rolling pins Rex made from that particular combination of woods and it’s the only one with that wood in that combination he did. Your cutting board isn’t the same as hundreds of others — it’s one of the few that exist, period.

    We’ve had people ask us, “Could you make fifty of these for our corporate gifts?” The answer is always no, not because we don’t want the business, but because we can’t make fifty identical anythings. Even if we used the same wood species and followed the same general design, each piece would be unique. The wood grain would be different, Rex’s hand movement on the lathe would vary slightly, Dawn’s resin pour would create different patterns.

    There’s something powerful about owning something genuinely rare. Not artificially scarce because a marketing team decided to limit production, but naturally limited because the artist made what the materials allowed and then moved on to the next inspiration.

    This approach means sometimes people miss out. We’ve had customers email us months later asking if we have “that blue and purple bowl from the Tucson Celtic Festival,” and we have to tell them it found its home with someone else. It’s bittersweet, but it’s also what makes finding the right piece feel like destiny rather than just shopping.

    When you own one of our pieces, you know that even if someone else has something similar from us, they don’t have yours. Your Jupiter Pen has wood grain that exists nowhere else. Your cutting board has a story that’s entirely its own.

    In an age of mass production and infinite availability, there’s something beautifully rebellious about saying, “This is it. This is all there is. Choose now or it’s gone forever.” It makes each piece more precious, each decision more meaningful, each ownership more special.

  • What We Love Most About Custom Work

    It’s always a new adventure

    There’s something magical about being asked to create something we haven’t ever made before.

    That’s what custom craftsmanship is for us—a beautiful invitation to explore, experiment, and build a piece of functional art that exists for one person, one story, one moment in time. Whether it’s a heart-shaped dual cutting board trophy for a dog show champion, a commemorative pen to mark a graduation, or a memorial urn to honor a life well-lived, every custom woodworking project starts the same way: with a conversation.

    You tell us what you’re dreaming up, and we start figuring out how to make it real.

    Custom Trophy and Signboard Two of our custom pieces for the Heart of America Cluster dog shows – the signboard for Photos by Lennah and the heart-shaped trophy below. Thank you, Lennah, for letting us share this!

    Why Custom Craftsmanship Keeps Our Workshop Alive

    One of the biggest joys of handcrafted custom work? We get to play. New materials. Unusual shapes. Color combinations that would never work in our regular line. Giant projects that wouldn’t fit at a craft show. Tiny details that matter to just one person.

    Honestly, some of our favorite custom pieces are things we’d never be able to sell online or at art fairs. But when someone commissions exactly what they need—it gives us permission to stretch our skills and pour love into something completely unexpected.

    Take our annual custom work for the Heart of America Cluster dog shows. For several years running, we’ve crafted their Best of Breed, Best Junior Handler, and Variety Group win trophies. Each one is different, each one celebrates a specific achievement, and each one gets to be part of someone’s proudest moment.

    Sure, we’ve had our share of trial and error with custom commissions. Sometimes we put our own money into a piece to make sure it’s exactly right, even if it takes extra time or materials. That’s part of the deal when you choose artisan custom craftsmanship over mass production. You’re not just getting a product—you’re partnering with us in the creative process.

    Our Custom Woodworking Process: What to Expect

    We believe in clear communication and building trust, so here’s exactly how our custom work process works:

    1. Let’s Talk About Your Vision

    Reach out and tell us what you’re imagining. We’ll be completely honest about what we can and can’t do with custom resin and wood work. If it’s a good fit, we’ll move forward together.

    2. Materials, Colors, and Design Approval

    We’ll work with you to select specific wood types, resin colors and effects, sizes, and shapes. Rex might suggest techniques that would work better, or Dawn might have ideas for resin combinations you hadn’t considered. Once you approve the direction, we’ll ask for 50% up front to source materials and get started.

    3. Handcrafted Creation and Updates

    We’ll build your custom piece with the same care and attention we give every project. Depending on the complexity, we’ll keep you updated on progress and send photos along the way.

    4. Professional Photography and Final Payment

    When your piece is complete, you’ll receive professional photos showing every detail. Once you approve and send final payment, we’ll carefully package and ship your custom creation.

    5. Our Custom Work Guarantee

    Our warranty covers any manufacturing issues once your piece arrives safely. We stand behind every custom commission we create.

    The Real Joy: Creating What We’d Never Get to Make Otherwise

    We won’t lie—it’s not really about the money (though we do appreciate being able to pay for materials!). It’s about the pure joy of creating something you dreamed up that maybe no one else ever would have thought to request.

    The custom craftsmanship projects we love most? The ones that let us break our own patterns. The ones that push our skills in directions we didn’t know we could go. The ones that come from someone trusting us with their vision.

    We’ve made memorial pieces that helped families heal. Celebration trophies that marked life achievements. Anniversary gifts that captured decades of love. Retirement presents that honored careers well-lived. Each one taught us something new about our craft and reminded us why we do this work.

    Custom Ideas We’d Love to Explore

    Thinking about commissioning something but not sure what’s possible? Here are some custom woodworking and resin art ideas we’d love to tackle:

    • Corporate awards and recognition pieces with company colors and meaningful symbolism
    • Memorial and commemorative items that honor loved ones with dignity and beauty
    • Anniversary and milestone gifts incorporating special dates, locations, or shared memories
    • Unique serving pieces sized perfectly for your entertaining style
    • Personalized desk accessories that make your workspace feel distinctly yours
    • Trophy and award pieces for organizations, competitions, or achievements
    • Large-scale art installations for homes or businesses
    • Matched sets and collections built over time to your specifications

    Ready to Start Your Custom Project?

    If you’ve got an idea brewing—or just a story in your heart that you’d love to see transformed into something tangible—we’d love to hear from you.

    Maybe it’s something completely practical, like a cutting board sized exactly for your kitchen island. Maybe it’s deeply personal, like a pen made from wood that has family significance. Maybe it’s purely celebratory, like a one-of-a-kind piece to mark a major life event.

    Whatever it is, if it involves wood, resin, craftsmanship, and care, we’re probably the right people to bring it to life.

    Ready to start the conversation? Contact us through our website or give us a call. Let’s talk about what you’re envisioning, and we’ll figure out together how to make it real.

    Interested in commissioning a custom piece? Get in touch with us to discuss your vision. From concept to completion, we’ll work with you to create something truly one-of-a-kind.

    As always, thank you for being part of our story. Your trust in our custom craftsmanship makes our work meaningful, and we’re honored every time you let us turn your ideas into something beautiful and lasting.