Hand-made or not?

We use a laser cutter to cut the wood parts for our boxes. And we use vector graphics software to draft the designs for our boxes. So, it’s true that we use technology and have called our process “digital woodworking.” But the boxes don’t design themselves and they certainly don’t make themselves. I think using a laser cutter is like using a specialized dovetail cutter or other power tools. I spend a lot more time designing, sanding, gluing, and finishing a box than I do setting up our laser cutter and watching it make a cut. 

Is the work original?

Yes. We only use our own designs. I have zero interest in using someone else’s designs. What would be fun, or interesting, or creative about that? Why bother? We can, and do, produce multiple copies of our designs, but each object is still handmade by us.  

When we first started making boxes, we didn’t sign or date anything or keep track of the number of items we produced. It was still our original work, made by us in our own shop. We have grown as artists and show our work at juried shows. Our practices have evolved. 

In the art world uniqueness and originality are important. We produce some one-of-a-kind items that can't be reproduced. We produce some items as small limited editions. We also produce things in unlimited series. In this case, each item in the series will use the same design but vary in some significant way. We may use different kinds of wood, different paint, or dye colors. You would see each one as different if they sat on a shelf together. 

Art show rules determine what we submit to a jury and what we bring to an art show. A lot of art shows allow artists to sell prints of their work if they are labeled as such. These prints are kind of like our unlimited production items except that each one of our items is made by our own hands rather than coming from a print shop. Each one is still handmade by me or Dan.  

To avoid confusion, here is what we are doing now: 

• Unique items are signed and dated.  (Like the Hairy Monster box shown in the photo accompanying this blog post)
• Limited editions will never exceed a pre-determined number of objects. Each object in the edition is numbered, signed, and dated. When the edition is complete – usually no more than 10 – no more will be made.  (You will find these in the "Limited Editions" section of our Etsy shop.)
• Items from an unlimited series are made using the same design file, signed, and dated. We will keep making these as long as we want to, but each one is unique in some obvious way – different dye, paint, wood, or some other detail. We photograph each one before they leave our shop. (A good example of these are the 3 Tier Jewelry Boxes shown in the "Unique Signed Originals" section of our Etsy shop.)
• Unlimited production items usually have our shop logo etched on each one. We don’t number or count these. We make them when we feel like it or when a customer asks us to. (You can find these items listed in the "Ornaments" and "Other Interesting Things" sections of our Etsy shop.)

I understand the issue here and want to be transparent about our practices. I like working with my hands. It’s an important part of my artistic process and I don’t have anyone else in my shop to help me or make anything for me. We don’t license or sell any of our designs to be manufactured elsewhere. We may make a few of our designs available under a creative commons license for teaching purposes, but these will never be from a limited edition, or unlimited series. 

-Melissa