As a maker myself, I appreciate other makers and want to celebrate them and what they do. Every so often, I will post about a maker I admire. A few simple interview questions to get to know them better and images of their work will make up this Maker column. I know you will love them just as much as I do.
I followed a gorgeous shot of a wooden camera on Pinterest and found myself in the world of Smiling Tree Toys. After a little oogling, I realized we resided in the same state. Add to that the eco-friendly, handmade quality of their toys and my love was entrenched. I’m not sure who had a better time with this photo session, Sweet J or me.
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Who are you and what do you do?
We’re Justin and Kathleen, the smiling faces behind Smiling Tree Toys. We’re fun-loving kids at heart with a deep appreciation for living simply, being kind to Mother Nature, and creating thoughtful, handmade gifts. You’ll find our little wood shop on the prairie just outside of Lamberton, Minnesota, where Justin enjoys his ten-step ‘commute’ to work, and Kathleen is happy to return to the wide open spaces of her childhood. Best of all, we share it with our three-year-old daughter, and we can hardly wait to welcome a second little one to our family in December 2013.
How did you get here?
Our family business began in 2010 when we returned to the U.S. after serving two years with the Peace Corps in Niger, West Africa. After living in a small, strongly-knit community in West Africa, we wanted the same for our new home in the U.S. We chose Kathleen’s family roots in rural southwestern Minnesota as our little place to call home. Justin’s always been passionate about crafting wood, and Kathleen’s been in love with all things handmade for as long as she can remember. Add parenthood to the mix, and the epiphany came almost immediately: creating handmade wooden toys is what we were meant to do. And so it began.
Smiling Tree Toys isn’t just a family business; it’s a defining part of our family. We keep the personal, the passionate, and the eco-handmade touch in every aspect of Smiling Tree. From sustainably harvested American hardwoods, to our homegrown organic camelina oil/beeswax finish, to natural cotton drawstring bags made-in-the-USA, we ensure every aspect of Smiling Tree Toys is respectful of and gentle on mother earth. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
We like to say that we “work hard to play hard,” although most days in the wood shop hardly feel like work at all — come on, we get to make TOYS for a living!
Tell us about your day.
Most mornings start at 6:00am. We get a few hours of shop and computer work in before the little one wakes. Then it’s good morning kisses, a hearty family breakfast, and planning the rest of the day.
“Did you see that note about rushing the personalized block order to ship tomorrow?”
“Yep, I’m on it. Do you want me to be on Daddy duty after nap time? That way you can work on your to-do list.” And so on…
The wood shop hums all day long with the happy sounds of toy making, reggae music, and a laughing little girl. Our home office is the scene of quick ins-and-outs as we reply to emails, write thank you notes for orders shipping soon, and jot down those eureka! moments when new design ideas pop into mind. In between all of that we’re playing hide-and-seek, reading books, and chasing after the little one chasing after her kitties.
Our days end with a homemade family meal, usually with lots of goodies from our garden, our family’s nearby organic farm, and from the local dairy. Summer evenings find us out on bike rides, playing with the dog, or working in the garden. Winter days end with plenty of indoor play and story time, hot drinks, and early bedtime.
What inspires you? How do you stay inspired?
As cliche as it may be, parenthood and watching our little girl learn/explore daily is truly the best source of inspiration for our work. Most big box stores today are filled with mass produced, foreign-made plastic toys, none of which we can really be sure how and with what they were created. Despite that, there’s a growing trend for parents to seek out and demand toys and other child-related items that are safe, made-to-last, and support the US economy. We truly believe in and are passionate about what we do, and feel that we’re positively contributing to our little place on this great big planet.
We awake on Monday mornings full of energy and looking forward to the week ahead, and most days end with a great feeling of satisfaction both personally and professionally. And that, in of itself, is inspiration to “keep on keeping on!”
If you weren’t toy makers, you would be a _________.
If we weren’t toy makers, we’d probably be living somewhere in Africa continuing our volunteer work and growing lots of tropical fruits and veggies in our backyard.
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Photos do not do their items justice. The pieces are smooth and gorgeous; I felt at peace just holding them in my hands. Sweet J was otherwise inspired, running the vehicles over every surface. To each their own, I suppose. :) The pieces pictured are the camera, smiling moon balancer, old school truck, helicopter and the cutest penguin bowling set.
And for this heart of mine readers, use the code thom10 to receive 10% off your purchase on www.smilingtreetoys.com. The code is valid for 10 days so hurry! Christmastime is straight ahead!
For more Smiling Tree Toys, find them here:
Site: www.SmilingTreeToys.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/SmilingTreeToys
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/SmilingTreeToys
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SmilingTreeToys
Blog: www.SmilingTreeToys.blogspot.com
This is not a sponsored post. I have hand-chosen the makers because I like their work. To keep the style and look of this blog, I did photograph their work myself. The pieces were then returned to their makers.
Thank you so much for telling us about Smiling Tree Toys.
Their things are so lovely, and I’ve ordered something already.