St Ives Farmers’ Market A chat with Graham Morris of Graham’s Wood Craft What did you before you started your business?
My background is in engineering, and I was a workshop foreman in Birmingham before I moved to St Ives 37 years ago. I wanted to get out of the rat race, and I bought a restaurant in Fore Street, which I ran with my parents for eight years – they cooked, and I did front-ofhouse. After I met my wife, Ann, I went to work in her family’s newsagent business for a while, and then I worked at Tesco in Camborne and Carbis Bay.
What led you to start working with wood?
I needed something to do when I retired. I’ve always been fascinated by computers, and I rebuilt about 500 of them for charity – we took three ambulances and a mobile dental unit to Moldova, which is the poorest country in Europe. But I needed a hobby which didn’t involve sitting down all day. My mother-in-law had logs in her garden, and I decided to see what I could do with them.
How did you decide what to make?
I started making trinket boxes, and boxes with drawers in them. I went on to make shapes which I thought children would like – butterflies and dolphins – and then I set myself the challenge of making a lighthouse. I’ve done several lighthouses since then, and also a VW campervan, and an E-type Jaguar – as I couldn’t afford a real one! I started to fill the house, and my wife said: “Either you stop making these things, or you sell them – so I decided to sell
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them! We now have stalls at events like Stithians Show, and Christmas fairs, and I do some commissions.
What are the most important tools of your trade?
I have a bandsaw with a 9-inch cut, an electric planer, and a 42-inch belt sander, which I designed and built myself. I also use a laser cutter to make jigsaws.
Where do your source the wood?
It comes from a stair maker in Hayle, and it’s all wood that would otherwise go for burning. I use mahogany, oak and pine. I make candle holders and bird huts out of offcuts – nothing goes to waste if I can help it. It takes about 12 hours to make a lighthouse, but I don’t charge for my time, only for the materials I use. If I bought wood from a timber merchant, my prices would have to double - and I want people to be able to afford the things I make.
Contact Graham on 07723 923843, annethlowen@yahoo.co.uk or Facebook: @GrahamWoodCraft
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