Meet Dustin Patton of Phoenix

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dustin Patton.

Hi Dustin, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started woodworking one day when I was working at my fire station and saw a video online that someone shared that showed someone making a “river” table. It was two slabs of wood joined with epoxy resin. It looked so cool and I wanted to try! I realized there was a few tools I already had that could help me with the project but I needed to know how to figure out the rest of the project. I scoured online and watched tutorial after tutorial and finally started my project. Some of the supplies I ordered online were based out of a company here in Phoenix so I reached out to them to ask a couple of quick questions. They walked me through some steps and affirmed what I had seemingly read online. My first project was a 24”x48” cedar live edge river coffee table that I made for my Grandma who always pushed me to be handy and use my tools. She loved it so much she didn’t want anyone to touch it or put anything on it and ended up having me mount it on her wall as an art piece instead. To this day I still do epoxy projects but I’ve expanded my business to include large scale custom projects for businesses and residences. I still embody the teaching I got from a few mentors in the process and always offer to pass on the knowledge when my fellow coworkers at the fire department want to build a project.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
As soon as it started smooth, the project/materials/weather/client wishes always tend to throw a curve ball. I learned a while ago that sometimes being a professional sometimes means being able to think outside the box and engineer a fix. That fix may require tools, ingenuity, redesign, but each one of those instances are now a new tool in my toolbox for future projects!

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My work involves custom created pieces that are unique in design and nature. We build furniture, frames, wall art, serving boards, charcuterie boards, cutting boards, awards, plaques and other miscellaneous items. I like the fact that when I make something for someone, they cannot purchase this item from a big box store or an online retailer. Each piece is unique in a sense it cannot be recreated no matter how hard I try. I can get close, but never an exact duplicate. We’ve expanded our business to accommodate companies that have designers who can envision a piece or design but doesn’t necessarily have the means to create it or install it.

Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I’ve had a few mentors and supporters that I accredit any success to. Firstly, my wife Kelsey. She has supported me through the whole process and is my biggest fan. She is my creative/design control and I run almost every design aspect by her! She also doesn’t get to use the garage like most families do and deserves mad kudos for braving hot summers with a car parked outside. My sister and my family have always been there supporting me and sharing my work for others to see. My sister gave me full access to her covered carport to do work on my projects when I didn’t have a room for all my tools. Bob Reynolds of Unique Wood Supply and Design has been instrumental in helping me learn this craft and has been there since day one. He supplies a majority of my raw materials and I really love everything he creates. We both have our niche and we don’t step on each other’s toes when it comes to clients. I send him work and he sends me work that each of us may specialize in. Joe Duffy(The Handy Fireman) has also been a great mentor. His craftsmanship is second to none and prides himself on traditional woodworkers discipline mixed with taking advantage of modern day tools as well. His work is beautiful and he’s always up for a challenge. Lastly I credit my Grandma with teaching me not to settle for less and to always push myself to make bigger and better things. My customer service stems from her and her teachings and most of my clients compliment it when they’re sharing stories of our projects.

Pricing:

• Pricing varies on projects and their complexity

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.821customs.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dpwoodworksAZ/
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/dtpcustomcreations