Meet Kevin Nicholson of Nicholson Woodworks in Arcadia

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kevin Nicholson.

Kevin, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Ever since I was very young, I loved to tinker, to build things, and take things apart. As I grew older the interest grew into a passion as I took a variety of shop classes. I started with ‘Young Engineers’ in middle school and ended up in ‘Advanced Woodworking’ in high school. Around that same time, I got a part-time job in the oldest and largest pipe organ factory in the western United States as a shop assistant. Throughout my time there I helped construct a variety of wooden components for a single three-story pipe organ. The experience was rewarding but short-lived because I moved away to college to pursue a career in laboratory science.

One thing that every woodworker needs in order to build (besides more clamps) is space and money – both of which were not readily available to me on my college campus. Most of my woodworking was put on pause while I spent my time studying, but shortly after college graduation, I moved into a house that had a garage – the holy grail of workspaces. I immediately dove headfirst back into the craft. My girlfriend (now wife) enjoyed the idea of custom furniture and had many years worth of Pinterest ideas saved, so I quickly had plenty of projects to keep me satiated.

A few years later we moved to Phoenix where we purchased a house with a space dedicated to woodworking and growing my shop. It wasn’t long after that when I realized that most of my house was now furnished with furniture I designed and hand-built. The passion for creation was never based off of necessity, but the desire to build. Just because I ran out of room to put furniture didn’t mean I was going to stop making it. It was about that time I decided to form Nicholson Woodworks to feed my desire to build and to fuel the funds necessary to make my shop bigger and better.

Has it been a smooth road?
It’s been less than a year since I officially launched the business, but it’s been smooth sailing so far.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
I make custom wood furniture and home décor. It is all made by hand, with the client in mind. I primarily work one-on-one with clients to make personalized custom creations exactly to their specific desires. I want to create a piece of furniture that you can’t find anywhere else that fits their home perfectly. Do you have a unique space in your home that needs a very specific sized table/frame/shelf/jewelry box/etc? What species of wood do you want it made from? What type of finish are you looking for? What sheen do you want the finish to be? What type of hardware do you want it to have? Do you want to add a decorative inlay? These are a few of the types of questions that need to be answered to figure out the perfect design for the client.

When I don’t have commissions to work on, I also make gift items that are available on my website. Items often available are cutting boards, magnetic cap catching bottle openers, wine bottle balancers, jewelry boxes, lazy susans, and coasters. I’m frequently designing new projects and I don’t mass produce items, so the inventory changes frequently.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.nicholsonww.com
• Email: Kevindeannicholson@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicholsonwoodworks/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/knicholsonwoodworks/

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