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Some men pursue woodworking. Others have it thrust upon them.
Then there are the Harold Dodsons of the world. Mr. Dodson is
a man who can take about 40-odd foot of lumber — usually
walnut but occasionally cherry, white oak, chestnut or curly
maple — and, within a week or so, craft it into a gleaming
showpiece that cradles the body, supports the lumbar and is
sturdy enough to be passed down to your grandchildren’s
grandchildren.
“I do mostly custom work, so I try to get to know the person
I’m making the chair for,” says Dodson from his home
in Pickens, SC. “I personalize it for them by taking into
account their height and general build, although shorter people
are usually still comfortable in larger rockers as are larger
people in smaller ones.”
A woodworker since 1976 — though he modestly concedes those
early efforts were mostly ‘junk’ — Dodson first
became enamored of the idea of building hand-crafted rockers
when he saw a Sam Maloof design in a magazine in 1981. Six years
later, he built his first one and gladly sold it for $350 because,
“I needed the money at the time.” Since then he has
produced 104 more, each signed, dated by year, numbered and
sold — except for five: one for each of his two daughters,
his wife’s, his own and number 100, which he keeps as a
business milestone.
“I really only started doing this full time about 3 years
ago,” he reveals. “And it’s only started paying
for itself in the past year. Now, I’ve got plenty of orders
to keep me busy.” Orders which come almost strictly by
word-of-mouth. “Yeah, alot of my business comes from people
sitting in one of my chairs that someone has and liking it so
much they decide they want one for themselves.”
40-odd foot of lumber— $80-$120. A Dodson original rocker
— $1500 and up. Knowing you’ve created a family heirloom
— priceless. |
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