Style Magazine - May 2022

| arts & culture |
A Few Wood Men
(and Women)
4 Local Woodworkers
by EMILY PETER-COREY
Woodworking is the process of building useful or decorative objects
out of wood. The craft has been around just as long as mankind has,
and with time, has advanced with new technology and state-of-theart
projects. Here we profile four local woodworkers whose skills are
cutting-edge.
Mariah Staley and Rene Barlow
Two Rustic Gals, Rocklin
How did you get into
woodworking? When we
lived together in an apartment
we had to have our washer/
dryer replaced, and the new
appliance would require
loosing the bi-fold door
leaving the laundry closet
and storage exposed. We both
have experience working
visuals for high-end stores like
Pottery Barn and Restoration
Hardware so for us this was a
huge eye sore. We discussed
and decided a barn door
would fit in the space perfectly,
so we bought some weatheraged
wood and built our first
barn door. That door ended
up getting more attention
than we did from our guests!
We eventually moved and
decided to list the door on
Craigslist. Not only did we get
a ton of inquiries on it but we
also received a request from
someone (who is now one of
our best friends) to purchase
the door along with two more.
We started building from there
and literally have just kept on
building ever since.
How did you develop your
skills? We are still developing
our skills and, to be completely
honest, it’s very much trial
and error while we learn
hands-on in the moment. We
both love working with our
hands and can appreciate the
results despite the sawdust,
sweat, and splinters that come
with. We have also learned to
research and be patient with
the process.
What are some of your
most popular designs?
Our signature barn doors
but foremost the giant yard
games. We love game nights
and spending time with family
so creating something in our
style that offered a unique
look that represented us was
a huge accomplishment for
us. We stumbled through it at
first as with any new designs,
but the bean bag toss, giant
stacking blocks in our custom
rolling case, and our spin on a
giant Connect Four are our top
requests year around.
Favorite project? We got the
opportunity to build a family
dining table for a friend that
she plans to make a family
heirloom. The table had its
challenges in design—we
started over few times and
the materials seemed to be
working against us—but we
knew how much this piece
meant, so we scratched the
Photos courtesy of thier respective companies or organizations.
30 stylemg.com | MAY 2022 | /stylemediagroup /stylemediagroup /stylemediagroup /stylemags