What a wonderful Whorn

St. Louis-based blogger Alan Lorence of It’s Not Work, It’s Gardening! is not only an insightful writer and photographer, he’s also an accomplished woodworker. He recently started a new company, Nimble Mill, to market his handcrafted furniture and garden art. Nimble Mill has released three designs so far: the Whorn, a stool/table for indoor and outdoor use; the Bayce, a plant container or stand; and the Trang, a triangular variant of the Whorn.

The Whorn “spoke” to me ever since I saw a preview a few months ago. Last week I finally received my own pair. Eventually my Whorns will go in the backyard to serve both as additional seating and, for my own selfish purposes, as side tables when I laze in the hammock.

Even though the Whorn is designed for outdoor use, protected with a polyurethane finish that should withstand the elements, I’m keeping my units inside until the rainy season is over. And since they’re still shiny and new, now seemed like a good time to take a few photos.

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The Whorn comes in a variety of colors. Mine are Just Red and Moss Green. (The shade of green looks a bit different in reality than it does in these photos. The colors on the Nimble Mill site are more true-to-life.)

The Whorn is not a flimsy piece of furniture—it weighs in at a solid 20+ lbs! Alan told me it’s made of southern pine but he’s experimenting with other types of wood as well.

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The legs are stained Dark Roast, which offers a nice contrast.

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At the bottom there’s a fill hole (covered with a bolt head in the photo below) so you can add sand, small pebbles, etc. to make the Whorn even heavier. I don’t think it’s needed, but it’s nice to have that option.

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I love that each unit is handsigned and -numbered, much like a piece of art would be

This morning, my younger daughter, our black Lab Sasha, and I had some fun with our two Whorns.

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A comfy place to sit

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Sasha thinks the Whorn would make a good stand for her food bowl

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Nice with plants…

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…or just pots (pottery by Keith Kitoi Taylor)

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Yours truly channeling Sia, the elusive Australian singer who doesn’t like to show her face

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They’re all miiiiiiiiine!

The Whorn is not an el cheapo piece of furniture churned out by a Chinese factory, or sold by the thousands at IKEA. Instead, each unit is handmade, with Alan’s love of workworking and attention to detail showing at every turn. The Whorn is art—practical art.

For more information, please visit the Nimble Mill website.

Comments

  1. Very nice to see these to scale with another human in the picture. This makes me want to buy them even more!

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    1. If the two Whorns I have are any indication--and I have no doubt they are--Alan's products are top notch. If you can swing it, order yourself one, or two, or three :-).

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  2. Ah, that last picture is priceless, although honestly I hope we get to see them in action with you and the hammock this summer.

    These images really help to show how substantial these pieces are, and the stain on the square feet is just perfection. Nice work Alan!

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    1. Elena was a bit embarrassed that I posted the last two photos. But what the heck, I'm past the age where I care about making a spectacle of myself :-).

      I'm still not fully on board with moving them outside where they will be exposed to the elements. They're just too nice.

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  3. Thanks so much for the writeup Gerhard, and glad to see that you're happy with these! Big dog food bowl stand -- I'm going to add that to the list of ways to enjoy these. ;)

    (Use those foot pads, as I don't want to see you scratching your floors!)

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    1. Sasha thinks ANY piece of furniture is a good place for a dog food bowl.

      We're not using the Whorns inside (yet). I'm still trying to decide where they will go. As I said in my reply to Loree, I'm tempted to keep them inside. But I still like the idea of a hammock side table...

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  4. How great to see Alan's work at your home! Love the colors you chose too.

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    1. I love anything handmade. Unfortunately, we live in a time where almost everything we're surrounded with is made by machine and/or on an assembly line far, far away.

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