Our Story
It All Started with a Wooden Hippo
Shortly before my daughter was born, I built her an articulated wooden hippopotamus. I wanted her to have something that wasn't made of cheap plastic; something that wouldn’t break the second time she used it. But more than that, I wanted her to have something that would last beyond my lifetime, so that when I’m gone, she might find herself playing with it with her own children or grandchildren, and be reminded of a father that loved her.
That notion of permanence, and the desire to create things that will endure, is the essence of Three Puffins Woodworks.
Stuart Nickum, owner and founder, Three Puffins Woodworks
Standing on the Shoulders of Generations Past . . .
In 1923, my great grandfather built a miniature dish cupboard for my then-three-year-old grandmother, using simple hand tools and scraps of wood salvaged from old packing crates he had lying around his farm. Thanks to the quality of his craftsmanship, his creation held up to the love, abuse, and countless tea parties hosted by a daughter, two granddaughters, and two great grandsons (although my brother and I used it more for displaying our Lego creations). And today, nearly 100 years later, my own daughter and her two cousins host elaborate tea parties for their dolls and stuffed animals, thanks to the skill, craftsmanship, and love of a great great grandfather—a man who died fifty years before any of them were even born, but who still reaches out to them through this creation, sparking joy and happiness in yet another generation.
My great-grandfather was many things: farmer, inventor, tinkerer . . . . He also reportedly never let the fact that he was completely deaf stop him from singing. To me, he is a continued source of inspiration, and a reminder that, to truly create things that will endure for generations, one must build them in such a way that a small part of the soul is left behind, waiting to be discovered within.
Stuart Nickum, owner and founder, Three Puffins Woodworks