Thursday, July 12, 2012

Reclaimed Lumber Products {Buy Local}



Reclaimed Lumber Products is a locally owned and operated millwork shop run by Titus and Wendi Gilliam.  Titus is a general contractor and native Idahoan who specializes in salvaging lumber from old industrial or manufacturing sites, barns, fences, and outbuildings that would otherwise be destined for demolition or landfills.   The old boards and beams are remilled to bring out the natural beauty of the aged wood and then used to create stunning doors, flooring and furniture.


Titus' work can be seen in some of the custom homes he's built over the last 10 years around Boise and he was recently asked to provide a pair of sliding doors for one of ABC's Extreme Makeover homes. 

As an Idaho transplant, my kids and I find things like old barns and farms fascinating.  There aren't a lot of barns in the Arizona desert.  I love the rich textures of the wood created by years of weathering.   The boys love poking around and dodging spiders while looking for an old horseshoe or some other little trinket to pocket.  I enjoy trying to imagine what life was like for the farmer/rancher who built the barn.  Did he love working the land or raising livestock?  Did he hope to pass on his skills to his children?  What what his favorite crop to grow?  If he was a dairy farmer, was he lactose intolerant?  That would kind of suck.  Did he ever think there would be a time when he would make more money selling his land than he could make by producing food for his community?  Does he look at his old barn and feel sad that it's seen better days or is he so ready to finally get some rest and get out of the industy that he's glad to see the barn go? 

  
I always feel a sense of loss when I run across the old, delapidated buildings and barns.  It's like a part of history is dying and it makes me kind of sad to see these things disappear, so it's nice to know there are people like Titus and Wendi who run businesses like Reclaimed Lumber Products.  They make sure that those wonderful parts of history don't die by giving them new life in homes and businesses all across America. 


I love that they take the time to try to get the background story about each building they reclaim to share with their clients and blog readers.  To quote Titus, "The history of the wood sometimes is what makes it stand apart from any other wood source. Pieces crafted from antique boards so often have more meaning to the artisan making the piece, or the customer, if they know a little bit of trivia on the source of the material." 


We live in a time where cheaply made goods have become the norm and quality has taken a back seat to price.  Reclaimed Lumber Products is an environmentally friendly, local business that repurposes pieces of our past to create beautiful wood products of superior quality. If you are remodeling your home or looking for custom pieces to enhance your living space, support your local millworking shop and buy local from Reclaimed Lumber Products.


3424 North Can Ada Road
Nampa, Idaho 83687
Phone: (208) 412-7823
Fax: (208) 898-4083



Reclaimed Lumber Products is the newest sponsor of at home in {Boise}. Would you like to be an at home in {Boise} sponsor? Email us at athomeinboise@hotmail.com