Lacey Man Takes Wood Carving To The Next Level

LACEY, NJ — Tim Collins didn't start carving wood until last April. He admits he wasn't artistically inclined before that.

"I’ve never taken an art class," Collins told Patch. "Really, I never have. My sister is really good at art. My mother’s good at art. But me? I can’t draw stick figures."

But soon the Lacey man's art could become visible to many in the area. Collins recently started offering to carve other people's dead trees.

Collins worked as a chef for about 25 years. He and his wife now have 3-year-old twins, so he changed careers so he could stop working nights. Collins now works in the sewage department of the Lacey Municipal Utilities Authority, which affords him time with his family and, eventually, his passion.

"The kids go to bed," Collins said. "Then at 7:30, 8 o’clock, I hang out with my wife for a little while. Then after that, I go into the garage and carve for a couple hours. I come out, we watch some HGTV and I go to bed."

His brother gave him a book that could get him started on carving a couple years ago for Christmas. But it sat on his shelf until recently.

Collins still remembers the date when he made his first wooden figurine: April 2, when he finished a mariner. He started making 4-to-6-inch "guys" until he felt confident about creating bigger figures.

A few month's ago, Collins's wife submitted his work to Urban Schack without Collins knowing it. Urban Schack gives local, creative business owners the opportunity to sell their work in Lacey. Read more: Lacey's Urban Schack Combines Unique Artisan Shops

"She says, ‘I submitted your stuff to this new place in town, and they want you to start selling it from there," Collins said. "I’m like, ‘Are you kidding me?’"

Collins felt shocked that Urban Schack thought he should sell his art there, since he was so new to the craft. He brought about 30 figurines to the shop. Since then, he's developed repeat customers.

He will also display his talents at his first wood-carving competition next month in Pennsylvania.

"I’m pretty confident I can do well," Collins said. "Some of these guys out there are pretty good, so we’ll see."

The Lacey Township Chatter Facebook group recently announced that Collins wants to carve trees now. The post has recently closed because it received so many responses, and Collins is only one man.

But now Collins will carve trees around town — only dead ones though. He doesn't want to risk harming a live tree, and often that will result in the tree growing over it, he says. Stumps and fallen branches, however, are perfect for Collins's work.

Although the tree carvings are much larger than his figurines, the technique remains largely the same. Collins simply visualizes the center line and imagines what he's going to carve.

To see and find out more about Collins's work, visit his Facebook page, The Carving Artist.

"It’s relaxing for me," he said. "It gives me a sense of accomplishment. I’m proud of it. It’s kind of turned into a little passion, a little side business."

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