Back after a long hiatus

[Danny in Houston]

Hello folks.

It's been a while since I've been here.  I'm finally setting up my shop again.  I'll be spending a year working full time in the shop to see if I can at least make a small profit doing something I love.  At the end of a year I will evaluate whether I need to get back into engineering consulting for my income.  

I'm semi-retired, but at age 57 I still need supplemental income for a few years before I start tapping into my IRA account.   

So I leased a shop space at the Houston Foundry, 1,800 sq ft located 10 minutes from my house in the Houston Heights, where other makers also lease shop space.  There is another woodworker, a metal worker,  glass worker, and others.  The location is owned by a large specialty metal fabrication shop, so there's lot's of craftsmen on location.

Making a profit in wood (and metal) is extremely difficult, but's it's been a dream of mine for a long time, so here we go.  This will actually be like a one year vacation for me, waking up every day and just enjoying my passion.  

I still see a few folks here from when I was more active in the past.  I look forward to interacting with everyone as I take this journey.  

PS - I posted this same thread in the hand tool forum, sorry for the double post, but some folks don't venture....

[Tapper]

Best of luck to you, Danny, for the "gumption", fortitude and drive of pursuing your passion! Let us know how it goes.

Doug

[BloomingtonMike]

Awesome you can do that at 57. Congrats.

[rick4212]

Good luck

[David G]

Best to you and your new business.  I hope it takes off and booms.  Specializing in slab tables?

 Didn't you move to central Texas couple of years ago?  Seem to remember a house thread.

[TomFromStLouis]

The 72(t) exception allows you to tap your IRA before 59.5 without penalty if you decide you need it.

Good luck in your venture. It isn't work if you love what you do. It sounds like a rich and stimulating environment.

[Wipedout]

Congrats and good luck Danny

Are you bringing all your shop equipment from the hill country?

[Big Dave]

Good luck, Danny!

[Randy C]

Good luck Danny. I think you would have no problems selling tables like you built a while back.

[Danny in Houston]

Yeah we are selling our vacation house in the Hill Country, moving my shop to a leased space near our house in the Heights.   Our kids are near graduation (we had three nearby in Austin and San Marcos) and we have grown tired of the 3 hour drive and associated headaches of maintaining two houses.  I'm doing some engineering consulting work occasionally, and then will be spending lots of quality time in my new shop.  

This is my dining table I made a couple of years ago, seems to be poplar with folks here in Houston, and pretty easy to manufacture.  I'm hoping to do the metal work myself also.  

The local economy is booming again here, and as long as you can market the stuff as reclaimed / salvaged lumber, people will pay lots of money for beautiful furniture.  My main slab supplier (Swift River near San Marcos) only uses trees that have been felled naturally (flood etc).  

This slab is live oak, a very under rated species in my opinion.  It's extremely hard with a beautiful grain.  


Here's the shop space, the landlord is clearing out the structure, it will be a clear floor in a few days.  1800 sq ft, 220 hookup, wifi, monitored alarm, lots of other artists under the same roof.