Southern Indiana Business March-April 2020 | Page 16

COVER STORY
The DIY movement is both a hot trend
and an old tradition, bringing brand-new
makers into a community where they can
learn from longtime masters. At Bonesteel
Mill and Molding in Sellersburg,
woodworkers of every age and experience
level come to shop the latest selection of
local, raw wood, share pictures of their
latest projects and swap advice.
One customer has been working with wood for nearly his entire life.
Another, a year or so. One uses machines, the other prefers hand tools.
But their mutual love for woodworking — the magic of turning an
unfinished board into a table, or a bowl, or a decorative piece — is a lot
more important than how long they’ve loved it.
Bob Linnert, of New Albany, says that working with wood satisfies
his creative side. As a home designer by day, he’s used to making things
from scratch. But sitting at the computer isn’t the same as working
with his hands. “I like being creative, and I like doing things for other
people,” said Linnert, who buys all his lumber from Bonesteel. “If I can
get into the shop on a Saturday, it’s just so relaxing.”
Linnert learned woodworking from his father who, at 96, still gets
into the shop to partner up on projects. For him, it’s all about the beauty
of wood. “I’m taking something that God created with awesome beauty,
and what I try to do is accentuate that. To show it off. Sometimes you
cut into a log and you see the grain and you think whoever would’ve
thought that was in there? You don’t get that with a piece of steel or
plastic.”
Mark Winternheimer, of New Albany, got into woodworking on a
whim after he bought a house and discovered an old sewing table left
behind by the previous homeowners. Instead of throwing the table out,
he decided to restore it. As a complete newcomer to woodworking, he
came to Roger and Tina Bonesteel for advice, and the rest is history.
“When you work in front of a computer all day, there’s not that
gratification of being able to see the fruits of your labor,” said
Winternheimer, a geologist by day. “If you can go out in the shop and
work for a few hours, you can say, ‘I accomplished that.’”
That story — the pride of creating, the joy of giving — is one that
resonates with many of Southern Indiana’s DIYers. And while some see
it as a way to earn income, others do it for the sheer love of doing.
“It’s just fun to do,” said Dodds Travis, a retired carpenter and
Roger Bonesteel prepares to cut a log at
Bonesteel Mill and Molding.
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March / April 2020