It’s been a couple of years since I first reported on the opening of Smoky Mountain Vintage Lumber. Since that time, the business has gone from co-owners to one owner, Andrew Edens, and it has moved from 937 N. Central Street – beside Hops and Hollers – further out the same street to 1700 N Central. That puts them just across the street from Mid Mod Collective and Wild Love Bake House.
I stopped by last week and had plans to roll a few words about Smoky Mountain Vintage Lumber into the same article as Mid Mod Collective, but after Andrew and I talked, I realized there was too much going on with the business to limit it to a few words. The new location is only the beginning of the story.
The business has branched out since its beginnings. It still includes harvested lumber from barns and other buildings, but they will also mill lumber for your use – either their wood or yours – and they build custom pieces to order. Tables have been their biggest sellers and they are just now to the point that they have caught up with orders and are able to make samples for display. Sliding barn doors have also been big, including the one pictured here belonging to Sandi Swilley who has been renovating her downtown residence recently.
Andrew pointed out that HGTV has been very good for his business, both because they’ve purchased some of his lumber, but also because of their mention of his business and the general association with their types of projects. Harvested lumber is popular, in part, because of them. In true HGTV style, he encouraged those interested to watch their Facebook page to see projects working toward completion. They film with a Go-Pro and regularly post updates there. A single table may take up to sixty or seventy hours to complete and it’s interesting to watch the process.
Of the move, he says they definitely needed more space and he wanted to own a building, if possible. He got lucky that the building he ultimately purchased could not be zoned for beer sales, which led other buyers to look elsewhere. The previous location only included 900 sq. feet inside the building, meaning production would have to cease when a customer stopped in. With 5,000 sq. feet at the new location, that isn’t an issue. The building is still being reconfigured while addressing electrical, structural and signage needs.
The business is still dominated by reclaimed wood – about 80% of sales – while milled wood is often for flooring or particularly large accent walls. He also pointed out that he’s happy to sell a single board or a small amount of lumber for a personal project or enough for much larger jobs. Others may want to pick out their lumber for him to build a piece of furniture for them, and that’s good too.
His work is visible in numerous places around town, including Magpie’s, Holly’s 135, the former Remedy Coffee shop location in the old city, Gourmet’s Market and Blount County Eye Center. The projects they complete generally split about 75% residential and 25% commercial. Much of their business, however, has been from Old North and nearby neighborhoods, for which he is very grateful.
Additionally, through Sunday, he’s selling Christmas trees on the lot outside the building. He’ll throw in a free beer with a purchase which you can take from him or get at Hops and Hollers. He’ll also throw in $10 off any wood needs you might have in the future. Last year the trees sold out and he’s on his second and final batch for this season, so you need to strike quickly on that front. The lot is open from noon to 8:00 PM each day.
One final thing to watch the Facebook or webpage for: Andrew plans to conduct a headboard class for several people this spring. He’ll teach you everything you need to know and you’ll end the class with your very own, personally hand-made headboard.
Summing up their approach, Andrew says they build to the highest standard – their own. It takes time to do good work and they invest the time and effort to make each piece excellent. They get high marks on the work they’ve done and I expect we’ll see more good work from them in the future. Stop in between 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM Wednesday through Saturday and see for yourself.