Lakeside Woodworking Heirloom Quality Craftsmanship

Beautiful craftsmanship is showcased in every product created by Lakeside Woodworking. Master craftsmen George and Whitney Thiessen have become mainstays in the Iowa Great Lakes area through their custom furniture and uniquely designed heirloom quality products like cutting boards or Lazy Susan’s.

The base of each finished project comes from local wood, whether its walnut, ash, silver maple, elm, burr oak, hackberry, and others. The father-son duo mills their own wood each fall through a sawmill on the east side of the property, often receiving fallen trees or wood from the clients of future projects.

“All of the wood is locally found. We mill it onsite and then in the winter months, put the wood through the kiln at 145 degrees to get it down to 6% moisture level. This will also remove any bugs and bacteria growth,” Whitney shared.

The idea for Lakeside Woodworking came when George and Kris purchased a cabin on Little Spirit and they took down eight oak trees. These trees became part of the remodel process and were used for the beams, countertops, casing, as well as baseboards and trim.

The duo was apart of Thiessen Construction and Custom Woodworking, and Whitney said his father was the go-to in the area for any questions about a particular tree or carpentry.

“The idea from Lakeside Woodworking was more to get my dad to stop climbing roofs and doing concrete work,” he said with a laugh. “We built a lot of new houses and full construction, so whatever we are designing now, we have a good base of construction knowledge.”

Their first show was a learning experience that took place at Round Lake Winery. At that point, the Thiessen’s hadn’t yet used epoxy in their designs and created a number of wood products to share.

“We learned a lot that winter, especially what people did and didn’t like,” Whitney added. “My wife Amy has an art background and she suggested incorporating epoxy into our products. So, we started adding the Lakes in the wood with epoxy and it’s become a favorite for our clients, whether a cutting board or a piece of furniture.”

Improving the Process

Every year, George and Whitney improve and streamline their process and facilities, whether it is their hand-built wood kiln, adding onto the workshop, upgrading tools or using a program that provides their lake designs.

Through routers and lasers, the Thiessens can engrave names, place designs on wood and inlay with epoxy. Rather than individually making legs for furniture, they now go through local welder Chris Reinhart. “We try to stay local every chance we get,” George said.

Team Enterprise out of Milford does the powder coating for them. “They do such a good job that it makes it so much easier for us,” Whitney shared.

Custom Designs

Many of their new pieces available for sale often come from an idea given by a client. “Some of our custom pieces then become a part of our inventory,” he added. “Like, the Lazy Susan and we make a ton of them now.”

The duo can craft anything custom, including tables, chairs, desks, and floating stairs to bar tops, countertops and shelves. One particular custom bar top they made in the area was 10-foot by 5-foot.

They said customers have phenomenal ideas and they enjoy working with each one. They prefer that the client personally selects the wood, as well as approves the layout and epoxy color. “There are certain things you just have to visualize in person,” he added.

Some of their best sellers came from wood that was originally apart of the original Legend Roller Coaster. “We were able to get a truck bed full and used every inch to create tables and Lazy Susan’s,” Whitney said. “Then added the Lakes on it and finished with clear epoxy”

Using Epoxy

The Thiessens use two different types of epoxies: one dries quickly in several hours and the other is a slower option that takes three to five days to dry. In their workshop, they create supports to hold large custom furniture pieces and use the fast epoxy to fill in the spots in the wood and then finalize with the slow epoxy. They pay particular attention to colors and each one will dry slightly different.

“Obviously we use different shades of blue a lot for depictions of the Lakes but lately white has been very popular, especially with walnut,” Whitney shared.

They work hard to get the epoxy to the same height as the wood, and once it’s been cured, they use a router machine to flatten and level the finished piece. One of the last steps is to sand the wood to open up the grain for oil. For cutting boards, they use walrus oil so it’s food safe. 

In 2021, the Thiessens purchased a storefront in Lake Park, with the front half showcasing Lakeside Woodworking product and the back half providing space for his wife Amy’s full commercial kitchen for her charcuterie business. The basement serves as a practice studio for his band, “She’s With Us.”

For more information or would like to contact Whitney for questions, visit woodworkinglakeside.com. Heirloom quality pieces can also be found on Saturday mornings at the Lakeside Woodworking booth at Farmers Market at the Park, the upcoming Clay County Fair in Spencer, and Market to Market on Tuesday evenings in Lake Park.