Browse what is available to order
Two designs are ready to order: the cedar reading holder and the personalized epoxy desk nameplate. Each is built for you, so the grain, the color, and the small handmade details will differ from the example you see. Both are made in our shop in Charleston, West Virginia.
The cedar reading holder
A cedar reading holder is a desk piece built for someone who reads. It lifts a book open and holds its spot, while the carved recesses keep a pen, a pair of eyeglasses, and a cup of coffee close by while you sit down to read. The cedar grain and tone shift from board to board, so every holder looks a little different, and it is the kind of piece that gets used every day and looks better with age.
A cedar desk organizer holding a book, a mug, and a pair of reading glasses.
A small side table by a window, a quiet place for a reading piece to sit.
Starting at $65.00, with the size and the carved details set in your order. A few examples: Cedar Reading Holder.
The reading holder is a small daily comfort for someone with a book on the go. Because the cedar grain and tone shift from one board to the next, no two holders are alike, and that is what gives it a made feel. It is built to be used every day and to age well, the kind of thing that earns its place on a desk or a nightstand. Cedar is a soft, low-maintenance wood, and a food-safe furniture oil keeps it looking good for years. We finish each piece with that oil, which soaks into the wood and leaves the surface smooth and clean.
Cedar is a warm, light-grained wood that drinks up oil and deepens in tone as it ages, which is why it suits a piece you hold every day. It is softer than a hardwood, so the recesses are quick to carve and the edges stay smooth and rounded instead of sharp. The oil we use works its way into the grain rather than resting on the surface, so you can wipe it on again when the tone dulls and the piece keeps its look for years. A quick rinse and a towel dry after washing is all the care it needs; a long soak draws moisture into the end grain and can warp the piece, so we keep it away from standing water and the dishwasher.
The holder lifts a book open at a set angle and holds its spot, so you can read hands-free, while the recesses keep a pen, a pair of eyeglasses, and a cup of coffee within reach. Other pieces on this list take a different approach: a desk nameplate carries a name and a chosen color through layered resin, and a coin display can hold two challenge coins set into the base. Each design is built around a use, and because the grain, the resin, and the small details differ, the finished piece has its own look. For more detail on what each one offers, open the matching link below. When you are ready to order, send us the details you have, and we will set out the design, the price, and the build time with you before any payment.
What you can personalize
- A name, initials, or a short message carved into the wood.
- Small icons or a simple logo above the recesses.
- A chosen color or a matching theme worked into the design.
Start with a name or initials near the top, and we will place the rest of the details so they read clearly and sit right on the piece. Then send us the details you have, and we will set out the design, the price, and the build time with you before any payment.
The personalized epoxy desk nameplate
A desk nameplate carries a name and a chosen color, with two recesses for a pair of challenge coins and a message on the underside of the oak base. A few examples: Personalized Epoxy Desk Nameplate.
A close-up of a finished epoxy nameplate with a smooth, layered surface.
The nameplate sits in a frame during the build, with the lettering set into the resin.
Starting at $195.00, with the name, the color, and the coin recesses set in your order. The oak base, the raised lettering, and the color each add to that price, and we confirm the final cost in the written estimate.
The nameplate is the piece that puts a name on a desk in a way that feels made rather than bought. The oak base carries a layered epoxy color and raised lettering, and two coin recesses hold a pair of challenge coins, while a short message can be worked into the underside where only the person who uses it will see it. The resin and the grain shift from one piece to the next, so two nameplates of the same design still look different, and that is the point of a made piece. We build the nameplate for a desk, a shelf, or a display where a name and a color should read as part of the wood, not a label stuck to it.
A wooden display holding a row of challenge coins.
The layered resin is where the nameplate earns its look. Each layer of epoxy has to set completely before the following one is added, and a thick pour can take several days to move between layers, so a layered piece takes longer than a simple board. We write that timing down before you approve the order, and the date we set is the one we hold to unless your accepted estimate says otherwise. The lettering and the color work into the surface instead of sitting on top, so the piece reads as one finished thing rather than several pieces held together.
In a resin piece, the color and any detail are cast into the material, so the surface stays smooth and the design stays part of it. A nameplate leans on that casting to hold a name, a color, and two coins; the reading holder, by contrast, keeps things simpler in carved cedar. Each design suits a different desk, and for more on what each one offers, open the matching link below. For a desk that needs a personal mark, the name and a chosen color is the detail that turns a plain board into a nameplate.
The oak base gives the piece a warm, strong grain that shows clearly in a desk piece, and the resin can add a color that a stain or dye cannot. For a food-contact piece such as a cutting board, we finish it with a food-safe oil rather than a surface wax, and we keep food pieces apart from display pieces so each gets the protection it needs. A nameplate is a display piece, so it needs mostly to stay away from direct heat and strong sunlight, and a little care keeps the finish looking good for years.
What you can personalize
- A name and a chosen color in the layered resin.
- Two coin recesses for a pair of challenge coins.
- A short personal message engraved on the underside.
- A matching color scheme or theme worked into the resin.
Start with the name and the color, and tell us what you want on the underside, and we will confirm the design, the price, and the build time before any payment. A name and a pair of coins make a piece that fits the person, and for a desk that needs a personal mark, the name and a chosen color is the detail that turns a board into a nameplate.
Placing an order
Getting a piece from us is a conversation, not a checkout. There is no shopping cart and no online payment on this site, so the first step is a short message. Tell us which of the two designs above you have your eye on, or describe something of your own, and list the details you would like carved or cast into it: a name, a set of initials, a short line, a color, or a small icon.
Once that message is in, we look it over, decide whether the idea suits the shop, and reply with a written estimate. That document names the design, the price, the time we need to build it, when payment is due, and the way the finished piece will come to you. Reading it lets you weigh the piece against your plan and your budget before you commit to a thing. When the build is layered in resin, the same estimate flags the longer time, because each pour has to cure before the next one can go on, and we state that time in writing.
Give us your go-ahead on the estimate and the work begins. A simple board is usually ready in a matter of days; a larger or more detailed piece, such as a nameplate built up in epoxy, needs more time. Any first payment is the amount settled in the estimate, and the remaining balance is owed before the piece leaves the shop, unless the estimate you accepted puts it differently. Send us what you have and we will move from there, or start from one of the two designs on this page.
The more detail you include with that first message, the easier it is to quote you back, but a brief note is enough to open things. We answer most messages inside one to three business days, and every answer comes back as a written estimate rather than a bare figure.
Built for a person and a moment
A gift works best when it is made for the one who will keep it, and that is what a made-to-order piece offers. A birthday, a retirement, a new home, a promotion, or a team that took home a trophy are moments that call for something shaped to the person, not something pulled off a shelf.
To start a gift order, tell us who it is for and the moment behind it, and we will shape the details with you. Near the top of a desk piece, a name or initials can be marked with small icons so each carved spot stands out. On a nameplate, the name and a chosen color run into the resin, with two recesses cut for challenge coins and a message worked into the underside. A color scheme or a theme can run through the piece so it feels at home in the room it sits in.
On a desk, a reader reaches for a small piece that holds a book, a pen, and a cup. A desk that wants a personal mark suits a layered nameplate in a name and a color. A wall or a sign can carry a message or a small logo, and a board can hold a name, the date, and a line that marks the achievement. Because the wood, the resin, and the small handmade touches vary, each finished piece is its own thing. For a gift, send us who it is for, the moment behind it, and any details you have, and we will shape it from there.
Start with the piece and the details that make it about the person, and we will build it out. A made piece is its own thing, and a gift is something built for one person, not something chosen off a shelf. Ready to order? Send the idea and whatever you have in mind, and we will move on from there.
Getting your piece to you
If an order we accept totals $75 or more, we can offer free delivery by hand within a 25-mile radius of Charleston. On an order under that amount, a drop can still come along when it fits a route we are already taking.
We do not offer pickup or workshop visits. The cost of packaging and of any shipping is built into the price on the listing, or into the estimate we send.
Start here
Send us what you have and we will carry it from there. Every bit of detail you add about the use, the size, the moment, or a date you have in mind makes the first answer more useful, but a short note is enough to get going. Point us to a piece on this page, or describe one of your own, and we will say plainly whether it suits the job and what building it would take. We are glad to talk through the options with you and answer whatever comes up along the way.
Use the form below, or write to contactvern@vernswoodworking.com. Most answers come back inside one to three business days, and each one brings a written estimate that lays out the design, the price, the build time, and the delivery or shipping before any payment.