TJ's Woodgrain Works

09/11/2026

We had planned to release a Flag Pen today — but the shop gremlins had other ideas.
And honestly… that’s perfectly fine. Some days aren’t meant for launches or noise. Some days call for stillness.

September 11, 2001 remains a day of profound loss and extraordinary courage.

Today, we pause to honor the lives taken, the families forever changed, and the first responders who ran toward danger without hesitation.

May we carry their memory forward with compassion, unity, and gratitude.
We will never forget.

09/10/2026

Dropped off another batch of “Oklahoma Doorstops” today, and I’m doubling down on this opinion: black walnut might be one of the most beautiful woodgrains on the planet.

Once you hit it with sandpaper, that rich, smoky color rolls out like it’s been waiting centuries to show off. Absolutely stunning… and also apparently trying to assassinate me.

Because these things don’t look like they could hurt you.
But when they launch themselves out of a power tool at Mach‑Jesus, they become little wooden missiles.

There’s still one from the early batches that vanished mid‑cut after hanging up in the miter saw and yeeting itself into the void. My best guess? It disintegrated, landed in a neighboring yard, or achieved low‑Earth orbit and is now a spaceborne walnut artifact.

Honestly… maybe I should lean into it.
Claim the title of first woodworking shop to launch an Oklahoma Doorstop into space.
Truly out‑of‑this‑world craftsmanship.

09/06/2026

‼️New Release‼️

This is one of the few specialty pens being released. And if you really love your puppy doggie you should get one.

Chrome Dog Click Pen w/Vivid Frostbite Acrylic - $50

This dog click pen brings serious personality to the desk. The center barrel is turned from vivid frostbite acrylic, a swirl of electric blues, crisp whites, and deep blacks that looks like a tiny winter storm caught in motion. It’s glossy, bold, and impossible not to spin in your fingers.

The hardware leans full dog‑themed: chrome, paw‑print engravings, and a bone‑shaped clip that steals the spotlight. The click mechanism engages with a satisfying bite — playful, sharp, and ready for everyday carry. The tip is engraved with “I Love My Dog”.

A perfect blend of craftsmanship and canine charm.

Vivid Frostbite not your color? In most cases we can get any color scheme for the same price.

09/06/2026

Things happen. And somehow, before most folks even finish their first cup of coffee, things had already happened five times in the shop this morning.

Now—can things break? Absolutely. Anything can fail if it’s pushed outside its intended purpose. But most of the time, anything leaving the shop is solid unless it’s mistreated or there’s a hidden flaw in the material that didn’t show itself while I was working it. If I spot anything that threatens strength, it gets scrapped instantly. No hesitation. And trust me, I test limits. I’ve put rings on my own hand and hit them with a hammer just to see what gives.

Usually, materials fail during the making process. Today was one of those days. A couple pieces had what looked like air bubbles. One chipped during the first drill pass because I didn’t trim it before turning. The others? Probably a mix of new‑tool learning curve and material imperfections tag‑teaming me.

Anyway, enough about the morning mishaps.
If you’ve made it this far, stay tuned — new item drops today at 12 CST.

09/06/2026

Phase 2 of what’s now officially being dubbed the “unmisplacable shop writing utensils” is complete.
Is unmisplacable even a real word? It is now. Not only did we venture into something new we are forging new words at the same time.

Up top: the pencil finished last week.
Down below: today’s freshly completed ballpoint pen.
One more piece and the full shop set is done — and yes, it would have been finished today if a certain unnamed individual had ordered enough pieces of “Pastel Dream” to make all three. Mistakes were made. Lessons were learned(Probably not). The cart will be double‑checked next time.

Matching sets can be made in any acrylic color or wood species, as long as enough material can be sourced for both pieces.

Or go wild and mix colors, woods, or vibes — coordinated chaos is absolutely an option.

So if you’re the type who likes writing with a pen and a pencil at the same time, shoot a message this way and we’ll get your details sorted and your order in the queue.

08/31/2026

The pens pictured(layered colored wood) are Funline Slimline series pens and will be the shop’s primary pen-style moving forward. Clean, reliable, good feel in the hand. I’ve got plans for a few specialty/premium styles down the road, but this is the flagship for now. I’d rather master a handful of styles than churn out a dozen mediocre ones.

That pastel piece? That’s a Slimline mechanical pencil, that’s now officially the shop pencil — meaning every project from the shop will be marked in style during the build.

Pricing & Details:

-Base Pens — Pens start at $30 each.
-Base Pencils — Pencils start at $40 each.
-Premium Kits — Upgraded kits bump the price. There are hundreds of kits in the pen‑making world, and some run $50–$75 just for the kit. Due to tooling requirements, I’ll only be stocking a handful of styles. If you’ve got a special request, reach out and we’ll talk.
-Premium Blanks — Fancy materials increase the price. There’s a set range where blank cost is already baked into the final price. Anything above that gets added to the total price.
-Extra Work — Kits or blanks that require additional labor (inlays, complex assemblies, specialty finishes) will increase accordingly. These will be more premium or decorative pens — not something I plan to make often… but you never know.
-Pricing on these pens is going to stay fluid, because with little to no markup, the material cost is primarily the finished pen cost. Prices will track very closely with the market — when blank and kit prices go up, the finished pens will follow. I can’t absorb rising material costs when I’m already operating at basically zero margin, so adjustments will happen as the market shifts.

I have some other things planned, however they have not been tested yet and I’m not dropping any bombs I cannot follow through on. So for now you get what you get and you don’t throw a fit.

08/31/2026

08/29/2026

‼️‼️📰📰EXTRA EXTRA, Read all about it📰📰‼️‼️

Some very early morning hours and being a few degrees cooler outside allowed for enough shop time to work on the new items.

Remember when it was mentioned to be something to write home about? Yeah well that was the hint. So, It’s Pens! You know, those things you write things down with?

I’m still in the process refinement stage and waiting on some parts to build some lathe accessories that will make the process better. See the thing is you have to get very creative when you use a metal lathe to make things that should probably be made on a wood lathe, or vice versa, because a lot of stuff won’t work from one machine type to the other, but that’s another story for another day.

There will be another post with additional details on pricing, materials, etc. when I get to it.

08/26/2026

It’s National Dog Day, so here’s a shoutout to the head of security.

This fuzzball found himself on payroll unexpectedly, and as some might say involuntary, but has grown to be a primary part of the business from head of security, beggar, tool thief, scrap wood thief, notification system, model, and many more tasks.

Here you see him checking out one of the latest product catalogs to see what supplies should be ordered. Not his department but whatever, if it keeps him from asking for a double cheeseburger it might be cheaper to let him window shop. Now if he figures out how to key the credit card info in and hit the submit order button we might have other problems. He later found packing materials from an order and began his self-appointed tasks of picking it up so he could act like he did something for payment again.

When he started out as a new to the company he had few demands as an employee that were not too far out there.

But………..

More recently his salary demands for multiple treats at once, cheeseburgers, breakfast burritos, chickie nuggies, and any other consumable item as well as constant need for vehicle rides with these gas prices it gotten out of hand so in order to continue providing his demands he says buy our stuff so he can keep his lavish lifestyle afloat. 🐾