Meet the 2025 Finalists
The first Grizzly Makers Challenge contest ran from May to July, 2025 and received over 1400 entries! Members of the woodworking community shared their inventive, eye-catching projects for the chance to win a $3000 Grizzly gift certificate and a feature in Popular Woodworking Magazine.
We partnered with Woodsmith and Popular Woodworking to offer this opportunity for shared creativity from all ages of makers, and to develop lasting connections within the woodworking community. Winners were chosen by our judging panel and will be revealed soon. Stay tuned for the results!
We want to give a big thank you to everyone who entered! Your creativity and hard work made this contest a huge success. While we could only choose a few finalists, we hope you'll continue to create and consider participating in our next contest.
Top 10 Entrants Chosen by Popular Vote
Lance Clute
Baby Crib
Lance used oak from his own backyard to create the spindles and other components of this crib for his first grandchild. His daughter offered helpful suggestions, and after a few weeks of work the project was complete. Lance fashioned all of the spindles, flutes, and hand-threaded wooden bolts and nuts used in the build. He shipped the completed project to his daughter and then traveled there to experience her excitement at seeing it for the first time.
Steve Orgera
Longhorn Skull
Steve incorporated a love for the Western lifestyle and his kids' interest in animals into his unique life-sized longhorn skull project. He built a block of wood out of 2 x 4s, then carved it with a chainsaw and handheld carving tools to create the skull. Then he whitewashed the carved skull for a finished look and a project that's full of character. This skull creation gave Steve the opportunity to develop skills with grinders, rotary tools, and a handheld belt sander.
Ben Zickmund
Platform Bed
Ben fashioned a queen-sized platform bed as a commission piece, with inspiration from artists who use wood strips to produce innovative visual designs. Hickory parquetry patterns wrap the bed in a cohesive pattern, and the use of both a natural finish and white milk paint offer interesting accents. The bed provides ample storage with three full extension drawers, and custom hickory pulls are a perfect finishing touch.
Haseeb Ahmed
Entryway Cabinet
Haseeb demonstrated his expertise with various woodworking techniques including sunburst veneering, geometric wood tiling, and bent laminations for his cabinet construction. He used cherry, black walnut, and white oak to create this unique piece featuring mid-century rounded legs and a "floating" tabletop. Haseeb created the cabinet doors from 150 individual triangles that were cut, beveled, and sanded to perfection.
Victor Haight
Trout with Fly Rod and River Rocks
Each fall Victor carves a different fish species entirely out of wood for entry into various carving competitions. He used several wood varieties, including yellow pine, black walnut, and cedar, for an intricate German brown trout carving that was then hand painted and air brushed. Victor's goal was to create a moment in time to showcase the beauty of nature and reflect on his experiences as an angler.
Michael Brewster
Entry Table
Michael produced this custom piece as an artistic addition to a client's entryway, with an emphasis on creating a sense of tranquility. The figured walnut top and sides of the table base were produced with an ancient Japanese technique where the wood is charred, brushed, then finished with lacquer. Bent laminated ash legs and a moss-colored glass sphere for added strength are beautiful final details for this eye-catching table.
Justin Taylor
Coffee Table
Justin was looking to add function and style to his living room space with this coffee table, while also challenging his woodworking skills. He used both cherry and walnut wood to create a unique table with a top that pulls up for use as a TV tray or workstation. Walnut-faced drawers have a continuous grain across all three faces for a clean, consistent look, bringing a cohesive and modern feel to his living room.
Nick Childers
Rocking Chair
Nick took inspiration from the famous Sam Maloof and George Nakashima rocking chairs to create his own modernized but timeless interpretation. The hand-carved chair was created for comfort as well as beauty, with personalized details added in to make the chair a custom piece. Nick enjoyed this challenge to his woodworking skills, and he plans to use this chair as the basis for developing his own rocking chair design from the ground up.
Nicole Kazmierczak
Goldfinch Carving
Nicole was inspired by nature and thoughts of new beginnings to fashion this hand-cut goldfinch in a frame with intricate cuts and texture details. She used the intarsia woodworking technique that creates images using different colored natural woods to develop this innovative piece; her wood choices included black walnut, cherry, ash, and maple. Nicole used a scroll saw to carve the goldfinch and sealed it to ensure long-lasting beauty.
Roscoe Greene
Poker Table
Roscoe was motivated to create a functional, unique poker table that his friends and family would enjoy using for years. He incorporated wood from a crepe myrtle tree that had fallen in his yard during Hurricane Helene to create the table legs. He used walnut for the frame and cherry wood for inlays around the frame, with innovative tensegrity legs that use tension cables for a floating effect.
Honorable Mentions Hand Picked by Grizzly's President
Steven Ferse
Wooden Basketball
Steven created this wooden basketball as a celebration of local Spokane basketball history - a place with the biggest 3-on-3 tournament in the world. He used alder cut into boards that were bent and glued into shape and then laminated the ball for a finished look. The giant basketball with a 3-1/2' diameter and 11' circumference ended up being a challenging undertaking, but after five years Steven successfully completed the project.
Rosario Tumminello
Hall Table
Rosario produced this table in the Greene and Greene arts and crafts style using sapele wood with ambrosia maple accents and finished it with a hard wax oil. The table features tenon joinery, offset surfaces, and subtle curves to create a distinctive look. This beautiful hall table was a wedding gift for his daughter and son-in-law, intended as a family heirloom that can be passed down to future generations.
Tony Dickinson
Kitchen Island Countertop
Tony offered his own special contribution to his nephew's kitchen remodel - a custom-made kitchen island countertop. Tony chose burlwood, a challenging material to work with, to create the one-of-a-kind countertop with swirls and eye-catching marbling not found in most wood types. To add to the visual interest of the project, Tony added a copper epoxy "river" down the center of the piece for the perfect final touch.
