Artist Uses Woodworking To Overcome Addiction

VIDEO – 12 WOODEN STEPS –

April 19, 2022 – “It’s kind of amazing how many times I’ve heard the story that [addiction] led them to woodworking,” Hardin said.

One tool Hardin still keeps in his shop today is his Lufkin Ultralok 12, a tape measure his grandfather gave him, along with a bag of other tools, when he got his first apartment.

“Unfortunately, I can’t use it anymore,” Hardin said as he rubs the tape measure back and forth between his hands. “I’m just afraid to completely destroy it. I would say this was my introduction to woodworking. I used to hang out at my grandfather’s shop and slam it shut, which is a big no no. I like to keep it around because sometimes the feel or the smell of something will take you back and my grandfather’s shop definitely had it’s own smell.”

Hardin is two years into his sobriety journey and since he started woodworking again, he’s started an Etsy page, where he sells handmade, engraved whiskey barrel nameplates, bottle openers, cutting boards, bowls and wooden pens. The Etsy page is called HardinTurns.