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I'm Hanna Dausch and I own a small woodworking business in Pittsburgh, PA where I handcraft furniture and wares for the home that are meant to be a part of your family’s story.
I am originally from Pittsburgh, but most recently from Chicago where I attended The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. I lived there for about 5 years while focusing on woodworking as sculpture in relation to historic preservation. I became a carpenter that restored historic houses built in the early 1900’s, but soon got tired of working in the Chicago wind and cold. I moved back to Pittsburgh and was trying to find a way to make work again when in October 2019 I opened my own woodworking studio and here we are!
While in Chicago, I became homesick and thought of all of the things that reminded me of home and my family. The atmosphere of my house, the pieces of furniture that held memories of my childhood, the handcrafted objects that told stories of my family, ultimately the warmth a home brings. The details of a house hold memories and tell stories, keeping the past alive and unraveling it. My woodworking grew out of this and became a conversation between the past, present, and future of craftsmanship strengthened by family and traditions. It is made to add warmth and intimacy to the home.
...someone taking in everything around them, whatever the medium, and rearranging it to create something new. Someone that is always growing and changing because you can’t be stuck on one design forever, because that will get old eventually. A creative has to be constantly reinventing themself and making new work based on what they’re experiencing at the moment.
Well, I would say it’s the importance of handmade, but also the importance of small businesses and supporting small businesses. I think a huge issue specifically in the woodworking and/or the furniture world, is stores like IKEA. IKEA is quick, easy, cheap, and produces products that only last a couple years. The average person nowadays wants everything fast and cheap, but they don’t realize things that are fast and cheap are bad quality which means they have to continuously throw it away and re-buy it. This leads to so much waste and wasted money in the end.
Handcrafted pieces are incredibly well made by people who continuously study their craft and are passionate about what they do. These pieces are going to last lifetimes so they can be passed down through generations, which makes them really special. Small businesses are what make a community whole and interesting - they’re the bread and butter bringing the community together.
With every piece I make, it’s a piece of me that you’re getting. It’s a piece of me in a moment in time. It’s a piece of my heart and my labor that I am handing off to someone else in the world, which I think is really special.
A carpenter I was learning under one time said, to be a good carpenter is not to never make mistakes, but to know how to hide your mistakes.
I have never forgotten this because it shows that everyone is human and no matter what everyone is going to make mistakes. You can’t make anything perfect, and I think when it comes to handmade work people think “If I’m paying this high price point, it needs to be perfect.” Yes, to an extent it needs to be very high quality, but you’re human, you can’t make it perfect. Making mistakes helps give it a story and makes it interesting.
...I’m probably in it right now! I’ve always shared a woodshop with other people, but I’m currently in the process of moving into my own woodshop in October. In order to have your own woodshop you need to have all of your own equipment and be able to afford all of the rent. And all at the same time, I’m going to rebrand too. I cry from stress and nerves on the daily at this point - haha!
I feel like you can always use more time. I think I would do everything I do already but just take longer to do it.
I try really hard to have a good life/work balance. If my goal in life was to make a lot of money, I would not be a woodworker… so I have to love it. And sometimes I catch myself working on projects I don’t like so I take a step back and remember that I’m doing this because I love it so I need to work on the projects I love.
...is being creative and constantly coming up with new ideas. All of my pieces are one of a kind because I get bored repeating the same design over and over so I’m always thinking of new designs.
...is people who act like they have it all together, because no one has it all together! I think social media makes everything look perfect but no one actually has it together or knows what they’re doing.
...in my life. I think the fact that I get to wake up every day and do the thing I love most is the best feeling in the world.
Owning a small business is incredibly difficult and stressful no doubt, but considering I get to even own my business is awesome. I feel when people complain about owning a small business they’re missing the big picture; you’re doing what you love to do - lot of people can only dream of doing what they love, but people like us actually get to do it!
I would love to collaborate with him. He is an architectural designer and all of his work is a breath of fresh air. It is beautiful and simple, light and modern, warm and elegant. To be able to work with him on a project, maybe make furniture for one of his houses would be a dream come true.
I would love to collaborate with him. He is an architectural designer and all of his work is a breath of fresh air. It is beautiful and simple, light and modern, warm and elegant. To be able to work with him on a project, maybe make furniture for one of his houses would be a dream come true.
Her work is breathtaking. She manages to be playful and serious at the same time all while recently becoming a new mother. She’s a badass mom and artist.
Her work is breathtaking. She manages to be playful and serious at the same time all while recently becoming a new mother. She’s a badass mom and artist.
Collette runs an urban flower farm in Pittsburgh, PA that grows the most beautiful flowers I’ve ever seen. She recently built and planted a new flower field from the ground up and its unbelievable the amount of work, dedication, and love she has for the land.
Collette runs an urban flower farm in Pittsburgh, PA that grows the most beautiful flowers I’ve ever seen. She recently built and planted a new flower field from the ground up and its unbelievable the amount of work, dedication, and love she has for the land.
Petra makes beautiful ceramics and recently started “The Tile Collection,” a group of meticulously glazed ceramic mugs. The process is incredibly tedious, but the mugs are jaw-dropping once they’re completed.
Petra makes beautiful ceramics and recently started “The Tile Collection,” a group of meticulously glazed ceramic mugs. The process is incredibly tedious, but the mugs are jaw-dropping once they’re completed.