When did you set up your business and why?
We are a new, small, family-run business based in Nenagh, Co Tipperary, called Metal and Mallet.
We hand-carve sustainably sourced wood and salvaged metal, creating functional pieces of art.
Examples include free-standing lamps, tables, ceiling lights, wooden bowls, picture frames, mirrors, chairs, wall lights and sculptures.
Donnacha has always been passionate and creative. He has been designing and hand-carving furniture and other items for 20 years. Donnacha began working as an aircraft maintenance technician in Shannon Aerospace in 1990 and worked there for 13 years.
From there, he worked as a retained fireman in Nenagh for 12 years, while also working as a team leader with North Tipperary County Council, where he remains to date. He is responsible for landscaping and planting in Nenagh town.
I (Nicky) worked as a social worker for 16 years in child protection and children in care.
Following the birth of our fourth child, I decided to leave and work in the home, while also focusing on the business development, creation, marketing and sales, plus hands-on in the hand-creation of pieces.
Following our son Donagh’s passing in 2011, we were inspired to follow our dreams and focused on nature, sustainability, cutting up storm-damaged trees, designing and hand-carving bespoke pieces of furniture and lighting.
In August 2022, while out on our regular family walk in Garrykennedy, around our local lake, Lough Derg, we decided the time was right for us to move forward and start our own business.
Can you explain your process?
Initially, we addressed how we could source our wood, yet be as sustainable as possible.
We set on a different journey knowing our business could only be viable and progressive if we found an alternative way forward.
Donnacha obtained a City & Guilds certificate in chainsaw use. As Donnacha works as a team leader with the council, involved mainly with the landscaping of our local town, he has an opportunity to cut up storm-damaged and fallen trees only, in our local area.
This enables us to have a diverse range of wood, as we source it from an urban town and around a rural area, all Tipperary wood, all local.
Donnacha standing in front of the cut seasoned Tipperary wood and holding their saplings on their journey to being replanted when they are ready.
We sourced a work space along with working from home where we can plant saplings such as ash, acorns, horse chestnut and sycamore to name a few.
This is imperative, as it aligns with our ethical beliefs. Our business has to give back to our environment, as every person has a role to play.
We continually nurture the saplings for several years. When they are ready for planting, we do so around our local area.
Donnacha decided to assist in the spalting of our wood. He achieves this by cutting the wood and standing large logs upright for nine weeks. He applies PVA glue to the top of the logs to stop the water evaporating too quickly out the top, preventing excess cracking.
The fungus which affects wood is airborne; it travels up the log from the ground creating this spalting unique design effect up through the inside of the log.
After nine weeks, the wood is left on its side. After a year, the glue is removed and the logs are intermittently rotated over a three-year period.
Following on from this process, we put the wood in a room in our home for six months to enable it to adapt to its environment.
We use salvaged metal or off-cuts, which our local ironworks business has agreed to give us. We also use salvaged driftwood from Lough Derg. We repurpose thrown-out items that would otherwise have been skipped, for example pianos.
We decided long ago in order for our business to remain harmonious with our materials and our environment, we would not use any big workshop machinery.
Instead, we try to remain as traditional as possible and use mainly chainsaws, grinders, sanders and mallets.
The finish of each product is most important. Once again, we came across problems relating to the products we should use, which are environmentally safe, yet enhance the grain and textures of the wood.
Our research informed us that we were to use clean spirits to clean the wood before a light application of boiled linseed was applied.
What is it about your business that brings you joy?
One may think 'we are doing it the hard way', as each piece we create takes almost four years in total to make.
Yet, this brings us joy, as the end product is a more superior product.
Due to its authentic origin, its evolution and development is one aligned with keeping the materials used as genuine and pure to its natural form, yet dramatically transforming each piece into functional art.
We are extremely proud of our business and what we have achieved to date.
Donnacha finds it therapeutic when he is hands-on designing and hand-carving pieces of furniture and lighting, which are divergent from the norms on sale in the market place. I adore the marketing and sales side to the business.
What is your best seller?
All of our pieces are one-off, bespoke pieces. Every customer truly appreciates the fact that no one will ever have the same piece.
We cannot replicate any item because our wood is sustainable, local and takes over three years to season.
However, our lamps and tables have been particularly good sellers.
We have also sold multiple hand-carved sustainable Tipperary wooden bowls to Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet. They use our wooden bowls twice daily for the banquets.
What are your hopes for 2023?
We have entered the Irish Business Design Challenge (under the micro business category) with The Design Council of Ireland. We would be grateful if people could vote for Metal and Mallet.
We will exhibit at the Ideal Homes Show from 21 to 23 April and at the Mallow Home and Garden Festival from 26 to 28 May 2023.
We have to improve our website and social media forums this year. We will continue to market our products and find avenues to bring our pieces to the public and customers’ attention.
As we are a new business, it can be difficult to get our business name in the public arena. However, we believe 'if business was easy, everyone would do it'.
What advice would you give to other start-up businesses?
Don’t give up and keep focus on your business goals and ethics. Stay true to your business plan, while incorporating additions to it along the way.
Get in contact with your local enterprise board, with the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland and any other relevant organisations. These will assist in many ways; financially, developmentally and help with networking.
A business course is highly advantageous, as often artists are exceptional at that side of business, but a business will fail if book-keeping, etc, is not completed.
We adore our business and believe there is a place both nationally and internationally for our pieces of functional art. You too believe in your business, as dreams can come true.
Visit www.metalandmallet.com.
Read more
Meet The Maker: artist Orla Barry
Meet The Maker: Alla Shadrova
When did you set up your business and why?
We are a new, small, family-run business based in Nenagh, Co Tipperary, called Metal and Mallet.
We hand-carve sustainably sourced wood and salvaged metal, creating functional pieces of art.
Examples include free-standing lamps, tables, ceiling lights, wooden bowls, picture frames, mirrors, chairs, wall lights and sculptures.
Donnacha has always been passionate and creative. He has been designing and hand-carving furniture and other items for 20 years. Donnacha began working as an aircraft maintenance technician in Shannon Aerospace in 1990 and worked there for 13 years.
From there, he worked as a retained fireman in Nenagh for 12 years, while also working as a team leader with North Tipperary County Council, where he remains to date. He is responsible for landscaping and planting in Nenagh town.
I (Nicky) worked as a social worker for 16 years in child protection and children in care.
Following the birth of our fourth child, I decided to leave and work in the home, while also focusing on the business development, creation, marketing and sales, plus hands-on in the hand-creation of pieces.
Following our son Donagh’s passing in 2011, we were inspired to follow our dreams and focused on nature, sustainability, cutting up storm-damaged trees, designing and hand-carving bespoke pieces of furniture and lighting.
In August 2022, while out on our regular family walk in Garrykennedy, around our local lake, Lough Derg, we decided the time was right for us to move forward and start our own business.
Can you explain your process?
Initially, we addressed how we could source our wood, yet be as sustainable as possible.
We set on a different journey knowing our business could only be viable and progressive if we found an alternative way forward.
Donnacha obtained a City & Guilds certificate in chainsaw use. As Donnacha works as a team leader with the council, involved mainly with the landscaping of our local town, he has an opportunity to cut up storm-damaged and fallen trees only, in our local area.
This enables us to have a diverse range of wood, as we source it from an urban town and around a rural area, all Tipperary wood, all local.
Donnacha standing in front of the cut seasoned Tipperary wood and holding their saplings on their journey to being replanted when they are ready.
We sourced a work space along with working from home where we can plant saplings such as ash, acorns, horse chestnut and sycamore to name a few.
This is imperative, as it aligns with our ethical beliefs. Our business has to give back to our environment, as every person has a role to play.
We continually nurture the saplings for several years. When they are ready for planting, we do so around our local area.
Donnacha decided to assist in the spalting of our wood. He achieves this by cutting the wood and standing large logs upright for nine weeks. He applies PVA glue to the top of the logs to stop the water evaporating too quickly out the top, preventing excess cracking.
The fungus which affects wood is airborne; it travels up the log from the ground creating this spalting unique design effect up through the inside of the log.
After nine weeks, the wood is left on its side. After a year, the glue is removed and the logs are intermittently rotated over a three-year period.
Following on from this process, we put the wood in a room in our home for six months to enable it to adapt to its environment.
We use salvaged metal or off-cuts, which our local ironworks business has agreed to give us. We also use salvaged driftwood from Lough Derg. We repurpose thrown-out items that would otherwise have been skipped, for example pianos.
We decided long ago in order for our business to remain harmonious with our materials and our environment, we would not use any big workshop machinery.
Instead, we try to remain as traditional as possible and use mainly chainsaws, grinders, sanders and mallets.
The finish of each product is most important. Once again, we came across problems relating to the products we should use, which are environmentally safe, yet enhance the grain and textures of the wood.
Our research informed us that we were to use clean spirits to clean the wood before a light application of boiled linseed was applied.
What is it about your business that brings you joy?
One may think 'we are doing it the hard way', as each piece we create takes almost four years in total to make.
Yet, this brings us joy, as the end product is a more superior product.
Due to its authentic origin, its evolution and development is one aligned with keeping the materials used as genuine and pure to its natural form, yet dramatically transforming each piece into functional art.
We are extremely proud of our business and what we have achieved to date.
Donnacha finds it therapeutic when he is hands-on designing and hand-carving pieces of furniture and lighting, which are divergent from the norms on sale in the market place. I adore the marketing and sales side to the business.
What is your best seller?
All of our pieces are one-off, bespoke pieces. Every customer truly appreciates the fact that no one will ever have the same piece.
We cannot replicate any item because our wood is sustainable, local and takes over three years to season.
However, our lamps and tables have been particularly good sellers.
We have also sold multiple hand-carved sustainable Tipperary wooden bowls to Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet. They use our wooden bowls twice daily for the banquets.
What are your hopes for 2023?
We have entered the Irish Business Design Challenge (under the micro business category) with The Design Council of Ireland. We would be grateful if people could vote for Metal and Mallet.
We will exhibit at the Ideal Homes Show from 21 to 23 April and at the Mallow Home and Garden Festival from 26 to 28 May 2023.
We have to improve our website and social media forums this year. We will continue to market our products and find avenues to bring our pieces to the public and customers’ attention.
As we are a new business, it can be difficult to get our business name in the public arena. However, we believe 'if business was easy, everyone would do it'.
What advice would you give to other start-up businesses?
Don’t give up and keep focus on your business goals and ethics. Stay true to your business plan, while incorporating additions to it along the way.
Get in contact with your local enterprise board, with the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland and any other relevant organisations. These will assist in many ways; financially, developmentally and help with networking.
A business course is highly advantageous, as often artists are exceptional at that side of business, but a business will fail if book-keeping, etc, is not completed.
We adore our business and believe there is a place both nationally and internationally for our pieces of functional art. You too believe in your business, as dreams can come true.
Visit www.metalandmallet.com.
Read more
Meet The Maker: artist Orla Barry
Meet The Maker: Alla Shadrova
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