Sunrise, Wyoming existed because of a large underground iron mine, where my father worked for nearly forty years. Although it has been uninhabited for many years, I feel a particular fondness for the little ghost town, and that is how Sunrise Ornaments got its name.

   I have a small shop and I do everything myself, from purchasing my wood to filling orders. I keep forty or fifty kinds of wood on hand most of the time, depending on what’s available. If you have a favorite wood, feel free to ask for it. If you have a piece of wood that has sentimental value, and you’d like to have an ornament made from it, contact me with your idea.

  And now, a few random comments about wood and other details—

• I turn a tenon on one end of each pendant, so the pendants actually plug into the center piece.
• My ornaments are solid wood, and although some of them are a bit heavy, they will still hang nicely on your tree.
• Burls sometimes contain small internal voids or bark inclusions, and getting rid of one can expose others—and waste a lot of beautiful wood in the process. These features are not defects, but part of the natural characteristics of the wood.
• On rare occasions I will fill a crack in a piece of wood and use it, but only if the alternative is to throw away an otherwise beautiful piece of wood. This applies to expensive, highly-figured woods; otherwise, I don’t use or try to rehabilitate cracked or defective wood.
• Carnauba wax is a non-toxic finish that is actually edible. Keep ornaments dry and clean and they will look good indefinitely.
• Most colors don’t change; others may fade or darken unpredictably. This is a natural process.
• If an ornament becomes damaged, don’t discard it. Contact me instead.
• Some woods vary considerably in color. For example, maple may range from tan to silver-gray to almost white. Cocobolo may range from gold to red-brown to purple-black, with mild to bold veins.
• Some woods are not suitable for ornaments. These include pine, spruce, fir, apple, cedar, cottonwood, poplar, and teak.
• The price of each ormanent includes full insurance and shipment by priority mail to addresses within the continental United States. I automatically insure every order to protect your investment. If a piece is damaged in transit, contact your local post office for instructions.
• These ornaments are not toys! Keep them away from pets and young children.