Click here to subscribe today or Login.
A career in chainsaw carving wasn’t always in Heath Bender’s plans.
Marrying a fellow chainsaw artist was even further from his mind.
But that’s exactly what happened and Bender, of Cedar Mountain Designs, wouldn’t have it any other way.
Bender and his wife, Hillary, will be the featured entertainment at the Northeastern PA Home and Better Living Show April 8 and 9 at the Lodge at Montage, 1000 Montage Mountain Road in Scranton.
The event is presented by the Home Builders Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania and sponsored by Scranton Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram, Window World and Bath Fitter/Kitchen Saver.
The Benders will perform a live chainsaw carving demonstration at 1 and 3 p.m. on both days during the event and will hold a raffle for one lucky winner to take home a finished design.
Cedar Mountain Designs, based in Sullivan County, offers in-house and onsite customized chainsaw carvings, from small singular pieces to large-scale sceneries.
Bender said the business has evolved over the years from selling pieces at craft fairs and festivals to owning its own store to now traveling across the country to create one-of-a-kind designs.
The pair also makes room in their its schedules to perform for entertainment purposes at least once a month, and the 2017 Home and Better Living Show is no exception.
“We’re there demonstrating what we do, as an entertainment form, and to have people come, see and learn, as well as create another draw for the home show,” said Bender.
Bender said the range of the company’s carving abilities are vast — from recent carvings of university logos to a very detailed nature scene, the Benders like to collaborate with the property owners to create unique pieces.
However, there are some designs Bender can create more easily than others.
“I’ve done literally thousands of bears,” said Bender. “Nationwide, you predominantly see chainsaw bears. A bear is a fun creature, a really cool animal that people naturally gravitate to. They can stand up, they have character and personality, and the cubs are lovable and cute.”
The process from start to finish includes learning about the site from the property owner, such as the size and type of tree intended to be carved, to get an initial estimate. Bender said those questions are paramount to determining how long and how labor-intensive the project will be.
“I have to know whether it’s a hard wood or soft wood because there’s a huge difference in the time it takes to do the carving in pine versus oak,” said Bender. “Also size — Am I 20 feet in air, or 6 feet off ground? The scaffold alone could take an hour to set up, and we charge per day, like how much I can get done in a day. If it’s white pine soft wood, I can get 6 to 8 feet done in a day. If it’s hard wood, I could do the same size over a two-day period.”
Bender said he will not consider an onsite job for less than $1,000 because the travel and expenses eat up a lot of the profit.
“I can do something in-house and ship and deliver for less money,” he said. For example, if a client wants a small piece to be carved onsite, Bender would tell that client he could carve it in his studio and deliver it for around $600 as opposed to the $1,000 it would take for him to travel to the site.
Bender said the most expensive project he’s ever worked on was a large and very detailed nature scene on a property in Texas that cost the homeowner $25,000.
“It was a huge live oak, and very, very dense wood, which slowed down process,” said Bender. “It topped off at 20 feet, and it was probably 16 feet wide because it was two limbs that went up. I carved 16 different animals, including a barn owl and owlets, a great horned owl and two baby owls, two adult raccoons and three babies, bald eagles and two eaglets in a nest, and a fox down below. That was two weeks of being on site.”
Bender’s interest in art began in high school during which time he took illustration and painting classes. His father started carving wood pieces as gifts for family and friends in 1985, and in 1991, when Bender tried the art form himself and was hooked.
“I carved this little owl for my junior year high school art exhibit, and knew I wanted to do it,” said Bender. “Then I went 12 years of going back and forth between regular jobs and chainsaw carving until 2003-ish, and then I met my wife in 2004, and together we were able to make the full-time jump and keep it that way, carving together since 2004.”
Hillary Bender also comes from a family with a chainsaw-carving background and jokes that their pairing was nearly like an arranged marriage. Bender had known his now father-in-law for years through the chainsaw-carving circuit, and said he was the stimulus in bringing the couple together.
“We’re the first official second-generation chainsaw carving couple in the nation,” laughed Bender. “At least that’s what I’ve been told.”
The couple has two daughters, aged 5 and 10, whom Bender said are already showing signs of artistic ability.
