My name is Michele Vanderpyle-Hall. I am 51 years old. I’m a mother of 4 and have 11 grandchildren. My husband Dennis and I reside in New York. I feel blessed to have the life we have.
I am a professional chainsaw artist. 8 years ago it all started with my husband who was my boyfriend at the time. After seeing me run my chainsaw cutting firewood with no fear, he asked me if I could create art with a chainsaw. That was something I had never thought of before. I always airbrushed motorcycles, helmets, clothing… whatever could be painted…lol.
So for my birthday he bought me my first carving saw. I carved a huge pumpkin. Then a bear planter. After that I just wanted to keep going, but I fell and shattered my left elbow and forearm in 5 places and required surgery.
I still have the rod in my arm. I couldn’t carve for more than a year. I was very depressed about that. But after therapy I got it back and started carving again. A lot of my first carvings were gifts. Then I was asked to carve custom orders which became a continuous thing. I worked at a body shop managing for 16 years. The stress was a lot and after a while my fiancé Den said to me that I should consider carving full time. It took me a little while to decide. But when I did!…carving became my everyday job that I looked forward to. It was a nice change to go to work doing something I love. Not saying that carving is easy. It’s a tough job at times. Logs can be unruly, always heavy, (lol) dusty, and with hidden chain destroyers like nails, rocks, spikes etc. I do try to take care not to run my chain into those. But it does happen. Not to mention that using a chainsaw with razor sharp teeth isn’t dangerous…lol…because it is!! I’ve had some mishaps with grinders, cut off wheels; one time I could of gotten hurt real bad with the Lancelot wheel, which is a round chainsaw wheel with a chain in which you put on a grinder. It spins super fast. I was using it and it hit a knot in the wood and got torn from my hands. It bounced onto the exit on the cord in which it was attached to, and cut the curbs in half; sparks flew everywhere. It was an eye opener. I think I used it once or twice after that but I learned other ways to create the effects I needed. I would not recommend anyone using this tool. It’s extremely dangerous. Many people have gotten seriously hurt by them. Find different ways to get the effects you need.
As a carver there’s a lot of traveling for events and shows. I just started getting into competitions. Totally new ball game. But we are always learning. And what I’ve learned is a valuable conglomeration of knowledge from experience and from my carving family. Yea, the chainsaw carving family is the most valuable asset in a carver’s life when it comes to carving. They are always there for you for support and advice. I feel blessed to have them all in my life.
Carving full time has been the best decision. It saved me, honestly. Stress takes years off your life. And the joys that come from chainsaw carving can’t be bought. I love bringing smiles and happiness to people with my carvings. That’s the biggest reward ever. If I ever had a customer that wasn’t happy I would not be happy. I never want to experience that. I do my best to create the best product I can. I look forward to many years of carving and bringing happiness to people through my art.