Today we’d like to introduce you to Jonathan Bloodworth.
Hi Jonathan, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Like a lot of folks, I started a few hobbies during lockdown in 2020. Being a software engineer, I had the incredibly fortunate opportunity to work from home, which is really what opened the door for me to evolve into the person I am now.
Since I couldn’t eat out at all, I was cooking and using my kitchen all the time and quickly needed more space. I decided I would get it with a kitchen island. All of the options online or in stores near me were way too big or expensive or both, so I decided to make one!
I made a trip to a big box store, as many beginner woodworkers do, and grabbed some subpar supplies. My first project was not great, but it certainly worked. what it really did was give me the creator bug. This bug quickly evolved into a full-blown hobby and darn near job. I got the cheapest table saw available from a big box store, a few more tools, and the woodworking journey was off to the races. I often bite off more than I can chew, and this was probably in that vein, considering one of my earliest projects was a monster 7 foot live edge epoxy river table for my mother’s office. I also made a ton of little projects like cutting boards, tripods, planters, etc., and I just didn’t see myself stopping anytime soon, especially since I was planning to get out of the rental game and then I’d be able to set up a shop wherever I ended up.
Another thing I had been looking forward when I got my own place was setting up a farmden or a farm garden, my own little term. Farming’s in my blood, after all.
When I finally moved into my current home in 2021, I was finally able to indulge in my garden desires, and boy did I…
4 years since the pandemic rocked the country and countless people dug into their hobbies just like myself. In that 4 years, I have built out a furnished but unfinished wood shop, a mini smithy, a small wood mill, a small greenhouse, a sprawling backyard garden with more than 5 large raised beds 15+ fruit trees wild, and purchased, a grove of fruit bushes, and a front yard orchard with 25+ fruit trees and bushes, multiple cabinets reserved for ferments, and way too many glass jars!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I wouldn’t say smooth, but I wouldn’t say bumpy. There have certainly been some trials and tribulations, but I have also been dealt some incredible luck here and there like being able to secure my home before the market spiked. I’ve luckily not encountered anything that made me say, “I don’t want to do this anymore.” But it takes a lot of determination to finish a full-time job and start up your second full-time job that you don’t get paid for, i.e. a hobby. I’ve definitely faced some burnout here and there which you can come back from, just take a break. I try to film almost anything I do for the shop or for the farmden for things like social media and YouTube, but I just don’t have the time necessary for editing unless I want a mean case of burnout.
The thing I have to remember is that it is a hobby, I’m doing it for me, I don’t need to stress myself out getting timelines done other than the ones nature imposes on gardeneres every year.
That being said, I also do commissions for my woodworking hobby/company, Handcrafted Hardwood (@handcraftedhardwood on install), and when I do a commission, my other hobbies, like gardening, music, foraging, hiking, etc., take a back seat, so I can ensure satisfaction for anything I put my name on. I’m also very selective in how I decide what to take on and when something I learned from Chris Do at @TheFutur.
While on my journey to where I am, I have lost family, some very close friends, and even my sweet dog all in 3 short years. It’s never easy to lose someone you love or a pet you love, and the depression that follows can seriously put a damper on creative energies. Sometimes, I just need to take a step back from all of the chaos I create with my insane schedule and recenter myself with what matters, spend some time with family and friends, eat good food, watch a good show, teach my dogs a new trick and then I can get back to what I love doing.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
During the day, I work as a Software Engineer for Mindbody + Classpass. On March 2, 2020, Mindbody acquired the small tech company I was working for called ZeeZor, which was a 3rd party reporting software that would allow a user to see real-time data like total sales, retail sales, productivity, and much more from their business within about 15 mins of the transaction occurring and all from your smartphone. You could also reach out to staff from within the app to let them know how great they are doing and foster an efficient, positive, and productive work environment focused on key data points or metrics. Another key feature we implemented was being able to set goals and contest on the metrics that were already applied to the account, allowing businesses to gamify making a profit. ZeeZor was extremely popular in the salon space and so I have gained a ton of tips and tricks on how to use data to improve your spa/salon business, but I don’t get the chance to use it much anymore. As of right now, I am the last person at Mindbody from the ZeeZor team, but I have since transitioned to a new team at the company currently working on feature requests, bug squashing, proactive enablement, etc. for our larger enterprise customers.
Alright, so before we go, can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
I would love to work with literally anyone to do almost anything, just reach out on social!
One thing I have done in the past and will be doing again this year is sending my special pepper varieties to a few local chefs to be made into sauces! I love seeing the joy someone gets after trying one of my sauces or makes their own with my peppers. If you’re a local chef interested in a small batch of some really cool rare pepper varieties, definitely reach out! I also have other fruit and veg that can be used as well. Anything is possible!
In all seriousness, I would love to work with arborists in the area to save felled hardwoods and turn them into cool tables or bar tops, or god knows what else for local businesses and restaurants. I also have an undying need for woodchips, so if you need a dump site, let me know! If you have a dump site, I have some really cool high-value ideas that need more land than I have, and I’d be happy to discuss with the right person!
I want to organize mushroom forages and just regular hikes in the future.
I would like to get more active about doing something to curb invasive plant species.
I plan to hit some markets with my veggies and propagations this spring and summer and will post on my Instagram the dates and locations. I also sell them through the marketplace and can meetups locally if anyone wants some seedlings, propagations, or commissions.
I really, really want to collaborate and support LOCAL black-owned businesses and minority-owned businesses, so if there is something I can do, please let me know!
I have a few social media channels where I try to post as often as I can and try to respond to every comment or message!
For farming and gardening, I am most active on TikTok due to the long-form video allowance and algorithm advantages, then Instagram second!
You can find me on Instagram and YouTube @handcraftedhardwood for collabs and commissions
You can find me @Johnnyappleseedfarming on Instagram and TikTok for collabs, gardening tips, and gardening tricks, but on YT as @johnnyappleseedagriculture
You can email me with questions or propositions at johnnyappleseedfarming@gmail.com for gardening/farming or jbcustomswoodworking@gmail.com for woodworking!
I don’t have a Patreon or anything like that yet, but I will happily accept donations at @heeeresjohnny on Cash App!
Pricing:
- Elderberry propagation – small $5, medium $8, large $10
- End Grain Maple Charcuterie Board – 12″ x 19″ – $350
- Set of figured Maple Coasters – 3.5″ x 3.5″ – $25
- American Persimmon Tree – 2-3′ – $35
- Assorted Seedlings – small $3, large $5
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnnyappleseedfarming/ https://www.instagram.com/handcraftedhardwood/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jon.bloodworth?mibextid=ZbWKwL
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-bloodworth-122956160/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JohnnyAppleseedAgriculture https://www.youtube.com/@HandcraftedHardwood
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@johnnyappleseedfarming?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
Image Credits
Kailin Olufs
