Our Story
Welcome to Chestnut and Hemlock, where tradition meets innovation in every handcrafted piece. We are a family-owned business passionate about creating not just products, but experiences that connect you to the beauty of natural, sustainable materials and meticulous craftsmanship.
Located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Chestnut and Hemlock is a small family business rooted in creativity and respect for nature. Terra, the heart and hands behind our wooden puzzles and home items, brings her artistic background into every piece she crafts. ShengHan, who manages packaging and the website, ensures that each product reaches you with the same care it was made with. Steven and Raj, always eager to lend a hand, complete our close-knit team.
C&H Puzzle
Terra has always done art but focused on painting and printmaking until the day she picked up a knife and decided to try and carve a wooden spoon while ShengHan and Raj were making magic wands. That was it. The woodworking bug bit her hard. She began making hand cut wooden jigsaw puzzles in January 2019. Since then, she’s been creating one-of-a-kind, hand cut wooden jigsaw puzzles, each as unique as you are. Over the years, Terra has become known for her attention to detail and her innovative approach to puzzle design. She uses birch plywood almost exclusively because it is much stronger and allows her to cut the intricate pieces she has become known for. Most of her puzzles now either have an image laminated onto the wood or they are individually hand painted, piece by piece. She likes experimenting and pushing the assumptions of what a jigsaw puzzle looks like, as evidenced in her Down The Rabbit Hole puzzle that won Best in Show at the 2024 Puzzle Parley. It has multiple layers, wedge shaped layers, multiple thicknesses, a rotating platform and a hinged door.
Terra has been involved in the Puzzle Parley since 2022, is the co-founder of Puzzle Jam Inc. and does research on Pastime Puzzles.
C&H Paper
Our love for natural, sustainable materials extends beyond wood to include handmade paper. As someone with an art background, Terra has always loved beautiful paper. In 2000, when she and Steven adopted Raj, their oldest, she made adoption announcements out of paper from the local art supply store. Unfortunately, she needed one more sheet and they couldn’t get any more. Terra and Steven set off to India to adopt Raj, knowing that some people would be left off the announcements list. While in the Pune airport, Terra saw a sign for a handmade paper business. She quickly copied down the information and their driver took them. They were wonderful and welcoming, showing us all their paper, despite not being set up for retail sales. Guess what paper just happened to be in their inventory? The paper she needed to make more announcements. This was THE company that made that paper! (cue “It’s a Small World”) Terra stocked up on several different papers and has been carefully using/ hoarding it ever since. Note that she still had enough hoarded paper to make ShengHan’s adoption announcements 8 years later.
Skip ahead 24 years. Papyrus and Paper Source have gone out of business and you could no longer buy their paper in the US. In a world where mass production often overshadows individuality, we believe in the importance of having access to well-crafted, handmade items. That’s why we decided to become the U.S. distributor for this remarkable paper, ensuring it’s available for your creative projects.
C&H Home
Our passion for craftsmanship doesn’t stop at puzzles and paper. We also enjoy turning on the lathe, carving spoons from sustainably sourced local wood, binding books, and creating painted or printed items. Occasionally, you’ll find these unique pieces available in our shop, each one made with the same dedication to quality and detail that defines our brand.
Follow Along
Join us on Instagram, Facebook, or sign up for our newsletter to stay updated on what we’re working on, discover new products, and get a glimpse into our creative process. Whether it’s the latest puzzle design, a new batch of handmade paper, what plants Terra is trying to keep alive, or what concerts ShengHan has played in, we’d love to share our journey with you.
Chestnut and Hemlock Paper IG.
