I love traveling. I was a travel speech therapist by trade, an overseas career missionary by choice, and a homeschooling mom by nature, hauling my kids around the world. I had never lived in one place for more than 3 years since I turned 18. I got by with furniture from Goodwill, or inflatable furniture from Walmart. I was wild at heart.

Then life threw me a curve ball. Everything came to a halt in 2021. Overnight, I woke up in a house in a little town in Eastern North Carolina, alone. A single mom, alone, with 4 young children all 7 and under. With the realization I was not able to travel anymore, I was determined to give my precious children a home, a well-furnished home, a loving home, for them to grow up with sweet memories.

So I started to build things in the little shed in our backyard. I gathered my tools, table saw, router, miter saw etc.; I first built a couple of shoe racks, some bookshelves, then a day bed, a console table, an entertainment center, cabinets, Cabin beds, and bunk beds.... Before you know it, I built almost all the furniture at our house. And I absolutely fell in love with woodworking!

Then my friends started to ask me to build custom furniture for them after seeing all the furniture pieces around our house. That was the birth of Once Upon A Tree. The name Once Upon A Tree does not only imply the work I do with wood from trees, but also a symbol of our Lord Jesus who died on the rugged cross because of all our sins. 

Life isn't easy, but there is hope. I hope my woodworking skills will bless you and bring you hope and joy, whether through a simple wood sign or through a sophisticated piece of furniture.

Do you also know that I am an artist and a graphic designer? Yes, I do digital art at night when the children are asleep and I can't turn my table saw on!

Visit my other shops to check out my Christian Bible Verse Wall Art!
OnceuponatreebyMK2.Etsy.com (Digital download shop)
onceuponatreewallart.Etsy.com (Wall art poster shop)

Love,
Mae