Leslie Ravey (left) Designer/Furniture Maker Jo Alcalde (right) Designer/Finisher

A post office employee and a pharmacist decide to start a woodworking business together...

If that sounds like the setup of a joke, it's not. It's actually what Leslie Ravey and Jo Alcalde did when they formed their company - AR Images - in 1993.

Since then, the two Willis, Texas, women have grown their company by leaps and bounds. They now travel the country to show their work at juried art shows, drawing praise from clients for their handcrafted fine furniture that they refer to as "functional art pieces with a great deal of individualized attention to each piece."

Their company made its biggest stride five years ago, when Leslie left her position at the post office to devote her full attention to woodworking. Jo, meanwhile, handles the administrative end of the business and does the finishing work. She continues to work 32 hours a week as a consultant to nursing homes.

It's definitely a partnership that plays off of each other's strengths.

"I never thought I'd be doing anything like this," Jo said. "What I really enjoy is the administrative side of the business and the marketing, and she enjoys the hands-on part —so it works out well."

"She likes to handle everything I don't like to do," Leslie said, laughing.

''Curio Cabinet'' Walnut with Quilted Maple Trim Glass doors - Three glass shelves Interior light 23" x 17" x 67"h

Located in Willis about 50 miles north of Houston, AR Images specializes in making accent tables, mirrors and other small furniture pieces that Leslie describes as "contemporary Mission or Shaker style - very simple yet still elegant."

"What people like about our work is that it's elegant, functional, and can fit with a lot of different furniture," Jo said. "We try to keep the lines simple. Sometimes Mission style furniture is too bulky. We'll take it and make it lighter, with less bulky legs."

The partners both take part in the design process. Typically, Leslie sketches out a project and then Jo puts it into a CAD (computer-aided design) program to get the proportions just right. "It's a great balance because the conceptualization of the piece is something we both work on," Jo said.

Leslie produces about 15 pieces each month in her shop, incorporating traditional joinery such as finger and box joints, dovetails, and mortise and tenons. Another trademark of her work is the use of decorative inlays, which has proven to be very popular with customers.

"Lacewood & Ebony" Console 50 x 14 x 39h

Leslie and Jo also prefer to keep their pieces natural looking. "We don't use any stains," said Jo, the designated finisher. "We like to leave the wood the natural color and let it do its own aging and transformation. I always start with a Tung oil or Danish oil, depending on the piece, then I either do a polyurethane rub-on, which takes 7 to 10 coats and 24 to 48 hours between each coat, or I might use a light lacquer spray."

As for lumber, Leslie handpicks each piece for a project, often incorporating locally available mesquite. "Most women like to go to jewelry stores," Leslie said. "I like going to lumber yards."

Leslie, 44, was born and raised in Port Arthur, Texas. She describes herself as a self-taught woodworker. "My dad was an all-arounder," Leslie said. "He was a carpenter at one time in his life. He built cabinets and built some homes. I think that's where I got the interest."

The decision to leave the post office and devote her full-time to woodworking was a well thought-out plan. When Leslie started woodworking in the early 1990's, she made small projects like Christmas ornaments and toys. That led to table design and construction. She then took a two-week course at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine, which further fueled her interest. "That taught me that I was on the right track, using the same techniques," Leslie said. "I learned hand tools and sharpening techniques at that school. Once you have those skills you can go to a whole new level.

"Arches" 14 x 48 x 33h, Walnut

"I started creating tables of all sizes and realized I had a knack for it. People started wanting them and we took orders for them. As my skill level increased, I gained some confidence, and we did a test art show."

The show proved to be a success — and Leslie realized she had found her calling. She continued to work at the post office for a number of years, at the same time purchasing equipment and setting up her workshop for the eventual move to become a full-time woodworker. "For the last four years that I worked at the post office I really geared up to quit," she said. "I bought all the equipment so I didn't have that huge expense of starting up."

Jo, 49, took a more circuitous route to the world of woodworking. She was born in Cuba and came to the United States with her family in 1957 before Fidel Castro took control. She grew up in New York and moved to Texas in the 1980s. She currently works four days a week as a consultant to nursing homes; ensuring residents are taking correct medications. "It's an extremely rewarding job working with the elderly," she said. "I enjoy what I do, but I would like to spend more time in the business in the not-too-distant future."

"Classic" Lacewood w/ Ebonized Mahogany Base with Ebony wood inlay on top 14 x 14 x 36h

Leslie and Jo are currently building a new 1,200 square foot workshop on property they recently purchased in Willis. The company has quickly outgrown its old shop. "Every year we've had increasing sales," Jo said. "In the last four or five years the business has really started to flourish."

The price range of their furniture is $700 to $3,000. They also offer accessories and other less expensive items. About 70% of sales are the result of showing their work at juried art shows, Jo said. They've twice been selected to attend the prestigious Cherry Creek show in Denver, and have traveled as far east as Washington, D.C. and as far west as Tempe, Arizona, to show their work. "We try to get into the top art shows in the country," Leslie said.

"Last year we did 15 shows, and Leslie almost killed me because it was too many," Jo said. "This year we'll do between 10 and 12 shows. In order for us to sell our work at shows, it has to be a high caliber show. Most of our customers are from shows or repeat customers, which is the best compliment we can have."

There's one woodworking rule that guides the business, Leslie said. After building large furniture like buffets and bedroom pieces for a time, she decided to focus on smaller pieces. "If I can't carry it myself, I don't make it," she said with a laugh.

To view more of the artist's work, go to www.arimagesinc.com.