James Tough has found his calling, and it’s in a barrel.

No, it’s not whiskey or wine. It’s hand-made furniture.

“Five years ago I started a wedding gift for a friend’s daughter and was looking for curved wood to make a wine rack,” says James Tough, explaining the moment he saw barrels in a new light and began his Barrelesque business. “And instead of having to bend the wood, it was already bent.” Tough appreciates the shape and edges of this recycled material. “I like working with the curves because it makes things more challenging and interesting.”

A lamp sits atop a small table in the home he shares with his wife Cheryl on Three Mile Lake. The body of the lamp is made from an old pine tree Tough pulled out of a nearby swamp. It’s wrapped in a copper spiral with barrel parts as a stand. Tough often pulls special pieces out of his favourite swamp near Port Sydney. He goes early on Saturday mornings so no one sees him.

He sources his barrels from local garden centres and finds old whiskey barrels from Quebec. Torched on the inside to produce the desired smoky flavour for the whiskey, the patina gives the wood an aged look, perfect for Tough’s pieces. He disassembles the barrels, making sure he numbers the boards so they fit back together perfectly.

Working with wood isn’t new to Tough, who created cedar canvas canoes for years, learning the skills his boat-builder father taught him. He also grew up in the bush and has always had an appreciation for wood. He can see the potential in a piece and is eager to bring it out. “You’re just limited by your imagination really,” says Tough.

For a man who spent 25 years as a prospector, camping for months at a time, flying in and out of the bush in the winter and writing stories about his experiences, imagination is something this artist doesn’t lack. Tough even built his own square log home in Bracebridge and lived there for seven years. “I cut down the pine trees and squared them with a broad axe,” he says with a sense of pride.

Tough does all of his work in his small shop across the driveway from his home, which was constructed from two barns merged together. “I work long hours out there,” he says. “It’s sort of my hobby as well as my business. I really like it.” Cheryl often opens the upstairs porthole window that faces the shop and hollers to get him in by 10 p.m. Cheryl herself is no stranger to woodworking. Her grandfather was a barn framer and built the barn they now live in. He hosted a barn-raising and created the house out of two barns.

Each piece Tough crafts is infused with his personality. He makes his own hardware from the barrel rungs. On one particular wine rack, the handle of a centre cabinet is crafted from a small piece of driftwood he found on the beach, while a rock takes the form of a knob on a tiny storage drawer. Truly one-of-a-kind furniture is what Barrelesque is all about. “Each barrel has different qualities and a unique character so they each turn out differently,” says Tough.

Though the wood sometimes has a bourbon aroma, this is quality craftsmanship at its best. Tough points to the barrel tray he’s working on. “The wood doesn’t warp,” he says. “And it’s very nice to work with.”

This artist’s family and friends are a lucky bunch. Tough loves to craft exceptional pieces for special people in his life. “A gift is especially meaningful when it’s made with your hands,” he explains. “They’re timeless treasures.”

As for the public, Tough’s work can be purchased at the Muskoka Arts and Crafts Show in Bracebridge. He also creates commissioned pieces by appointment. “We get calls from people that have seen items at someone else’s house,” says Tough, happy to know his work is being appreciated and is sparking interest.

Barrel furniture may be his calling card, but this wood artist has many tricks up his sleeve. He spent four months of his free time building a Greenland kayak from scratch. “It started as a boat and turned into a work of art,” he says with a chuckle, adding that he took his kayak out on the rivers of Florida with the alligators. The vessel was constructed from pieces of wood from around the yard. There are no nails. All of the pieces were tied together with artificial sinew and covered in a nylon skin.

Tough is full of surprises and is just starting to dig in to his barrel of ideas.

Reach Tough at 705.385.2830 or email him at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it