“Instead of using them for firewood, I've restored them to a musical furniture piece,” Swartley explains.
"Expressions by David" are one-of-a-kind pieces. Swartley converts retired instruments ‒ that are no longer playable ‒ into wine racks, spice racks, or other creative home decorations.
Seeing the transformation strikes a chord for Swartley. It's the same process he whittles away at in his day job.
“I have a remodeling company,” Swartley said. “That's my main bread and butter. Final finish is something I'm real interested in, getting the product so people are happy.”
He says so far his customers have been thrilled with their custom-made pieces.
Swartley hopes to one day make "Expressions by David" his full-time job. He says it's something he's wanted to do for many years. He already has plans to make a drum cymbal into a desk light, and a string bass into a CD rack or book case.
