St. Jacobs market charred wood recycled by artisan

Two months after the St. Jacobs Farmers' Market was destroyed in a fire, a local artisan is trying to preserve its memory.

Guelph native Lucy Satzewich has purchased hundreds of pounds of wood salvaged from the main market building's remains and is building furniture, butcher blocks and serving platters with it. 

Working with the burn marks is really aesthetically interesting to me.- Lucy Satzewich

"I think that the history of the wood is really interesting," said Satzewich. "It's Douglas Fir from British Columbia and it's just beautiful. It smells gorgeous and working with the burn marks is really aesthetically interesting to me." 

Satzewich first found out about the wood when she started to research reclaimed materials in the area. She had gotten a job making a custom table for an advertising agency in Toronto and wanted to source local wood. 

The advertising agency was really interested in getting a table made with some Ontario history in it, said Satzewich. That's when she came across a Waterloo company selling salvaged wood from the market.

"I knew that's exactly what they'd be looking for and what I was interested in working with," said Satzewich. 

Keeping the wood in the community

Satzewich describes her family as market people. She grew up attending the St. Jacobs Farmers' Market and even purchased her prom dress at one of market's stalls. 

"I remember thinking [the market] was just beautiful," said Satzewich. 

Satzewich said she couldn't imagine the wood leaving the community, which is why she was compelled to buy so much of it. 

She purchased 20-foot-long support beams from the market as well as countless boards used to build walls and floors inside the market.

The pieces Satzewich is working on will be for sale at the Cobblestone Gallery in Waterloo and through her website.