Wild Impressions Wood Carving by Danny Harris

07/08/2026

So I’m starting to collect old pallets that I’ll breakdown and use the slats to panel the walls of the studio.
I was searching Facebook marketplace for pallets. I found a lot of ads that had 3-4 pallets for free but they were scattered all over the place. Also found a lot of people trying to sell them but they had a lot more of them in one place. Even found a couple places that had them already broken down ready to use but they must’ve been laced with 24k gold because they were more than regular lumber for building. As for the few free ones here and there by the time I spent money on gas running all over central Arkansas I may as well have bought the gold laden already broken down pallets.
But then i found the mother load. A guy has massive towers of free pallets and he gets them every few days and he was giving them away because they were piling up.
I’ve told him I’ll come get all of them but it may take me several trips due to my trailer capacity but he’s told me to come anytime as often as I need. So I made my first trailer load today with my wife’s help.
I found a video of a guy breaking them down with a tool he bought at Lowe’s. It’s a dual crowbar with a 6 ft handle and he was completely breaking down pallets within 3-4 minutes. So I’ll be picking one up soon.
Still have multiple trips to get enough pallets to do all the walls and vaulted ceiling but i think it will look good when it’s finished. Here are a few photos I found on line of other projects that have used reclaimed pallet boards with designs I may incorporate in mine.
I’ll do progress videos as I go. It won’t be a quick project because I’ve got to finish this yellow rainbow project and concentrate on projects for the World Taxidermy and Fish Carving Championship next April.

07/05/2026

For the past few years, my carving studio has mostly been my front deck. That may sound peaceful, and sometimes it was. There’s something nice about working outside with fresh air, birds singing, and nature all around you. Of course, nature also includes heat, cold, humidity, sideways rain, and every mosquito in Saline and surrounding Counties showing up like they had been personally invited to inspect my work.
Every time I wanted to carve, I had to haul tools, equipment, wood, supplies, paints, and everything else out onto the deck. At the end of the day, it all had to be packed up and carried back inside. I spent so much time hauling things back and forth, I’m surprised I didn’t accidentally carve a handle on myself.
There was no real storage, no permanent setup, and no place where a project could simply stay put until the next carving session. Anyone who has ever done detailed work knows that half the battle is getting everything arranged just right. Then, about the time you finally get settled in, the weather changes, the bugs organize an attack, or you realize the one tool you need is back inside where it is resting comfortably.
That alone makes this new building a huge blessing. But this building means far more to me than just having a better workspace.
This was my brother’s building. Before he got sick with cancer, he was working on turning it into a small place of his own to live. He had already put a lot of time, effort, and hope into it. After losing him, I decided to keep the building pay it off and finish it in a way that honors both his memory and the work I love doing.
Now I’m turning it into a dedicated carving studio.
For the first time, I’ll have a place where my tools can stay organized, my carvings can stay set up, and I can walk in and get straight to work without spending half my energy dragging everything in and out. It will be a place for sawdust, paint, fish carvings, wildlife art, videos, and a whole lot of new projects.
This is more than just setting up a shop. It’s the beginning of a new chapter, built from years of hard work, a love for wildlife art, and the memory of my little brother who meant a lot to me.
Heres a short video showing the highlights and a brief overview of the simple plans I have for setting it up.
I’ll post regular updates as I progress in the work. It won’t be a quick project because I have a commission I have to finish then I have to get started on projects for the 2027 World Taxidermy and Fish Carving Championship next April.
Be sure to check out the video a leave me a comment there if you have any suggestions. And if you’re new to the channel I’d appreciate it if you’d consider subscribing and possibly sharing the channel.
Thanks

For the past few years, my carving studio has mostly been my front ...

06/28/2026

Some of you may know that I lost my brother to pancreatic and liver cancer back on May 14th.
Before he got sick, he had been working on converting a prefab 12 x 32 storage building into a small home. He had already run the electricity, insulated and drywalled much of it, and was in the process of running water and building the bathroom and shower when he received his diagnosis.
The doctors initially gave him a prognosis of several months, possibly up to a year, but the cancer progressed much faster than anyone expected. He passed away about eight weeks after that diagnosis.
He only owed about $7,000 on the building, so I decided to take over the payments and keep it. The company he bought it from was wonderful to work with. They helped finance the remaining balance and transferred it into my name without adding any extra fees.
The building sits on our property, only about 60 yards from my house, and I’m planning to turn it into my carving studio. I’ll need to move a counter, take down the beginning wall he had framed for the bathroom, do a little more work on the ceiling, and finish up some insulation. I’m thinking spray foam may be the best way to go.
I have several carving projects I need to get done first, so I probably won’t make much progress on the studio until this winter (after deer season of course. 😝)
But I know my brother would have been thrilled knowing I kept it, and that I’m going to turn it into a place where I can carve, create, and carry a little part of him forward with me.

03/17/2026

60 second timelapse of the bass painting if anyone would like to take a minute to watch

This painting was inspired by private land we used to sneak into when we were kids and caught giant bass. No worries we have permission to fish it now😜This ...

03/15/2026

Worked on yellow rainbow carvings today, finished this brown trout on a shoal up a few minutes ago.

03/05/2026

Finished this one up last night. I’ve been doing a little practice trying to capture that wet shine on the fish and the splash of water when they jump. Both of those effects have always been a bit tricky for me to pull off convincingly.

Getting a fish to look wet while it’s jumping out of water turns out to be one of those artistic challenges that sounds simple until you actually try it. Then you discover it’s about as cooperative as a five pound bass on four pound test in heavy cover.

Still learning and experimenting, but I think it’s starting to come around.

02/28/2026

02/28/2026

Brown Trout rising for a mayfly. This one took me around 14 hours. I struggled with the wet shine on the head and the water refraction distortion on the body under water. But I think I got close. 🤔

02/22/2026

Here is part 3 of the yellow trout wood carving project. Part two was running long so I separated the tail section for a stand alone video segment reference.
I also talk about our new FaceBook group called Fishcarving Inspiration in this segment which I will be promoting more in future videos.
Hope you enjoy it. Be sure and give it a like and subscribe if you haven’t already.

Bringing This Yellow Rainbow Trout Tail To Life In Wood

In this video The Art of Wood Carving the Tail on a yellow rainbow trout. I'll be carving the tail fin detail I hope you will enjoy this project and if you d...