Nature of Things

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Viola, WI
Nature of Things

We are Ken and Michelle Workowski.

Our business, The Nature of Things,
works with the raw beauty of nature
and creates practical furnishings
to please all of your senses.

09/18/2026

Simple, organic, and inspired by the woods here in the Driftless.

This captivating mirror started with a natural raw-edge oak hollow. We added a few small bracket fungi tucked along the wood, giving it a little extra character—like the small details you might notice while walking through the woods and take a second look at.

We’ll be bringing this one along with us to the Driftless Area Art Festival, September 19–20 in Soldiers Grove, WI.

Come find us at Booth 58 and see what we’ve been making.

09/17/2026

A little bit modern. A little bit wild.

There’s something interesting about the contrast in this table — the clean, intentional shape of the red elm top against something completely organic and unpredictable underneath. That tension is what makes the piece.

The long, raw-edge red elm slab has an incredible grain pattern running across the top. Two patterns seem to mirror each other, giving the whole slab a sense of movement and symmetry.

Ken carved a ‘window' through the center of the slab so you can see the ironwood trunk coming up into the underside of the table. It’s a clean, modern detail that opens the piece up and lets the natural form of the wood show through.

And then you get to the base - a branching ironwood root system, with those deep, almost black tones left behind from being underground. The roots twist and branch in ways you just couldn’t design.

That’s what we like about working with pieces like this. We can shape them, but nature gets the final say.

Yet another incredible piece we’ll have with us at the Driftless Art Festival this weekend.
Hope to see you there.

Soldiers Grove
September 19-20
Booth 58

09/16/2026

Two similar pieces, two different sets of wings, each sharing a wooden perch.

A butterfly, dragonfly, and a bee sit together on a weathered piece of driftwood. The contrast of woods lend their own colors, textures, and shapes to each one.

A simple pairing of wood, wings, and driftwood.

Both of these will be available at the DriftlessArea ArtFestival this coming weekend.

Driftless Area Art Festival
Soldiers Grove
September 19-20
Booth 58

09/15/2026

Some pieces of driftwood don't need any help telling their story.

A gnarled and ancient tree seems to rise from a rocky little outcrop, complete with the twisted trunk and exposed roots you might expect from a tree that has weathered a lifetime of storms. Nothing has been carved, shaped, or added. This is simply how the wood came to us.

Sometimes nature makes the most convincing sculpture.

Come enjoy a weekend in the Driftless at the DriftlessArea ArtFestival
September 19-20
We will be at Booth 58

09/13/2026

A little bit of the forest, taking flight.

Crafted from butternut hickory burls, each butterfly carries the unique grain, texture, and movement of the tree it came from. No two are quite alike—each one shaped by the natural beauty of the wood.

Nature makes every piece one of a kind. We just give it wings.

Come see us at Booth 58, this coming weekend. All sorts of fun, new things to share!

09/12/2026

Two very different forms, both shaped entirely by the natural world.

A Sweet Knot mushroom, rich in color and beautifully layered, its scalloped edges folding into one another in a delicate cascade.

The other is something altogether different: a large bald-faced hornet’s nest that seems to be dripping from the eaves of the sugar shack.
Two long, separate attachment points stretch down to meet the rounded body of the nest, creating a shape that feels almost too strange to be real.

No carving. No construction. Just nature making remarkable things in its own way.

Come see more of Nature's beauty (and us) at the DriftlessArea ArtFestival next weekend, September 19-20. We look forward to seeing you!

09/11/2026

These baskets start with something the forest left behind.

A Birch tree falls and, over time, the wood inside rots away, leaving behind a cylindrical piece of bark. Michelle gives it a new life as a basket trimmed with the inner bark of Bitternut Hickory.

The finished basket still carries the character of the tree it came from. Its curves, texture, marks, and imperfections all remain part of the piece.

No two are alike because no two trees are alike.

We’ll have these at the Driftless Art Festival September 19–20. Stop on by. We'd love to see you!

09/10/2026

A little piece of the Kickapoo River

Three dragonflies rest on a graceful piece of driftwood, each one handcrafted from natural materials— Sumac, Cherry burl, and Tamarac.
Together, the varied textures and grains give each dragonfly its own character.

A little bit of nature, gathered together in one quiet moment.

We will have more dragonfly, butterfly and driftwood inspired pieces to show you at the DriftlessArea ArtFestival coming up September 19-20.

Flutter on by and say hello!

09/09/2026

There’s something about red cedar.

This one started with a raw slab and an idea. As the slab opened up, the natural edge started to feel like an important part of the piece. By turning it inward, that edge becomes part of the frame — a small reminder of where the wood came from.

Warm, natural, and full of the kind of grain that makes you stop and look twice.

This one will be at the Driftless Art Festival September 19–20, along with some other furniture and furnishings.

Come wander through and take a look. Would be good to see you there.

09/04/2026

This is the Driftless.

A pair of Sandhill Cranes, caught in a moment of wild artistry—one lifting, leaping, dancing. Perhaps a mating dance. Perhaps simply the joy of being alive.

There’s an untamed grace to the way these birds move, just as there is in the hills, valleys, woods, and open spaces of the Driftless. You never quite know what you’ll come across out here.

That’s part of what we love about this place. Beauty reveals itself in quiet moments, the landscape carries an energy all its own, and nature is constantly creating.

We’ll be at the Driftless Art Festival, September 19–20, sharing our work and enjoying the weekend with other artists and folks who love this area as much as we do.

Come wander the hills. Take it all in. Maybe you’ll find your own little moment of magic.

Address

S5706 County Road SS
Viola, WI
54664

Website

http://www.natureofthingsonline.com/

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