Crooked Tree is Jason Cornish and Jesse Hamilton. Jason began woodworking by watching his own father build their family house from the ground up and continued in his 20’s working for his uncle as a rough framer. He diversified his skill set with fine art and oil painting, attending The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Jason then laid stone and designed landscapes for Derek Spurlocks’ Natural Stone company. Derek himself built his own home, milling his own wood for decades, and dabbling in the wood shop. He soon began to see Jason’s other potential and wanted to grow his already-successful hardscapes business.

That’s when Crooked Tree officially began in 2016. Soon after that, Jesse Hamilton came onboard with the company with years of finished carpentry experience. He apprenticed with a home builder in Colorado and honed his natural abilities as a woodworker. With their love of working with their hands and watching their ideas become tangible, they helped develop and grow the business that now is a full-circle operation. Derek Spurlock, who was central to Crooked Tree’s start, is now retired. Jason and Jesse are full owners as of 2024.

An important part of Crooked Tree’s history includes salvaging a barn in Armada, MI in 2017. Through partnerships with tree services in the metro Detroit area, Crooked Tree collects the wood, mills it at their shop at Goldner Walsh Nursery in Pontiac, and re-purposes it to create indoor and outdoor spaces that bring creativity, comfort, and a rustic-chic look to any one’s home or business. Jason and Jesse continue to diversify their skill set through various projects and partnerships with local designers (ie. Goldner Walsh and AguaFina Gardens International), builders (ie. Renton Building), and artisans (ie. Ingram Roofing, who specialize in metal works).