A Trimmer^® is an original, handmade wooden Christmas tree ornament designed to be personalized.

The quality of Trimmer^® ornaments has been likened to a highly crafted commercial product. To the contrary, every Trimmer^® ornament is painstakingly designed, painted and assembled at the artist's loft studio in her home.

After years of attending craft shows in Michigan and Ohio with a variety of different crafts, Mary Ann Sanders, an Ohio native, settled on the art of making and selling hand crafted wooden Christmas tree ornaments in 1986. The quality of her ornaments and the ready acceptance of her work by customers has led to a growing business.

Each Trimmer^® ornament is, in and of itself, an individual work of art. The idea for an ornament is first captured in the artist's imagination. The ornament's concept is then transferred to a design on paper. From the initial design, the ornament is revised and refined as to size, colors and accessories. Once the design has reached its final stage, a sample is made in the woodworking shop in the artist's home basement. The sample is once again reviewed and revised to meet the artist's exacting specifications.

Once the sample has reached its final revision, the design is copyrighted. A pattern is made of the individual parts of each ornament and the pattern is traced onto selected pine, hardwoods and or birch plywood. The traced patterns are then turned over to a woodcutting artisan who cuts each ornament on a bandsaw. Once the ornaments have been cut they are individually sanded and the sawdust removed. The ornaments are then drilled for hanging cords to be inserted or for any special accessories which have been incorporated into the ornament's design. Some ornament parts, those too intricate and time consuming to produce in the artist's shop, are acquired at specialty craft stores. However, the major part of any ornament, and all of most Trimmer^® ornaments are individually crafted at the artists direction.

Each ornament is then subjected to two (2) coats of base paint and/or stain, again depending on the design. Unlike many ornaments found in craft shows, each Trimmer^® ornament is painted and/or stained on all sides, including the back. If a particular ornament has more than one color of paint, a stencil is made and used to trace the design for the next color, which is again applied in two coats.

All detail painting is accomplished exclusively by the artist. For this reason, only a fixed number of ornaments can be made in any given year. Once all the parts have been painted, each Trimmer^® ornament is then assembled using the best glues and adhesives available to insure the customer receives many years of enjoyment from their investment in a Trimmer â ornament. Each ornament is then signed with the artist's name and dated on the reverse side. Once completed, each ornament is stored in containers in the artist's home basement.

Thousands of Christmas trees throughout the country proudly display Trimmer^® ornaments, in many cases, more than one. All Trimmer^® ornaments are designed to be personalized for the individual customer and thus, become family heirlooms.

The commitment to quality and the meticulous attention to detail is what elevates a Trimmer^® ornament from just another craft item to an individual work of art.