About Us

About Greg

Born and raised in New Orleans, I’ve always loved the special aspects of my city. I’m always trying to find something I can design and make to highlight what I view as New Orleans characteristics. Whether it is making pens from an Audubon park oak tree, red beans and rice coasters, slate coasters with New Orleans designs and quotes or Louisiana cypress products.

What I really want, is to show my appreciation of New Orleans to the people around me and to you.

I have always had a special connection with Audubon Park.

In July 2014, an oak tree fell in Audubon Park from termite damage, so I contacted the arborist and asked if I could have the tree.  Luckily, he agreed to my request. I took the tree to my woodworking facility and proceeded to cut the wood into smaller sections. I had to let the tree dry and release moisture for 2 years, before I could delve into the adventure of turning my authentic pens on my lathe. Each pen is uniquely crafted with different grains and shades to provide unpredictability and diversification of colors. I personally make all of my products. My Audubon Oak and Louisiana Cypress pens start in my shop as unfinished wood. I start by cutting all of my wood to size and setting it to the side. Afterwards I drill out the center of the wood blanks and insert brass tubing which holds the pen’s insides. After the brass tubing has been inserted, I turn each pen on a lathe to the correct dimensions for the type of pen I make. Once the pen is turned, I sand the blank and apply the wood finish. The pen is now ready to be put together, I insert all the parts and the pen is now complete.

Acrylic resin caught my eye one day, so I learned how to make resin blanks which I turn on a lathe to create pens. As I could not contain my love of New Orleans and its heritage, I began experimenting with different resins and dyes to design my Mardi Gras pens. Each batch of resin I make is unique. The resin I use for my Mardi Gras pens and coasters is mixed with a variety of shades and colors in my workshop. For the pens, the resin is poured into self-made molds for each type of pen. The resin takes 48 hours to cure; afterwards I use the same procedure as the wooden pens. I drill out the insides, insert the brass tubing and then turn the pens on my lathe. Afterwards, I assemble the pen together and we’re ready to go.

During the covid pandemic, I started working with leather. After talking to many leather artists, I started my journey in the leather craft. Now I have several different wallet and card holder designs. All of my leather products are hand cut and hand stitched by myself to ensure the high standards my customers expect from NOLA Pens.

My products reflect what we all love about New Orleans. The rich beauty of the Audubon Park tree, the Louisiana Cypress, and Mardi Gras are brought to a new level of beauty and ingenuity. I make New Orleans pens and coasters to highlight culture and New Orleans heritage. These instruments are hand-made from Audubon Park Oak and Louisiana Cypress trees.

Below is an article from the Uptown Messenger about the oak tree we use for our Audubon Oak Pens.