A year ago today, we started selling 365 Imperfect Cards.
These little cards hold a special place in my heart because I spent so many of my early years striving to do everything perfectly.
Back then, I was a graphic designer, and perfection—or the appearance of it—was the goal. There was no room for typos or misprints, and perfectly pleasing, on-time work was required. This self-imposed demand for absolute perfection was a source of massive stress in my life.
Then, thankfully, my responsibilities grew, so eventually, I reached the point where I couldn’t possibly live up to my impeccable standards.
I had to let go.
Shortly after I lightened up, my stress started to fade, and I found a new freedom in living imperfectly. I realized that I never was living perfectly. That’s not possible. I was only building a facade of perfection to hide behind. I discovered that letting go of the burden of trying to be perfect and instead following the only perfect human is a much more fulfilling way to live.
I am a craftsman, and I take pride in my work. But I see things differently now. I look for antiques in disrepair to reclaim wood from instead of using freshly cut lumber. I don’t sand off, smooth out, or gloss over dents, scuffs, and scars anymore. These marks are the evidence of that wood’s past life. These imperfections are a feature of my work, not something to hide—they are where the beauty comes from.
We’ve all had setbacks—it’s inevitable—these valleys in life are painful, but they make us stronger. Sometimes, we end up scarred because hard times expose our imperfections and help us see ways to improve—marks left by these struggles are not something to be ashamed of—they are where your beauty comes from.
We’re all imperfect and yearning. We believe in embracing imperfection. That’s why we make these products.
We made a little film about why we love working with reclaimed and imperfect wood here at Dennehey Design. Check it out!
For a limited time, you can get 20% off all products in our Imperfect Collection!
Comments
I love your little ‘imperfections’ video! Seeing the old upright piano coming off the truck reminded me of the upright piano that my sister and I learned to play on as children…I loved hearing “old furniture and wood have a history”. ‘Our’ piano had once been a player piano/then gutted/and bought used by my 2 uncles (cheap!) so they could learn to play. My grandparents eventually gave it to our Mom, so her 5 kids (us) could learn music. It made the trip from PA to VA in the back of Grandpap’s pickup. I honestly don’t know what happened to it…but I hope someone is still making beautiful music OR recycled it into something beautiful! All my best! J