origin story
ComicBookFurniture.ca started over tens years ago as Gotham Unlimited in Calgary, Alberta. At the time I worked in a custom billiards woodworking shop, accumulating hours for my carpentry apprenticeship.
It all started quite unintentionally. I had recently moved to Calgary from the maritimes for a new job, and I was in need of a quick and affordable way to furnish my apartment. I decided to buy second-hand furniture and glued vibrant comic book pages to the surfaces, transforming them into eye-catching pieces that added a splash of colour and personality to my new place.
One day, while chatting during a break, I casually showed a co-worker some pictures of my end table. To my surprise, he asked if I sold them. His question took me off guard, and I answered honestly, expressing that no, I hadn’t sold any, and it had never even crossed my mind that anyone else would be interested in something like this. He suggested that I give it a try, and shortly thereafter, I decided to take his advice and posted my very first ad on Kijiji to see what would happen.
To my surprise, my furniture quickly sold and I soon found myself making pieces on a regular basis to sell as a fun side gig. At that time, I would sell them for quite cheap, only using watered down white glue to collage them onto whatever surface I was working with, without much thought to the long-term durability.
However, as time went on and my passion deepened, I became eager to elevate the entire process, so I started learning about various finishing options and techniques. This led me to ultimately perfecting the use of epoxy resin, a material traditionally revered for its application on bar tops, known for being incredibly thick and extremely glossy.
The combination of the thick, shiny finish seemed to complement the vibrant, graphic, and colorful pages beautifully, and once I started selling my new creations, I found that I didn’t even have to advertise. Almost everyone who purchased a table ended up referring a friend or family member to buy a piece for themselves.
It was astonishing how these tables seemed to sell themselves effortlessly, drawing in new customers through the visual of the furniture alone. I had a website but the majority of my requests were from word of mouth.
I left the construction and furniture refinishing industry for a few years but decided in 2024 to revive this passion project and see where it will take me. I can’t wait to dive into this exciting endeavor, continuing to hone my skills while elevating this entirely unique niche to new heights.
Thanks for reading. You can check out my current collection below.
