She received an art minor at Sacramento State, where she first discovered her interest in wood as a medium.

“I always liked doing things with wood,” she said. “Sometimes I’d paint on it, or paint on paper and nail it to the wood.” 

Homebound with her husband and two daughters, Dempsey remembers, “I had a pause giving me a chance to slow down, so I started wood burning. It was inspiring: the smell and the relaxation of it. You draw the picture, then you trace it and put it directly on the wood. It felt like adult coloring books, a place to zone out and relax.”

The birch tree stump in the backyard caught her eye and Dempsey decided to make her first table. 

“My mantra was, ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’” Now, the table sits in her living room. Her friends and family loved it and asked her to make them furniture, too. After work, which is with the state, she creates commissioned pieces like furniture, wall art and epoxy pourings.  

Like many artists, Dempsey’s ideas emerge while she sleeps. It’s how she developed her shed’s personality.

“I had a dream about Frida Kahlo and her Blue House, Casa de Azul, and I thought, ‘That’s it!’” Today, Dempsey’s Blue House participates in Verge’s Sac Open Studios, where the public can visit artists’ homes and tour their work. 

Dempsey’s home reflects a welcoming, cozy bohemian style. Plants hang from the ceiling and drape over wooden tables and bookshelves. Her walls display wood-burned images of women and flowers that might make one think of lazy summer afternoons listening to Fleetwood Mac. 

Her desire to maintain the natural elements of the wood is what makes the pieces so inviting. 

“I feel like it’s different from a woodworker where perfection is involved. My stuff is so wabi-sabi, where I say, ‘You know what? I like that mistake in it, that’s life. Nothing in this world is perfect.’ It’s my favorite part. I want people to know a human made it.”

She encourages her girls to play with their creativity, too. During the lockdown, Dempsey put together a craft corner stacked with supplies. Each day, she set aside time for artful experimentation.

“I told them to turn off the TV and let’s do something. They would draw stories in blank books, play with clay, or crochet. Sometimes I gave them a theme like ‘It’s a parade; you have one hour to present it to me.’ They loved doing that.” The creative play continues today.

Trading artwork with others is encouraged, too. Her older daughter exchanged “cat art” at an art show with another creator. The painting she received is now part of an eclectic mix of kitty art gracing the girl’s bedroom wall. 

For creative spirits who feel the artist’s call, but have full schedules, Dempsey offers encouragement.

“There was a stretch after I had kids where I wasn’t creating and asked, ‘Where do I even begin? Will it be good enough?’ I decided to bring that child out. For instance, I’d paint colors on a tiny canvas and play for at least half an hour every night. Then I’d wonder, ‘Do I like it? Does it matter?’ I’d put the pieces aside and come back a month later, realizing it wasn’t so bad, and why was I so critical?” 

When she’s asked to make something, there are no promises of how it will turn out. But that’s what’s special about Dempsey’s work. Discovery is a natural part of the process. 

“Sometimes when I have a slab, I’ll sit with it and ask, ‘What do you want to be next?’ I’ll try to honor that. It feels like an energy exchange. When someone receives it, it becomes a healing piece for their home.”

As Dempsey’s children grow, her ambition evolves. She has plans to apply to the Krenov School of Fine Woodworking in Mendocino. Dempsey also dreams of bringing various woodworkers together in a collective space where they can create, display and sell their pieces. 

For now, work and family contain Dempsey’s artistic aspirations to a part-time endeavor. She is building a bookshelf for the girls’ room and a new headboard for her bedroom. In addition, she’s preparing for Verge’s Sac Open Studios. And she continues to experiment with wood, discovering what it will evolve into next.