The 19th annual Sunrise Festival of the Arts is on its way and will arrive at Veterans Memorial Park Saturday. The festivities for guests begin at 9 a.m., and the day for vendors will conclude at 4 p.m. The park will be filled with craft and food vendors, along with entertainment on the pavilion all day.

With the many festivities throughout the park, Brian Rasmussen of 2U Log Furniture, Sidney, will be the featured artist. One of his featured pieces of furniture, a custom-made yard swing, will be up for grabs by the one whose name is pulled from the barrel – but you’ve got to purchase a festival button for your name to go into the drawing.

Rasmussen has lived in the area his whole life, went to Glendive Dawson Community College for his associates degree in ag business, then on to Dillon to the University of Montana-Western for his bachelor’s degree in secondary education in industrial technology, with business and computers. Once school concluded, Rasmussen came home to live at the ranch, as well as take on the full-time hobby of building furniture out of lodge pole pine. He has always enjoyed woodworking, and years ago Rasmussen had the opportunity to work with a friend on a bed to be used as a raffle item. That’s when he became hooked on this supplemental income.

He enjoys watching his projects come to life, bringing the grain out of each piece of wood he hand peels – pieces of furniture, including tables, chairs, beds, benches, armoires, decks, as well as all types of custom creations built to the customer’s specification.

Rasmussen says he spends about 40 hours a week just on his 2U Log Furniture – that doesn’t include the time ranching and farming. He shares the load with his father, Merle, and his mother, Alice.

Rasmussen stock pine comes from Dillon at Tash T Diamond Post and Pole, along with Beaverhead Post and Pole. He says, “I enjoy hand-picking the wood I work with. I drive 550 miles one way, so I make every load count.”

To have a business such as 2U Log Furniture, one must be very disciplined in creating designs, but he also values the space in which it takes. “That’s why I do mostly custom orders,” Rasmussen said. “I keep inventory down due to space concerns.”

The most unique piece Rasmussen has ever built was a gun cabinet with blue grain running throughout the wood. “I’ve also built a bed with forked corner posts that turned out well,” he said. “It also had steel silhouettes in the head board.”

Along with the grand prize swing, Rasmussen will have a couple of beds, along with other items available to check out (which will be for sale), and as always, he will be taking custom orders. If you have more questions or would like to visit with Rasmussen before Saturday, he can be reached at 406-569-2059 or 489-3363. His Web site is www.2ulogfurniture.com and e-mail is br_rasmussen@hotmail.com.

To purchase a festival button and be in on the drawing for the custom built swing, visit the Sidney Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture or call 433-1916. Presale price of a button is $4 or $5 the day of at the Chamber booth.

This button makes you eligible for any of the 100 door prizes, as well as the swing (valued at $475).

Come and enjoy the day of festivities at the Sunrise Festival of the Arts Saturday! Stick around for a night of theatre with the Footlights and Greasepaint Youth Theatre Camp’s main performance at St. Matthew’s parish center at 5:30 p.m., then back to Veterans Memorial Park for Shakespeare in the Parks’ “The Two Gentlemen from Verona” at 7 p.m. Hope to see you there.

homespun@sidneyherald.com