Today we’d like to introduce you to Sterling Lockhart.
So, before we jump into specific questions about your art, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
The idea for the company came about while working a 12+ hour night shift position at a rendering plant. Everyday I would see animal heads and skulls being ground up for a chicken feed and dog food ingredients. One day it dawned on me that the skulls could be utilized in a completely different way. I felt like skulls should be shown off. When I look at the skulls, I see something that could be art. When thinking about making this a business, I wanted to provide a cheaper option for preserving a harvested trophy for the hunting community through a means of furless taxidermy, also called European Mounts. So I started to acquire a few skulls from friends and family. I would clean them super thoroughly to make them and I even tried different techniques on them that I thought would be awesome to see on the amount. I tried, hydro dipping, carving Celtic designs into the skull, and skull burning. I started to post on social media and people have started to take an interest in my work, hunters and non-hunters as well.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Absolutely not! Finding a location to legally perform the skull cleaning and whitening process was one of the biggest struggles. This is not something that can just be done in your backyard. Fortunately, I have a ranch partner who let me utilize a space on his property and have been able to put in more work there. Another big struggle has been finding new raw materials due to large wholesale skull buyers acquiring all available inventory. So it’s nice when a skull is brought to me by the customer because it makes my job that much easier and more cost-efficient on the customer. One of the last major struggles for me was and still is finding the time to put into the business due to my “9:00-5:00” job actually being a 12-14 hour daily commitment.
We’d love to hear more about your art.
What I do is provide is a skull cleaning service for hunters seeking a more affordable option for preserving a trophy to help remember the memories made on their trip hunting. During the off-season, I have branched off into custom home décor pieces for both hunters and non-hunters alike in order to expand the versatility of the business and reach a larger customer base. Customizations so far include hydro dipping, carving, antiquing, skull burning, and mounting with custom plaques.
The skull burning is probably my favorite method and probably the most recognizable technique. I seem to be one of the only guys in the local area providing this technique. I would say this particular technique of customization is what I am most proud of so far. I believe that my variety of customizations is what I would say sets me apart the most from others in the business. I also have some exciting new projects that will be available soon such as resin poured plaques for mounting trophies and succulent skull planters both with succulents and without. This is again in hopes of reaching a larger market and give more options for customers to add something rustic and beautiful to their homes.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
What I like the most about Dallas is the diversity in people and culture throughout our city. That has provided inspiration to expand my customization options. Growing up in the small town of Rockwall and now having the farm in East Texas to go to, you don’t get to experience such a diverse community and culture. What I like least like about the city are our traffic and one-way streets. Coming from a more rural area where it was easier to navigate and get to places, living in the city can feel confining at times.
Contact Info:
- Address: 3129 Wycliff Ave
Dallas, Texas 75219 - Website: https://www.sterlingskulls.com/
- Phone: 214-906-7591
- Email: sterlinglockhart@sterlingskulls.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sterlingskulls/
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=2139067416131043&ref=content_filter
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