Willie van der Westhuizen takes thinking outside the box to the next level – he cuts it, crafts it and paints it.
Fifty-year-old Willie discovered at a late stage in his life that he had a God-given talent for making things with his hands.
He first discovered his talent just before his son’s 21st birthday. He wanted to throw his son a big party and to save money, he decided to do the decorations himself.
The theme of the party was cowboys, so Willie started making a man-sized horse-shoe, cowboy hats and other goodies. It was only after the party that he realised he enjoyed crafts and was good at it.
He has subsequently made props and decorations for weddings, churches and most recently the Randfontein Show.
The boxes he uses are from his company. They’re imported Italian boxes, which he said are thicker than the average South African boxes.
Other than his fancy boxes, his equipment is modest. He said his preferred cutting equipment is his wife’s steak knife. Other than that, a little glue here and there and a nut and bolt is all he needs to make a masterpiece.
His passion for crafting boxes into works of art is more than just that. At his age, he said, he needs to look at what he will do in his retirement, not only monetarily, but also as a hobby.
While Willie is a crafts master, his family has taken to décor and between them, they can do décor for a function that belongs in a magazine.
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