Workbench in a garage with tools, storage shelves, a stereo, and various equipment.

About Oro Woodshop

Oro Woodshop is a light-in-the-dark passion project. A custom woodworking and carpentry shop based in Portland, Oregon, building everything from cutting boards to screen doors, residential dining tables to 13-foot commercial bar tops.

Every project starts with a conversation and ends with something made by hand.

The Maker Behind Oro

A person in camouflage shirt working in a woodworking shop, holding a piece of wood and using a tool, with shelves of clamps and tools in the background.

Ory Brockman is a Portland-based tradesperson and crafter.

Ory came to woodworking through art and construction. Art gave them an eye for design and proportion. Years in the trades gave them the skills, along with a deep respect for fine woodwork and for repurposing material. Their interest in joinery grew as their projects became more intricate. In 2022, after years in construction, Ory wanted to build something of their own. Oro Woodshop is that: their heart, made into a shop.

As a trans and queer woodworker, Ory has had to (quite literally) carve out space in an industry that wasn't built with them in mind. Their heart and lived experience shows up in every project with deep care, intention, and a refusal to cut corners when it comes to craft.

A person with a beard wearing a baseball cap and plaid shirt standing inside a room with a bookshelf and plants in the background.
A person with a beard sitting on a wooden porch swing, wearing a white T-shirt, dark jeans, and yellow work boots, with one arm resting on the swing's backrest, surrounded by greenery and a flowering plant.

"My work is a reflection of time and love of the craft." — Ory Brockman

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"My work is a reflection of time and love of the craft." — Ory Brockman ✽

The Oro Approach

  • Every project incorporates reclaimed lumber or locally sourced hardwoods. Salvaged wood from old buildings, leftover material from job sites, hardwoods from Pacific Northwest mills. Some pieces are built from wood the client already has. It all gets used. Less waste, better wood, and every piece has a history before it ever reaches the shop.

  • Oro values where materials come from. Materials and lumber are sourced locally from small businesses whenever possible, steering clear of the big corporate supply stores.

  • Oro incorporates joinery into a build whenever possible. The art of joinery takes time and is the key to long lasting, beautiful pieces of work. It is also a quiet nod to buying less and keeping furniture around for longer in a consumerism-driven world.

Several wooden boards with striped patterns are arranged on a work table in a woodworking shop, with tools and equipment visible in the background.
A person wearing hearing protection and a face mask is using a hammer on a piece of metal in a workshop. The background shows various clamps, tools, and equipment on shelves and hanging on the wall.
A person with a beard in a black beanie and hoodie inspecting a wooden piece with colorful stripes in a woodworking workshop, with tools and clamps on the wall behind them.
Pickup truck carrying a load of green wooden planks in its truck bed, parked outdoors with trees and bushes in the background.

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Step inside the shop to see what Oro Woodshop is up to.

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