About Us

Our idea for Barrel-Art was originally born out of necessity. My wife and I lost everything in a fire during our move to Europe several years ago. We needed furniture immediately so I took up woodworking to build the critical pieces.

I found I really enjoyed the art of woodworking and decided to design a piece of my own. During our travels to the European wineries, I was inspired to make a bar out of a barrel. My wife loved the concept so we searched the area wineries for the perfect barrel and came across a beautiful French Oak barrel from Bordeaux.

My efforts with the barrel generated a great deal of interest and I began developing other ideas for furnishings and barware that were made from barrels.  My Wife and I brought my ideas back to the United States and after completing my business degree, I opened Barrel-Art.
 
Barrel-Art has since grown significantly through online purchases and wholesale orders.  Barrel-Art has supplied many restaurants with furniture and flights such as Froggies (Virginia Beach), Commonwealth Brewery (Virginia Beach), Marriott’s (Worldwide), Kona Grill (Worldwide) and Outback Steakhouses (Nationally) just to name a few.

Barrel-Art has now opened a retail showroom located at 332 Rip Rap Rd., Hampton, VA.  Now customers can see some of Barrel-Art’s merchandise in person.  In the showroom, customers can also order custom designs and pick the barrel they want to be used in their order.  Barrel-Art also gives tours of their modest workshop and if the weather permits, you can catch a glimpse of the Barrel-Kart.  The Barrel-Kart is a golf kart outfitted to look like a barrel on wheels and gets lots of attention from people passing by.  The showroom also sells local Hampton Roads artisan crafts and paintings, so you will see a variety of items displayed at Barrel Art.

Barrel-Art has many diverse products.  We handcraft tasting flights for whiskey, bourbon, scotch, beer, and wine.  From one glass coasters to 6 glass shot flights all of which include their respective glasses.  Barrel-Art also creates custom flights for customers who have their own collection of glasses or restaurants that use specific ones.  We have wine racks, French imported riddling racks, and bottle displays.  Barrel-Art creates stunning wall art using the galvanized steel rings and the staves of the barrels.  Handcrafted pens, barrel head lazy susans and serving trays are among some of their best sellers.  We also sell indoor and outdoor furniture such as adirondack chairs, fire pits, stools and benches which are beautifully finished.

We take pride in using all parts of the barrels in our work which helps minimize our carbon footprints and encourages other artisans to do the same.  

- Mike and Kambra Prieto