Lee Valley First Product Ornament

Our first mail-order offering back in 1977 wasn’t a tool at all. It was a wood-burning barrel stove kit. Our founder, Leonard Lee, oversaw the design and had the iron parts cast at a local foundry. Customers would provide their own 45 gallon drum and assemble the stoves themselves. Each kit, including a weighty door cast with the Lee Valley name, was hand packed by the Lee family and orders were mailed to customers all over Canada.

It was this practical product that started it all, so it seemed fitting to commemorate it with this special-edition wood ornament. We commissioned Canadian artist, designer, craftsman and woodworker Gaétan Courchesne to illustrate and produce it for us.

Produced in Gatineau, Québec, the 1 1/2" diameter maple ball makes a charming collectible keepsake or seasonal gift.

At our stores (pick-up only), we offer a version of this ornament in limited quantities with the name of the city where the ornament is purchased shown on the reverse.