• Intricate wooden carvings are often crafted by hillbillies.tree trunk carving image by Warren Millar from Fotolia.com
  
  Hillbillies are usually identified as the indigenous residents of south-central Missouri and northern Arkansas. Many people in this region are skilled artisans, creating wooden crafts via methods passed down over the generations. Hillbilly wooden crafts include traditional oak baskets, furniture, musical instruments and carvings. Almost all of the items are handmade, and have a acquired a reputation for both beauty and functionality.
  
  

Carvings

• Hillbilly wooden carvings tend to reflect nature. They often depict birds or animals common to the Ozark region, and are handmade using traditional gouges, chisels and knives. Chainsaw carvers create larger figures such as people, while whittlers craft small items such as whistles, flutes, chain-links and curios using nothing but a pocket knife and slab of raw wood.
  
  

Musical Instruments

• The musical instruments created by Hillbilly artisans include the mountain dulcimer, wood-top banjo, mandolin and bowed psaltery. These instruments are usually built from indigenous woods such as walnut, cherry, cedar and ash. Hillbilly instruments are favored by folk music and bluegrass enthusiasts.
  
  

Furniture

• Furniture was originally built by Hillbillies as a functional necessity. Cedar chests, rocking chairs, benches, tables and dressers are still created using traditional building methods such as steam-bending, mortise and tenon joints and wooden-peg construction. Hillbilly furniture is known for its durability, and century-old pieces are very common.
  
  

Baskets

• Hillbilly wooden baskets have been a tradition for almost two centuries. The baskets are usually weaved from thin strips of white oak and were originally used to gather crops and garden produce.