Brainstorm Gaming: Craft Lake City Engineer

After pioneering the virtual festival format for the 2020 DIY Festival, Craft Lake City is making their exciting return to the Utah State Fairpark for the 13th Annual DIY Festival Presented By Harmons. The 2021 Festival features the largest offering yet of artisans, craft foodies, performers and much more. Read about some of the fantastic Utah DIY-ers participating at this year’s festival in the following pages, and head to craftlakecity.com for more information on the 13th Annual DIY Festival.

The items in Sergio Hernandez’ shop, Brainstorm Gaming, are a wondrous collection that bridge the gap between gaming fantasy and hand-crafted reality. Hardcore and casual paper-and-dice gamers alike will find that Brainstorm has something in their catalog to suit their tastes, and Sergio helps this process by offering a range of customizations for many of the products he creates. “Honestly, the fun part is trying to match it to what the buyer imagines it being used for,” Hernandez says. Some of these bespoke options include staff length, custom text in bound journals, and, “Soon,” he adds, “color.”

Brainstorm Gaming’s Litchenberg Electric Walking Stick is of particular interest. Customization is primarily for comfort, since each staff is already different from the next. The Litchenberg process allows Sergio to create patterns of lightning-like channels along the length of the stick by running electricity from one end to the other during its genesis. The dark char of the process is set in stark contrast to the natural colors and highlights of the wood. Sergio says, “Without exaggeration, each pattern is as unique as the grain of the wood it’s on—to try to control it would be impossible.”

When asked about Brainstorm Gaming’s next move, Hernandez makes it clear that dedication to craft is a high priority. “I have thought of a few different directions. I’m very open minded—I just want to make sure I do the next idea justice,” he says. Check out the Litchenberg Electric Walking Stick and more impassioned woodworking at etsy.com/shop/BrainstormGaming. –Ben Bigelow

All Photos: John Barkiple