​Lane McClelland was raised in San Diego County and grew up in a family with generations of woodworking skills.  His love for working with wood led him to becoming a skilled cabinet and furniture maker using natural materials and native woods.  He was sole proprietor of Willow Lane Furniture which offered beautiful willow twig furniture and wood cabinetry for over 30 years.  He is also a general contractor.  Drought and government regulations made it more and more difficult to harvest willow twig and the raw materials for his work so he and his wife Laurie sought other ways to bring in income to support their lifestyle in the country.  They worked on rustic building projects for others and built a little hobbit looking house out of strawbales on their 5 acre property in the San Diego backcountry which they called the Haylapa House and people began asking to rent it.  It became extremely popular for people wanting to get out of city and spend time in nature.  This was the beginning of a new career in the hospitality business which they are still doing today in Warner Springs at their 85 acre retreat Birdsong Backcountry Retreat where you can see their artisanal furniture/habitat creating skills were put to use. Lane currently enjoys incorporating native woods like Manzanita and Ribbonwood into his creations which are both functional and beautiful.
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