Huntington Beach husband-and-wife duo craft mid-century stunners for avian occupants
The Huntington Beach housing market can be difficult to break into — unless you happen to be a bird.
For the past two years, husband and wife duo Jason and Lynne Stout have been designing and building specialty birdhouses, including mid-century stunners, lifeguard towers and miniature, made-to-order replicas of beach cabins, barns and family homes for a local crowd.
More than mere boxes, the tiny, colorful residences constructed in Jason’s garage workshop take on a true-to-life appearance with architectural details, landscaping and other exterior features applied by Lynne’s crafty hands.
“On this one cabin, I used rocks and made a little fire pit with twigs inside,” she said, describing how she may add moss and succulents to dress up a dwelling or situate a tiny surfboard out front. “I’m not an artist or anything, I’m just creative.”
The Stouts have constructed hundreds of avian homes, taking and fulfilling orders on Facebook and Instagram. They’ve even branched out to offer a range of home décor and furniture crafted from pallets, whisky barrels and other reclaimed wood.
It’s not a business, per se, as both husband and wife hold down regular jobs. It’s more of a hobby, something to keep the pair busy, and a passion that has hatched into a side hustle.
“The beautiful thing about it is, we don’t have a plan,” Jason said of @jpluslcustoms, patterned after their initials. “We just do this for fun, and if people want something, we’ll make it.”
Although this joint enterprise took wing during the pandemic — when, the Stouts figure, people were sheltering in place and looking online for ways to spruce up living quarters and enjoy backyard nature — it has roots that go back more than two decades.
After the Huntington Beach couple, now in their 50s, had moved temporarily to Idaho with their young son and daughter, Jason wanted to find a way to thank Lynne’s parents for helping them purchase a home there. They didn’t have much money, so he improvised.
“It was my first winter in a cold place, so I built a birdhouse to do something,” he recalled Thursday. “The roof was a license plate, and, for the hole, I used a jigsaw to cut out the state of Idaho. I just wanted to do something to show my gratitude.”
That little Potato State-inspired manse decorated his in-laws’ house for the next 23 years until, in 2020, it had fallen into a state of disrepair and needed rehabbing. While he was fixing the structure, Jason found the handiwork was engaging.
“If I don’t have something to do I get very bored and fidgety,” he said. “This gives me something to do and is just a cool hobby.”
What began with solitary posts and photos shared with friends on social media quickly spread throughout local channels. Pretty soon, people in Huntington Beach and throughout Orange County were clamoring for birdhouses of their own.
As satisfied homebuyers circulated pics within their friend networks, a buzz grew. Lynne estimates she and her husband built, decorated and delivered 120 birdhouses last year alone.
Among their many buyers is Huntington Beach Realtor Rose Rogers, who saw a picture of the mid-century structures in a community Facebook group and had to have one.
“I thought this would be a perfect client gift,” recalled Rogers, who creates customized baskets for buyers and sellers and has since purchased several avian homes of her own from the Stouts. “I’ve also given them to family members. Everyone has a great reaction to them — they’re super cute.”
Rogers ordered a surf-themed piece for her dad as a Father’s Day gift and is already planning her next purchase, either a blue house to match her own or a lifeguard tower to pay homage to the Huntington Beach lifestyle.
As for the Stouts, they’ll continue to craft items as long as orders come in. Avid campers, who love taking off in search of wild splendors, the couple has been contemplating making mini camper-shaped birdhouses out of coffee cans and are collecting materials and ideas.
“We want to enjoy it,” Lynne said of the pastime. “If someone doesn’t like something, it doesn’t hurt our feelings, because we’re having fun.”
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