Capital Iron Works LLC
Capital Iron Works LLC creates metal artwork, including logos and flags. While a few signature pieces, notably a tattered American flag are featured on the website, most pieces are custom jobs, made to meet the vision and needs of a specific customer. In fact, it was the demand for custom metal art at car shows that drove the creation of the company.
Owners Art Stone and Crystal Riley saw a need for custom jobs that were not available locally and sought to fill that niche. In the years since, the company has built a reputation for quality and unique, stunning work.
Crystal and Art are supported by a crew of three. Mallory Riley, Crystal’s daughter, is the in- house artisan for the company. She notes that her whole family is exceptionally creative, and made- to-order metal art is an outlet for that artistic energy. Her sister, Rose Shenk, is the creative force behind much of the company’s signature look. She has a background in watercolors and wanted to find a way to transfer the feel of watercolor paintings to custom metal art.
“Often when people see one of our pieces, they’ll think it’s stained glass,” Mallory said. “When they come up closer or touch a piece, they realize they are looking at metal. Pictures do not do the work justice.”
Each piece of art created by Capital Iron Works LLC is unique because the painting process is not an exact science and does not come out the same way twice.
Mallory stresses that when you order art from the company,
you will receive a one-of-a-kind piece.
Creating custom metal art involves a lot of steps. It starts with a design, which is given to the CAD operator, Colton Stone. Colton does the calculations to determine measurements, and then the metal is cut on a stamping machine that Crystal describes as kind of a “giant, industrial Cricut.” Metal is then cleaned so that paint will adhere to the surface, and then the paint is applied and the item is glazed.
Specific pieces might require special touches, too. For example, the iconic Tattered American Flag that is featured on the company’s site models the actual flag that remained after the attack on Pearl Harbor, tattered and burned. To create this piece, metal is bent into shape, burned, and then painted.
Capital Iron Works LLC connects with customers online via eBay, Amazon, Etsy and social media, but Mallory says that most of their customers connect with them at car shows or find them by word of mouth. The company has built a customer base over time and have many repeat customers such as local law enforcement and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe, who purchase custom art for memorable prizes and keepsakes for staff.
Because they are making most pieces to order, there is often a waitlist. Those wishing to order something special should plan accordingly and get in line early.
Mallory says she loves the work, especially the challenge of helping customers to realize their artistic vision.
“Our goal is to create that awe- inspired reaction when someone sees that piece that we created just for them,” Mallory said. “We’re driven by regard and respect for artistry much more than we are by sales.”
