GRANITE FALLS — Every farm kid knows the mantra, “why buy it when you can make it?”

Which is why Curt Soine took one look at the carving of a swan that his wife, Paula, pointed out in a magazine as something she’d like, saw the $400 price tag, and responded: “That doesn’t look that tough. I can make one of those.”

Just shy of 40 years later, it’s now Soine’s carvings that are appearing in magazines and books.

It’s also why, come the opening of the Upper Minnesota River Valley Meander arts crawl on Friday, you shouldn't dawdle. Every year, there are cars of people waiting outside of his home and workshop in Granite Falls to get first dibs at his inventory.

Soine was chosen by his fellow artists as the featured artist for the 2022 Meander.

“He does beautiful stuff. He’s come a long way,” said Paula, who calls herself his harshest critic.

He did make good on his word and created a replica of the swan that she spotted in the magazine, as well as a more recent version of it. The original, he can now laugh, is from his “door stopper” era when he put some of his early clunkers aside.

Today, his works are found on mantels all around the country. One year, he had visitors from 13 different states during the Meander. Through the year, he ships his works to customers all over the county, and sometimes, overseas as well. Many are longtime customers.

The shingle outside his shop simply reads “Curt’s Decoys,” and looks for all the world like a place the characters in the movie “Grumpy Old Men” might drop by. It’s why when he first began participating in the Meander, Curt and Paula would watch — and laugh — as a carload of women would stop outside and wait for a scout among the group to come in and check it out.

Invariably, the scout would wave the group in.

Now the word is out. While all of his waterfowl and fish decoys are built for real use, the detail, the design and composition of these works are deserving of display.

Decoys are meant to attract. That gives him artistic license to add color and vibrancy, or as Soine describes it, to “jazz” up his fish decoys meant for spear fishers. It also allows him a little artistic license for the waterfowl decoys he creates, as well as the many shorebirds he carves.

Soine grew up in Maynard, the son of hardworking parents. He attended college before doing a four-year stint in the U.S. Navy. He returned to his home turf to complete a two-year drafting program at what is now the Minnesota West Technical and Community College in Granite Falls. A part-time job with United Parcel Service while he was a student led to a 30-year career with the company.

It took him most of a summer to create that first swan for his wife, but it hooked him. He discovered that he enjoyed everything about carving. As an outdoorsman who enjoyed fishing and hunting, he loved the subjects of his works as well as the history and lore of decoy making.

He joined woodcarving clubs, took classes, read books and magazines on the art, and visited one-on-one with carvers from around the state. It wasn’t long before his works were winning attention — and ribbons and prizes — at woodcarving and decoy shows around the state.

He believes he has and continues to learn the most from other carvers.

“Most of the carvers don’t have any secrets,” he said. “They will tell you everything; (they’re) good at sharing and helping you every way they can.”

He works in a variety of woods, but sticks mostly to white pine for the fish decoys and white cedar and cork for the waterfowl. He creates a draft design of his work before carving.

Carving requires a steady hand and eye for detail, but it’s the visual that is the most important. Soine said he’s devoted a lot of his time and effort to mastering the use of the acrylics and, sometimes, the oil-based paints that he uses to complete the works.

Shore birds are a favorite for him. He also loves to experiment and create works for the fun of it. A friend drops off old hammers he picks up at auctions. Soine carves the handles into “hammer handles” with northern pike heads, a play on the term many anglers use for these fish.

He’s been retired from his career with UPS for more than 10 years now, and that has given him much more time to pursue his art. There is hardly a day where he doesn’t spend time in his shop.

Paula no longer has to page through magazines to find wood carvings she likes. She has absolutely refused to allow some of his works out of the house, considering them too good to let go. Their home holds more than 30 “keepers.”

Soine feels his works have improved more in the past 10 years than all the years preceding. He remains as much a student of the art as ever.

“I’m getting better,” he said, “but still got a ways to go.”

Asked by one customer how long it took him to create the decoy that had caught his eye, Soine answered without hesitation: “Forty years.”