Back in the early 70's, Peter A. Sharp earned an M.A. degree in school psychology, but by then he knew that  what he wanted to do most was to make things with his hands and to invent mechanical toys and gadgets, plus write (in college, he won a poetry prize). His undergraduate minor was theater arts, but he decided not to become an actor or director because he wanted the satisfaction of making devices that he could hold in his hands (plus, he didn't like stage fright or rejection). He realized that he was, basically, a kinetic sculptor. So he began by designing (actually, months of tinkering) a line of costume jewelry that was very successful. The earrings gave the illusion of rotating when they moved. 

His wife, Carolita, a petite dancer with long black hair and bright green eyes, sold the jewelry as a San Francisco street artist, and she occasionally sold earrings right off of her ears when someone just had to have them (like on an airplane flight). 

His next craft project was a line of wooden children's puzzles based on a new principle he invented. One design was exclusively for adults seeking enlightenment. It was a "koan" that looked like a small jig saw puzzle. It was cut completely in half in such a way that it was not clear whether or not it could come apart. The puzzle was to decide if it was a puzzle. The line of puzzles sold well but the profit margin was too low for the labor involved. 

So he designed a line of turned and carved (from exotic hardwoods), ball point pens with retractable tips. Since that was before any commercial pen parts were available, he made all of his own parts and mechanisms from brass rods and gears, triple gold plated them for durability, and set a semiprecious gem stone in the top crown to match the wood. One collector purchased over 150 of those pens. To further increase quality, Peter experimented with laminating exotic hardwoods in contrasting colors. For the white layers, he used tongue depressors. Those pens sold well, but since the exotic hardwoods (African ebony, Brazilian bloodwood, etc.) were not being harvested sustainably, he began to look for other materials. 

He found Diamondwood, a high quality material that, at the time, was used almost exclusively for the handles of expensive hand made knives. He may have been the first craftsmen to make laminated, retractable pens, and perhaps the first to make pens from Diamondwood (dyed, laminated birch stabilized with resin under enormous pressure). To his surprise, those pens sold even better than his pens made from exotic hardwoods. (Now there are thousands of hobbyists making simple laminated pens from kits.) 

Eventually, he was able to find good quality, commercially-made pen parts that enabled him to keep his prices low. He devised a new way to use those parts so that the writing point could be exposed by turning the tip of the pen. His current line of pens includes about 2 dozen carved styles, including some representative sculptures, and about 2 dozen color combinations. He sands and buffs the pens to a high polish (whew!). Each pen is designed to feel good to write with (ergonomic), depending upon how each individual holds his or her pen. He has always given his customers a life time guarantee (his life). 

Over the years, he has shown a few pen makers how to make his carved pens using a lathe and a high speed, 1/2" drum sander. For the last 20 years, he has lived on a quiet street with giant redwoods next to a creek in the Fruitvale district of Oakland, CA with Anne, his trophy wife (the director of finance for a non-profit, who earns a lot more than he does). 

Although semi-retired, he still makes pens in his garage workshop. His current passions are designing a line of science toys that teach new principles, while writing a book (based on a series of articles he published) called "Sailing -- A New Understanding; The Metatheory Of Sailing". One of the many new kinds of windmills he invented may be a cost breakthrough to help poor farmers in developing countries.