Luke Kooyman is a carpenter by trade, but an artist at heart. He has honed his building know-how into a talent for creating wood products.
Now, his love of woodworking is beginning after two years, his small business, LAK of Ink Co., is sustaining itself.
Selling his products at the Arlington Farmer’s Market last summer, his booth was jam-packed with pull toys, toy tractors, whale tea light holders, intricately crafted P-40 fighter airplanes, furniture and a variety of household items.
Kooyman said he has dreamed about owning his own business since he was in middle school. That is when he came up with his LAK of Ink name. He likes the play on words, and LAK stands for his initials.
As a young man, he drew tattoos and other illustrations, but he firmly believes that creativity knows no boundary.
“Creativity is creativity. It’s the medium that changes,” he said.
Today, he uses his drawing skills to make his own patterns and technical illustrations for his projects.
“I challenge myself to make a lot of stuff. I want to do the best quality of work.” he said.
His top-seller is a small green tractor that costs $15 and is easy for a toddler to push along a floor. It’s made from lumber cut-offs and store-bought accessories.
Besides toys, he crafts household items, including beautiful tortilla presses cut from cherry and fir. He first made these for his mother when he was in the sixth grade.
His woodworking diversity also includes small, beautifully finished tea boxes.
“These are made out of various grades of mahogany that have been salvaged from shipping pallets,” he said.
Kooyman uses non-toxic or food-grade stains and finishes that are safe for children and still bring out the natural beauty of the woods he works with — especially on his toys.
“I don’t like paint because it covers the natural beauty of the wood,” he said.
He was raised to be resourceful and carries those lessons over into his work. Sometimes he has to purchase wood, but most of the time he uses scraps such as burnt and chipped pieces of mahogany from South America.
“I eliminate the need to cut down another tree by recycling wood,” he said. And more often than not, people give him their leftover wood. “People know I’m looking for scraps,” he said.
Wood is not his only medium. He also uses steel scraps and other metals to create garden ornaments and kitchen items. When asked about competition, Kooyman says it’s everywhere, but it’s friendly and drives him to do better.
“The tricky part is getting them to give up their secrets,” he said.
Right now he is trying to find his niche and says that his quality will give him the edge he needs to compete.
He spends as much time as he can in his shop. Not long ago, he put in 55 hours in one week. But he doesn’t think of it as work.
“It’s therapeutic for me,” he said.
Kooyman plans to evolve his custom woodworking into more products. He has been more active in marketing this year and hopes to do more.
His family is an important consideration as he grows his business. His wife Heather helps him with the business and with finishing the products. They have two young children.
“If I had an ultimate goal, it would be to do custom wood working from my home, while providing for my family,” he said. Someday he hopes to display and sell his art in his own gallery. For now, it’s sustaining itself. “It’s a labor of love.”
To view LAK of Ink Co. products, visit www.kooymandesigns.etsy.com on the Internet.
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