home

Yes, Quality work is a thing.

Each commission goes through a thorough process of design deliberation. Choice of material, Technical approaches, type of finishing are all considered. After which, a the process of making starts.

This is where your whims and fancy come alive. Want that secret drawer under the desk? A bespoke marquetry design on your box? Sure, we could talk about that.

Yes, It Really is just me.

I work alone most of the time in my tiny little studio. There are no big fancy machines or high tech laser guidance systems here. I use primarily hand tools with the occasional hand held power tools. I wish I had 2 more pairs of hands to work with but I wouldn't know if my brain can work them out.

I'M AN INDEPENDENT DESIGNER / MAKER

Consult, Design, Build

Yes, you could do this too.

Learn how to use hand tools effectively and safely. Understand the material, make test joints and try out different techniques. Begin by making simple projects before gradually designing and building your own projects. Or be involved in your pieces by working under my guidance to be part of your own realisations.

Studio Sessions

commissions

about

studio

commissions

I love building boxes. From small ring boxes and jewelry coffers up to specialist chests for mahjong tiles and cigar humidors. They are fantastic to showcase finer details such as marquetry, inlays and kumiko work.

fine DEcorative Boxes

fine boxes

Side tables, credenzas, wardrobes, all take a special place in my heart but occupy a larger space in my studio. I do make bigger pieces, but the challenge is always finding space for them.

fine Furniture

fine furniture

Sometimes not everything is either this or that. Apart from a good range of bookbinding equipment which I design and make, I love strange requests and have crafted knife sheaths, frames, and whiskey trays to name a few. Some projects don't even have names!

special commissions

Special commissions

One-on-one studio session are tailored to cover exactly the areas you want to cover.

You could be an absolute beginner who wants to learn starting from the basics, or an experienced woodworker looking to fine-tune certain skills, learn a new technique or discuss a special project. These bespoke training sessions can be designed to how you would like to spend your time. Making different joints to form projects, learning how to maintain and sharpen your tools, learning polishing techniques, discuss design and technical details of your projects. The choice is yours.

Studio sessions are normally in 4 hr blocks.

By appointment only.

Contact

Studio Sessions

about

It all began when I was working on a small project which turned out pretty rubbish. Instead of leaving it be, I decided to learn how to make it better by approaching my secondary school teacher for advice and training.

A trip to Japan opened up my interest in Japanese tools and traditional joinery; spending a short time learning under a Japanese teacher there.

One thing led to another and during a photography assignment to the UK. I decided to take the dive and spent 6 months at the Peter Sefton Furniture School for professional training in fine furniture making. Studio sessions with fine box maker, Andrew Crawford further enhanced my knowledge from the UK.

The most recent training was an internship in Paris; where I learnt traditional marquetry techinques and explored straw marquetry.

Being a commercial photographer for the past decade or so paid my bills and also allowed me to express my creative self in a 2 dimension way.

Woodworking allows me to express creatively in a 3 dimensional way and challenges me to literally think out of the box when designing and creating pieces.

-Louis Kwok

Training