In 2020 just before the Covid crisis hit, we had made the choice to sell our home in Abbotsford, BC. In one whirlwind of a weekend our house was sold and we were on our way to the Kootenays! I had lived in Cranbrook in the 90’s and sold floorcoverings for a few years there. Upon our arrival in Creston Julie set up shop with McMutts Doggy Shop and I began the process of decompressing from my stressful job in construction management out in the Lower Mainland.

As I learned to relax in this fabulous valley I discovered a love for all things artistic. Having been a finishing carpenter for 15 years I was accustomed to working with wood in detail and began a search for what I was going to fill my time with. One day at market I saw some laser engraved pieces and I was immediately intrigued so I began my research. I discovered a whole world of possibilities in the field and started shopping for my first C02 laser machine.

Once it arrived the adventure was on! Over the next few years I trained myself on how to use my laser in every way using a variety of materials. I wanted to offer our customers every benefit that this technology had to offer. Beginning with wood, I started to make framed art pieces of layered wood that depicted the wildlife of the Kootenays. Moving on from that I began to experiment with engraving glass, and acrylics. This move opened up loads of possibilities in the field of memorial plaques, urns, and placement stones. As my skills developed further I began the tedious task of working with photo transfers. We now are able to transfer any photo onto surfaces such as stone, wood, glass, and metal.

As we got to know more people in town I was asked by a friend that owned an electrical company if I worked with lamacoid (a type of plastic used to make name tags, name plates, legend plates, valve tags, and other labels for industrial and commercial purposes). We now produce lamacoid plates for a number of organisations in the Creston Valley.

Just this summer we invested in machines that would allow us to serve a broader spectrum of the community by including a vinyl studio which we call KLC Studio. Specializing in personal gifts, promotional products, and much more. We are currently working on items like travel mugs, t-shirts, pet products, and ball caps. The ability to combine the laser and vinyl works offers opportunity to create truly unique pieces. For instance we can make all sorts of leather patches or vinyl to go on ball caps. We have made these for a number of businesses in town and all say they look great! We are also now well situated to enter the wedding market to supply all types of decorative accessories from engraved glasses to table settings and gifts for the occasion.

Our laser lab and KLC Studio are located at 1504 Alder Street in Creston , BC. We invite you to contact us if you would like to see a demonstration of the laser in action (most find it very interesting to watch), or maybe you have an idea for that “difficult to buy for” person in your life. We make meaningful impressions every day and we look forward to meeting you soon!