Ken Krebs - pens

Ken Krebs Pens

My venture into pen making all started when my youngest daughter made me a wood pen in her high school shop class. I had no idea how one would make a pen and when I asked her to explain it I only sort of understood. Then, a couple of years later when my favorite woodworking store in Colorado Springs had a class on pen making I took it. I immediately fell in love with the art and started, like so many who've done this, making pens for family and friends as gifts.

Then, in 2010 I reconnected with my first love in high school, Judy, at our 40-year reunion. When a year and a half later we got married I thought it would be fun and memorable to make a pen for every wedding guest. So, while it was very early in my pen making endeavors, I made a wood pen (I hadn't tried acrylics yet) for each of our 65 guests - no two were alike. We also had them all engraved with our first names and wedding date. At the wedding reception, we had them all laid out on a table and as each guest entered the reception, each picked the one that sang to him or her giving all our family and friends a memento of Judy's and my reconnection for life. This effort was so positively received by all in attendance that I thought that I might continue it and try to sell these wonderful little pieces of useful art.

After expanding into acrylics with the myriad colors, types, and possibilities, this wonderful hobby has become my own minute piece of the business world which gives me the opportunity to create little pieces of beauty that others will enjoy and find useful. Like so few, I was able to achieve this in my 35-year career as a mechanical design engineer and I am truly blessed to have it again in my retirement.