David Haakenson
David began building his own wooden toys when he was a busy 6 year-old on a North Dakota farm near the Canadian border. His father allowed the boys to use any tools, and soon David was learning by doing.
After college and grad school, while peddling textbooks, editing two weekly prairie newspapers, or pouring cement in Fargo, he dreamed of his own wood shop.
Fast forward 40 years…after gaining a following on the 1970′s craft fair circuit in the Midwest, after providing custom products for NYC Henri Bendel’s kitchen store, after building several studios for artists around the coast of the Salish Sea, after interpreting the intricate plans of several Seattle architects, after designing and building kitchens and libraries, he now walks through the alder and Douglas fir forest to reach his wood shop in the green foothills of the Olympic Peninsula. There he enters his own creative world where work and play have no difference, accompanied by his own thoughts. He continues to build custom cabinets for clients through his long established Custom and Production Woodwork (CPW), yet still finds time to create his exquisite cutting boards, ornaments, games, and boxes that often showcase the miniature art works of his wife, Kathleen Kler.
Now his vast accumulation of wood, the majority from our local peninsula supplier Edensaw Woods , is being transformed into the Haakler HooK, a functional and stylish coat rack that is both artistic and low profile! He knows how wood holds family memories, and offers to incorporate a precious piece of your family history into your own custom order. Please visit DoeRun Studios online store for more information.
He welcomes your comments and thanks you for taking the time to visit!
