About Lex Keen

Lex Keen, Grew up and went to School in Totnes. I now live in Harbertonford with my wife and 2 of my children, my eldest two have flown the nest. I started my working life as a Tree Surgeon but was forced to leave this profession because of a chronic back condition. During my time in Tree Surgery I would often make small pieces of basic furniture, such as stools, using my chainsaw and I loved working with wood so it was natural for me to find myself an apprenticeship in Carpentry and Joinery in 1997.

I served a three year apprenticeship working in Totnes and the South Hams and in 2000 I went into site carpentry. Along the way I learnt all aspects of the building industry and I started my own small building company in 2003. This would involve me doing loft conversions, extensions, kitchen fitting and all types of carpentry. During this time I would often make bespoke furniture for my customers, usually to suit the new buildings I had created. Beds, fitted wardrobes, benches, tables etc. Then through word of mouth i would have individual requests to make furniture outside of the construction.

In 2010 I was asked to project manage a sizeable barn conversion near Kingsbridge. On completion of the construction the barn needed fitting out with all manor of carpentry and joinery. I ended up setting myself up a workshop on site and staying on for a year concentrating solely on the joinery, making wardrobes, paneling, bookcases, kitchens, doors, all bespoke to fit in the quirky rooms an old barn has. When I finished there the first thing did was build myself a workshop in my garden, where I could store wood and, on request, create furniture. Since then I have out grown that workshop and have built myself a much larger, second workshop. This allows me more room to be creative.

I have a real passion for wood and joinery. Partly because wood is such a wonderful and diverse material to work with and partly because there are no boundaries, the possibilities are endless. Using different types of wood and different styles I can continue to make individual pieces to suit all manor of houses and applications. Bespoke kitchens and furniture are wonderful because you know nobody else will have the same and with your input you really feel its unique.

I work on my own and as my workshops are in my garden I have very little overheads and this allows me to keep the costs down. Kitchens I have made have often no more expensive than ones you would buy from any of the major kitchen suppliers, and they're unique !!

I offer free quotes and consultations, I will design, with as much or as little input as you wish and I will supply and fit so you know from conception to completion its all taken care of. There are no jobs that are too small or indeed big. I make anything from table mats and chopping boards through to entire kitchens. In 2018 I designed, created and fitted out The Conker Shoe Company shop in Totnes, hand making everything from scratch on site.

All the timber and sheet materials I use are locally and responsibly sourced.

Thank you for visiting my site and I look forward to hearing from you.