About me

After over 10 years working as landscape and stock photographer I started a new adventure as woodworker around 2019 / 2020. I make various objects. From artisanal furniture pieces to custom made built-in closets. I collect all scrap wood from my own projects and other furniture makers, as well as old, discarded furniture and use it for the smaller objects I make. Like wooden toys, boxes, utensils and various home accessories.

In 2023 I received my vocational degree as furniture maker at the HMC in Amsterdam.

Since December 2020 I’m renting a working station at Contact in Amsterdam. A collective of interdisciplinary creatives, with a shared workshop and a great community vibe. Over the years this place became my home away from home.

The name TOEL came into existence in 2019 when my oldest son Jacob, then 1 year old, called a chair (‘stoel’ in Dutch) ‘toel’. His younger brother Tobias did the same when he was at the same age. The word always stuck with me, even though both boys know how to pronounce it properly by now!

From the dictionary Jacobian – Dutch:
toel /tuɫ/ [zn] stoel

Sara Winter Photography