The Story Behind Severna Builds

Hi, I’m Alex, the person behind Severna Builds.

For almost 30 years, I’ve worked in the corporate world, and yes, I’m still there. Like a lot of people, I have a full time job that pays the mortgage and keeps life moving. But somewhere along the way, I realized I needed a creative outlet. I needed something hands on, challenging, and rewarding. Something completely different from the routines of corporate life.

For years, I had this thought in the back of my mind: if someone else could fix a faucet, build a table, or make something useful with their own hands, why could I not learn to do that too?

I did not grow up thinking of myself as the handy guy. I was often more likely to call someone else and pay for the repair, even while wondering if I could have figured it out myself. I also knew my first attempts probably would not be pretty. Still, the idea stayed with me.

During lockdown, when getting help was not always easy and everyone was stuck figuring things out at home, I started doing repairs around the house myself. What began as necessity quickly turned into curiosity. Then it became a habit. I started buying tools, learning as I went, and building confidence one project at a time. First came simple repairs, then tables and cutting boards, then more tools, more projects, and more ambition.

That eventually led me to a CNC machine (Shapeoko 4XXL) , which felt like the perfect mix of power tools and computer based design. That combination really clicked with me. It had the hands on side I was growing into, along with the technical side I had always enjoyed.

From there, I got my first laser, a small 5 watt machine to engrave the cutting boards I was making. Later I upgraded to the xTool S1 40W, and that is when things really took off. I got into canvas engravings, started sharing photos of my work on Facebook, and people responded right away. They loved the work, asked a lot of questions, and wanted to know how I was doing it.

That is where Severna Builds really began.

My wife saw it early. She encouraged me to make a video showing my process instead of answering the same questions over and over. That simple idea became the start of the channel. Since then, what began as my creative outlet has grown into a true family effort. I am the guy making, testing, and building, while she has become a huge part of everything behind the scenes. She helps shape the business side, brings creativity to our social media, and has grown into the producer role for our videos. Severna Builds is stronger because of her.

These days, the projects keep evolving. What started with home repairs moved into woodworking, then CNC, then lasers, and now 3D printing too. I recently added a Bambu Lab 3D printer to the mix, mainly to create jigs and helpers for batching laser products more efficiently, but also because I can already see it becoming another useful part of the creative process.

That probably explains me pretty well.

I am a builder at heart, but I am also a computer guy. I love the hands on side of making things, but I also enjoy the software, the process, the gear, and the small adjustments that make everything work better. I have always liked understanding how things work, and even more, figuring out how to explain them in a way that feels useful and approachable.

That is a big part of why Severna Builds exists.

I know what it feels like to be excited about a project and also overwhelmed by all the tools, settings, and opinions out there. So my goal is to make honest, useful, easy to follow content for people who want to create cool things without feeling like they need years of experience before they begin.

I am not here to pretend every project goes perfectly. Sometimes things work beautifully. Sometimes they go sideways first. Both make good stories, and both usually teach something worth sharing.

At the end of the day, I am just a regular guy balancing corporate life, family life, and a growing collection of tools while trying to build something meaningful and creative on the side.

So if you are into laser engraving, DIY projects, creative workflows, tech that actually helps, or just following along with someone who is learning, building, and sharing it honestly, welcome. You are in the right place.

This is Severna Living, and yes, there is a real person behind Severna Builds. His name is Alex. He is probably covered in dust, testing something new, adjusting camera settings, printing a jig, or wondering if one more pass will make it better.

Usually, it does.