Creative Q&A with Latitude 67 Laser Designs owner Gale Glenn

WASILLA — Latitude 67 Laser Designs owner Gale Glenn creates a wide variety of unique etched products out of her shop. Whether it’s a custom trophy, colorful wooden plaque, or even a sleek instrument panel for an aircraft, she’s covered a lot of ground with a growing number of clientele and unique requests for commissions through her homegrown business and her trusty laser cutter.

Glenn recently participated in a question and answer interview discussing her craft.

Q: So in a nutshell, what do you do through Latitude 67 Laser Designs?

“The laser can engrave a wide range of materials. The only thing I can’t do is straight metal. But if it’s treated, if it’s powder coated, if it’s painted, if it’s anodized, then I can take that coating off to reveal the underside.”

Q: How long have you been doing this?

“Six years. We just started out doing ornaments and things. Up until last summer that has been the bulk of my business, wholesale stuff… All the tourist shops.

Q: How did this all come about?

“Just cruising for stuff, just looking for stuff that’s different… Something that somebody else isn’t doing. There’s a lot of laser people out in the Valley, a lot. So, trying to find something that somebody else isn’t doing can be challenging.”

Q: Do you have a prior artistic background or any other creative hobbies?

“No,” she said with a laugh. “I mean, I sew and do some needle work and stuff like that, but nothing like this… I worked in a corporate accounting office for 20 years doing spreadsheets.”

Q: Is it fun?

“Yeah, it’s great. Some days are pretty challenging, but yeah it’s fun. I mean, watching the laser, I never get tired of watching it.”

Q: It seems like you receive a pretty wide variety of commissions and types of clients, how do you feel about getting to this point of recognition for your craft?

“We’re getting a lot of calls off the website now. That’s just taken a long time to build up. We’re getting there… It’s exciting.”

Q: What kinds of custom requests have you worked on over the years?

“I’ve done a lot of urns for memorials. I just did a retirement award… We’ve done some models. I did a bunch of Star Wars figures for my grandson.”

Q: Have you worked with local artists in the past for certain designs?

“Yeah, I have. Patricia Parker, I’ve done some of her artwork. I’ve got a grizzly bear that I’ve done. It’s pretty awesome. The artist’s name is Greg Joens. He does a lot of pencil art and I bought that from him.”

Q: Are you involved with the Valley Arts Alliance?

“We help her [VAA Executive Director Carmen Summerfield] out a lot… Sometimes I help take tickets and things like that for them.”

Q: What do you think about that group and what they have going on there?

“Oh, they’re incredible. What talent. Oh my gosh. They’re amazing.”

Q: How important do you think it is to have groups like that in the community?

“It’s important. It draws people together. It gives them something to focus on, something to participate in, and try something that they haven’t even thought about trying.”

For more information about Latitude 67 Laser Designs, visit lat67.com.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com