When he speaks about his “craft,” Phil Engelsman might be referring to a gleaming wooden canoe or kayak.  Then again, he might be talking about the traditional method of construction, because Engelsman only builds wooden boats.

“I get a really special sense of accomplishment from making wood boats,” he explains.  “The craftsman in me is proud when my boat is built well, when it’s fair and smooth and the joints are almost seamless.  And the artist in me loves to create the shape of the boat, and to decide on use of different woods.  Yeah, it’s satisfying.”

Engelsman especially enjoys sharing his knowledge and his craft with interested people, and he says he is looking forward to doing just that as he builds a boat at the Cottage and Lakefront Living Show at DeVos Place in April.

“People generally get a real kick out of seeing a boat taking shape the old-fashioned way, and I love sharing my passion with them,” he says.  “The Cottage and Lakefront Living Show is a great place to do that.”

His passion became a career when he started DreamCatcher Boatworks nearly 20 years ago, but Engelsman says he’s been building watercraft since he was a kid.

“My first boat I made at 10 – it was a hydroplane, basically two sheets of plywood with an engine on the back that I ran on Reed’s Lake,” he remembers.  “My dad had a normal sedan, and we’d strap the boat to the top and drive over there, slow so it wouldn’t blow off.  She ran a lot better on the water than on the car roof.”

After years of dabbling in building boats as a hobby, it was eye trouble that helped Phil Engelsman to see more clearly the path he wanted to take in life.

“As I got older I had some vision problems that kept me at home, so I started working more on boats.  The eye trouble is gone now, but I’ve stayed in my shop and made a living doing what I love.”

Plenty of other people love what Engelsman does, as well – more all the time, it seems.  Engelsman says that his sales have grown every year and pre-season interest in 2010 is strong, especially among boaters who have been disappointed by cheaper vessels that neither look as good nor perform as well as a DreamCatcher creation.

Engelsman says that while a typical mass-produced kayak tips the scales at 55 to 60 pounds, and more expensive “ultralight” models weigh in at around 45 pounds, his typically weigh no more than 40 pounds.  This makes a big difference in ease of use and performance, he notes.

“I do a good business with people who have gotten cheaper boats and find they really enjoy paddling,” Engelsman says.  “Pretty quickly, they come to recognize that standard production boats just don’t perform as well.  They’re made from cheaper materials, their shapes are not as performance-oriented, and they’re heavier.”

What really shocks people, though, is finding that Engelsman’s hand-made wooden boats are comparable in price to mass-produced models.  At that point, Engelsman says, the decision for many buyers becomes a lot simpler.

There is one other thing Engelsman loves nearly as much as his boats, and that’s working with kids.  In addition to driving a school bus, he has also volunteered with Forest Hills’ Goodwillie Environmental School, teaching outdoorsy types how to – you guessed it – build boats.  “I’ve helped the kids build and float a dugout canoe,” he reports.  “It was a neat experience for all of us.”

Engelsman will be at work all three days during the Cottage and Lakefront Living Show.  Stop by and say hello, and enjoy spending a little time with a man who does timeless work.