For twenty years as a mechanical engineer in aerospace and defense, I wrote software that was used to design real things. I spent two decades building the tools. Eventually I wanted to build the things.

But I’m also a mother of five, and my kids have taught me things no engineering career could. What it looks like when a child is truly seen. What relief feels like after a hard season. How much a small, well-made thing can matter on a day that was heavy.

Portal Lab started on my kitchen table with one printer and a stubborn idea: that a small object, made carefully, can change someone’s whole day.