Custom work,cut by hand.
Foundry.Ink is the hand-made side of Studio X — custom lettering, inked art, and typefaces drawn to a brief rather than pulled off a shelf. It is the name abeatbyKai was published under in 2011, and the 1.2 million downloads that font has collected since all carry this byline. It has simply never had a room of its own until now.
What works today
Custom letteringWordmarks and logotypes drawn for one client. Taking enquiries by emailNot yet
Hand-inked artBrush and pen work for labels, packaging, apparel and signageNot yet
Commissioned typefacesA full character set cut to brief and licensed to the clientNot yet
PortfolioFifteen years of work exists. None of it is uploaded here yet — that is the next jobNot yet
Booking formCommissions go through a person until there is something betterNot yet
abeatbyKaiThe 2011 typeface, at studioxfonts.com — free for personal use, alwaysLive
Drawn, not generated
Foundry.Ink
That is set in abeatbyKai — drawn by hand in 2011 and published under this name. Everything here is made the same way: by a person, with a tool, one at a time.
Custom lettering & wordmarksA name drawn for one client. Not a font applied to a name — letters cut to fit the word they spellCommission
Hand-inked artBrush and pen work, scanned and cleaned. Labels, packaging, apparel, signageCommission
A typeface, cut to briefA full character set for one client. Priced per job, licensed to themCommission
Restoring old marksA logo that only exists as a bad scan, redrawn properly and given back as vectorsCommission
The name is older than the room
Foundry.ink is the 2011 bylineabeatbyKai was published under this name. DaFont still credits it. 1,225,071 downloads carry it — read live 2026-08-10Standing
Held since 2020The domain has been in hand for years. This is the first time it has had anything of its own on itStanding
©1988 KaiBuskirk.comThe copyright string inside the 2011 font file. The studio predates the byline by decadesIn the file
Why
.inkThe TLD carries half the meaning here. union.ink is union ink on press; foundry.ink is ink by hand. Two kinds of ink, one conventionHouse ruleHow a commission works
You describe the jobWhat it is for, where it will live, and when you need it. A photograph of a sketch is a fine briefStep 1
A price, in writing, before any workFixed for the job. No hourly surprise at the endStep 2
Drawings, then revisionsYou see rough work early rather than a finished thing you cannot changeStep 3
You receive vectors and the rightsOutlines, working files, and a written license naming exactly what you may do with itStep 4
No booking form yetCommissions go through a person until there is something better. Saying so beats a button that does nothing.
LINK → mailto:office@studiox88.com (live) LINK → /commission — NOT BUILT LINK → /work — NOT BUILT, no portfolio uploaded yetOpen
LINK → mailto:office@studiox88.com (live) LINK → /commission — NOT BUILT LINK → /work — NOT BUILT, no portfolio uploaded yetOpen
Back of house
Back of houseCommission records and the studio board.
Not yet
Workboardthe live estate boardNot yet
Arcsession record + handoffNot yet
The Buscadre comms boardNot yet
Membershiproster + accessNot yet
The rest of the works
Kai Buskirktechnology, merch, design, appsStudio XThe studio — cloud, web & AI since 1988Rail-WorksThe suite — rails for work that movesCadreThe cadre gatewayFreeDaTimeA free multi-witness grounding clock. Authoritative local and UTC time, read not computed.PrintshopThe print rail and shop networkRail-FaxSend a fax without a fax machineRail-MailMail between machinesUnion Made ServicesThe shop — sites, storefronts and tools for localsUnion.inkUnion labor, on contractFreeDaNodeThe multi-witness grounding network behind FreeDaTime. Free forever, open source, attribution only.Union Made SystemsThe rails Union Made Services runs onUnion Made TradesThe register of union, allied and union-supporting businesses across every trade. Issues no label of its own.Union Printing TradesA public register of Union Made Trades shops. Every entry records who verified it and when.A Beat By KaiHeldDoodles & NoodlesDraw without a plan, play without a plan. A sketchbook from Studio X Ink.LOVE-ART-ROBOTSLOVE is why. ART is what. ROBOTS are how. A creative promotional project from Studio X Ink.ShipWerxThe shipping railStudio X InkThe creative imprint of Studio X — art, design, graphics, robots. The way into the work.StudioX FontsA small type foundry. abeatbyKai, drawn in 2011, downloaded over 1.2 million times.Union DeliveryChartered local deliveryWear XBoutique merchandising, branding and product development. Brand, product and production under one roof.