Certain projects require a certain amount of inspiration. Quite frequently we come across clients who have an idea in mind but don’t know exactly how to bring it into fruition. We are happy, then, to be referred to a client with creativity and intuitive design ideas for their office.
After the initial renovation of their house, they had yet to finish the office area. Very particular on how the office would function and feel they took their ideas and put them to paper. They came to us with a set of sketches for each piece they had in mind. We had the task of filling in the details and making them a reality.
We were impressed with their passion for the project and the dedication that went into each design. Designing and detailing how exactly the pieces had to work and function, our clients truly put as much into this project as we did.
Their design called for everything to be structurally tough while ergonomic in function and feel, for example the kidney shaped desks with rounded edges. The details for joinery, timber, mounting, functional hardware, and stain & finish were up to us to figure out.
The desk and cabinet were the first pieces we tackled. Made from book matched solid walnut tops the two kidney shaped desks turned out beautifully with custom made stainless adjustable feet by M.A.S.S. in St. Georges.
The cabinet under the TV, however, was the hardest piece to construct. Curved to look like it’s flowing, the whole front is one piece of solid walnut. It took long hours and heavy router table jigs in order to make this piece a possibility. It is one of the most complicated pieces we have ever taken on but it turned out perfectly and is masterful in its design. There are even some hidden details you can only see if you look from below.
The cabinets were the most fun to piece together. In actuality the piece is furniture grade not cabinet as we quickly realized this worked better for the design. With almost 30 boxes, the piece needed to include both shelves and doors. Made from walnut, each piece was handpicked for similar grain pattern, large width, and thickness by skilled specialty vendors.
How the piece got put together was truly ingenious. It was a point of great debate and took multiple renditions and samples to determine what had the correct feel. In the end we used “Swiss Invis: by Lamello”. A very difficult joint to use, it’s a hidden fastener that gets bored into a wood joint. It comes with a magnetic attachment that fits into a hand drill. You hold the drill with attachment next to the joint where the fastener is installed and it spins the bolt into the nut and pulls the joint closed. It has to be installed with complete precision. If you’re a little off the threads won’t catch or worse the threads catch on an angle and become cross threaded.
Each box was fit in our shop and installed on site. The installation was very involved and required walls to be grinded and mudded to suit the cabinets as they had to remain perfectly square. All cabinets were hung on the wall with floating hardware to suspend them in the air.
Each piece was challenging and unique in design and details. Creating custom pieces for both offices and hallway in between we were happy to have had the opportunity to work with such creative and passionate clients. They could make a brilliant career in high-end furniture design.
It was a great partnership and we were sad it was just a one off project. We look forward to working with them again on any project they may have dreamed up.