Thursday, February 24, 2011

Walnut Mirrors


Mirrors-Walnut. I made these last year, but they have found their way back into my life just recently. They are beautiful, and I wish I could keep them, but we don't have a big enough apartment for this much mirror. I hope they find a happy home soon.

Mirror corner detail. I hope to use a similar detail in an entertainment center I'm about to build. The strange angles distort both the the width and depth of the frame, but allow the wood grain to continue through. I'm a sucker for this kind of stuff.

12th St mill work

This a collection of pictures of work that I just completed with J.V. Woodworking, out of Brooklyn, NY. While this work is not my design, I did build a lot of the pieces and am proud to have been part of the job.

Built in Closet with integrated pulls. The cabinet is flush with the baseboard and surrounding walls
Entertainment center built-in. This piece was too large to transport and get into the elevator, so it had to be assembled on site. I think it came out pretty good.

Bedroom Dresser-Ash. The drawers are much deeper than the counter, but aren't seen because they are hidden in the wall.

Bathroom Vanity-Bamboo. All door and drawer pulls are integrated into the door or drawer face eliminating the need for a standard drawer pull. I like this because it shows the the wood grain with out much interruption.

Bathroom Vanity-Bamboo

Floating Bathroom Vanity-Walnut

I didn't make this piece, but I think it came out really great. The TP holder is solid walnut. Tricky business!

Radiator Cover. Not the most glamorous task, but surprisingly challenging. Came out pretty good in the end.


Kitchen- Parapan, Stainless Steel. Again, I can't take credit for this, but my friends Fabian and CJ did a wonderful job with this I couldn't not put it up on the blog. Parapan is a high-gloss acrylic that is more durable than high gloss lacquer. Somewhat difficult to work with, but totally succeeds at shinny.

Kitchen Island- Zebra Wood. There's a freezer, wine cooler, and microwave hidden in all that wood.

Kitchen

Oak Coffee Table


This is a small coffee table I did for home. Oak and Mahogany.


After some help, I think that the legs are well positioned. Also, I made the legs removable, instead of glued in. This was super handy for taking it home on the train.


A key was in inlaid in the top. I like to think that this symbolizes home and a sense of security. Also it was fun to do. I plan on doing a series of furniture which incorporates old found objects. I found some cool old watch parts at the flea market the other day...

From the top the key almost disappears.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Coffee Shop In Progress

In April of 2010 two friends moved to New York and opened a small espresso bar in SoHo. I was honored when they offered me the opportunity to build and help design their space. These are a few pictures of the process.

All of the lumber for this project is from a single tree. This is what it looked like when it got to the shop. It was a very exciting day.

Jon, Wes and I making the first cuts into the slabs of walnut, which will eventually become the stand up table and the window bar.


Each piece of wood wraps the entire length of the bar. This was both fun and challenging. Because each piece is so unique I tried to pick where I placed them very carefully to show of their natural beauty as best I could. I'm really pleased at how this came out.


This compound miter was more difficult than I expected. Luckily the wrapping of the grain and slight angle of everything overshadow the difficulty of the cut. In the end I think it looks good.


To figure out the angles for the Corian base of the stand up table, I used the Walnut top and some small pieces of ply wood to help find what was the best looking and most comfortable to stand at.


This is one of the craziest clamp ups I've ever done. All these clamps were actually needed to pull everything together.

This is the piece of walnut that will be the front window counter. This is what it looks like before the Tung oil finish is rubbed on. I love the purple and blue colors throughout the piece.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Coffee Shop

Coffee Shop, 147 Sullivan St. New York, NY. Walnut

When I was learning to be a cabinetmaker in San Francisco, the shop I was working for built some of the triangular benches that were spread throughout the new DeYoung museum. It was so interesting to watch people sit on and interact with the things that I had helped make. I get the same feeling with this space, but even more so. The way people react to solid wood furniture is one of the most gratifying parts of what I do. While the size of this coffee shop is small, the attention to detail and the quality of material make this a comfortable and welcoming place to be. I feel so proud to have been part of this project.


This is a stand up table with a black Corian base, AKA the heaviest table ever. With a totally beautiful piece of Walnut, the wood does all the work. I love that so many people have had so many conversations and so much coffee at this table.


Thank you George Nakashima for your decorative, yet structurally genius bow tie joint. This is a close up of the stand up table.


This is the stand up bar in the front window. It's hard to see, but we actually found a bullet in the piece of wood. Because the slug was solid lead, it was able to make it through joiner, planer, and sanding process without damaging anything. I counted the rings back and it was 75 years ago!

While less dramatic, the employee side of this bar still has interesting wood things.

The Tung oil finish give the wood a deep rich color that only oil finishes can do. Labor intensive, but the final result is unrivaled by any spray finish.

And to think that this is where it all started...

Ebony Necklace


Necklace for Tina, Ebony and found copper wire

Jewelry Box


Small Jewelry Box, Walnut and Maple.
The grain runs through the top, shelf, and bottom. All around very cute little thing.

Sunday, February 6, 2011








Finally I finished the guitar. I'm proud to say that this is the shredder I hoped it would be, with sustain for days and a comfortable neck. I'm looking forward to the next one!