The DsC Tv Cabinet was delivered this month to a client in North London. They had a very clear idea of the style and materials they wanted for this piece. The tricky element was getting the front panel to to lift up, the the be able to push it back out of the way. This allowed full access to all the boxes stored and, when closed, provided a visual treat in the corner of the room. Its also prevented their young child from accessing the equipment when their backs were turned.
For clients in Southwick, East Sussex, Coane+Co delivered and installed a freestanding, Break-fronted wardrobe. A tricky installation as it had to be delivered in flat-pack, carried up stairs and assembled in the bedroom where it was to reside.
Just before Christmas Coane+Co completed the Twist Nest of Tables for clients in Leeds, Yorkshire. Here's some photos showing just some of the back ground work that went into creating the tables. Starting with rough maquette making to realise the final form, onto choosing where to cut the timber, followed by the complicated glueing process and then onto the final form prior to wax/oil beng added.
The final pictures are on the Projects page.
This week the Hallway bookcase was delivered and installed in Swanage, Dorset. A few hours on-site and it was all pieced together fitting in the space as if it had always been there.
Having sketched out a few ideas for a chair design, I decided to continue the development in full scale. I find it highlights any issues very quickly as the ergonomics can be tested straight away. Here are a couple of examples of the design that were made not just to test the aesthetic qualities but also, and most importantly, the weight bearing abilities.
This design pushes the boundaries for structural design, especially for a timber frame chair. Large cantilevers are in no way a new concept in design, but they are a real test of design and engineering. The secret to the success of this chair will be providing the necessary structural support with a three-way joint that doesn't appear overly chunky or cumbersome.
I took a trip to English Woodlands Timber (http://www.englishwoodlandstimber.co.uk/), in West Sussex, to pick the timber for our latest project. The project is a Hallway Bookcase for a client in Dorset that are looking to expand their book storage combined with plenty of storage for shoes, coats and dog leads.
The timber being used is British Ash and American black Walnut. The staff there are very skilled with a forklift as they manoeuvre huge lengths of timber over, under and past vast stacks of other timbers so that you can pick the right materials for your project.
Once rough cut, all this timber certainly takes up plenty of space...
Coane+Co recently repaired a much treasured sculpture for Artist and Sculptor, Michael Green. He had knocked it of its plinth and it had cracked in a number of places, so I took up the challenge of fixing it for him.
Abstract in shape and carved from a single piece of cherry, it made for a very tricky repair requiring a custom support frame and a number of glue-jigs. The main break was also in the most structurally vulnerable area, splitting down the grain at the start of a cantilever.
In the end the repair was made and the Michael was very happy to have his favourite sculpture back in his studio.
While fitting the drawers to a cabinet, I was making for Joe Della-Porter Design, I managed to slice my thumb. No chisels, saws, knives or blades this time, just the edge of a Blum Tandem runner. The lesson learnt here is to be very careful when trying to remove the Tip-On attachment- ease it out, dont yank it!
This week I was working for Joe Della-Porter Designs on two drawer cabinets.
These units were produced in solid Oak, throughout, with dovetail joints and five Blum Tandem push-to-open drawers.
A bespoke Bed and room divider for a newly built house in Dulwich, South East london. Designed and built as a modular system that aided hassle-free delivery into the newly decorated house. The piece consists of a king-sized bed with twin drawers, headboard, side-tables and slatted screen/room-divider. The slatted screen ascends in height to provide privacy from the open-plan bathroom behind. Constructed in Oak with contrasting white cabinets that match the existing decor of the house.
This project was a three-way commission with James Waddell (www.jamesfurniture.net) and Kris Lamba (www.krislamba.com).
The Oak Stout Chair is now on display at the Wigmore Street showroom of Designspace. DesignSpace London is the leading destination for modern Italian living and iconic design. Modern kitchens, bathrooms and storage by Modulnova, Schiffini and Lema.
www.designspacelondon.com
The original Stout Chair is currently on show at the Splinter Exhibition at Art Lacuna in Battersea. This inaugural exhibition has been curated by Rupert Phelps (www.rupertphelps.co.uk) and brings together a range of pieces from from designers and makers from across the country.
The exhibition is open until Sunday April 20th. For directions and more information please go to the Splinter page:
www.rupertphelps.co.uk/Splinter/
After a bit of a delay the images of the Sunroom Bookcase are now in the Projects page.
I learnt a good lesson today when using the Festool Domino jointing machine, which was to always check you have set the correct depth for the material you are using. See picture for why. The offending machine is in the the background. Its an extremely useful machine though.
