Stelter Co. bench completion

Strummer gets the first seating...

Stelter Co. bench mock-up

1/2" x 1 1/2" aluminum flat bar. Cypress slats ripped to 1 1/2" x 1 1/2". 10' long. Design by Daniel Hunt - Connect Architecture + Design.

Milled

A lot of cypress for the Stelter Company benches. I can't express how much I want these done.

serious.

like.a.heart.attack.

Shop improvements

Gotta keep the dust out of the reception area. Door, window, done. Well, some insulation and drywall too...

Schwertfeger Residence - reclaimed wood floor lamp

Here's a floor lamp we fashioned out of a 8' reclaimed tree. The limbs were forged out of 1" pipe to allow for the wiring to be concealed. The flanges had holes drilled drilled in them before the limbs were welded to them. This allowed the client to run the wiring down the back of the trunk and through the base.

The globes...are another story. Jeremy and his wife found them in Italy, thinking they would be the perfect adornment for this project. They came packaged as geometric pieces that required "some assembly"...and a doctorate in advanced mathematical analysis. The instructions included some rough drawings...and directions in Italian. Luckily, Jeremy's father is known to feed on challenging, brain-busting puzzles. What we struggled with all summer, took him a few hours.

The result is this one-of-a-kind, rustically modern piece.

Goemaat tables for Deborah Philips Interior Design

This has been a steadily planned project for a few months now. Interior designer Deborah Phillips approached me about building a few tables out of one retail table...basically, cutting what was to be two tops - now three - out of one of these.

What we ended up with were a desk (23 1/2" x 70"), a coffee table (28" x 51") and a round end table that has yet to be built. The huge slab of wood came from Restoration Hardware in one gigantic 77" x 62" slab with a thin-walled sq. tube frame beneath it.

At almost 2 1/2" thick, it wasn't the lightest piece I've ever dealt with.





The coffee table is composed of 2" sq. steel legs with a 1" sq. steel perimeter around the top and 1" sq. steel cross members at the ends on the bottom. This piece has been force oxidized and sealed with a clear powder coat finish.




The desk's frame is composed of 1 1/2" sq. steel tubing throughout. The center ring is 6" dia., 3/4" tubing. The "rays" are solid 1/2" sq. steel bar. The desk has been finished with "breccia smooth matte" powder coat.

The Lift

The original sign for The Lift (see above), on 4th St. in downtown Des Moines, is a little worn out. Here's the work being done on the new one. The background is a 4/4 cypress wood glue-up. The framework, scroll work and lettering is all 1/8" mild steel that was cut on a water jet. The steel is attached with 1/4" x 20 NC studs through the wood. This'll be an improvement for the long haul indeed. Thanks to TJ and 'Deo...

Magazine rack

Busted this out today. Hard maple. 4" D x 10 3/4" W x 30" L. Based on a client-provided pic. Custom woodburning and a water-borne polyurethane finish.

Haiku - "Yes...Good Day" - The triumphant return of "JG!"

"Yes, good day, Terry!"


Today was quite the productive and prosperous undertaking. Terry and I managed to demo what was-to-be the original counter substrate yesterday and build all the carcases for new cabinetry today. One 8' carcase and two at 42". The spaces in between will house a 4' reach-in cooler for the sushi chefs. Terry will be trimming all the faces in 3/4" x 1 1/2" red oak tomorrow.

But...and "listen to me now..."

This progress wouldn't have happened today if it weren't for Terry suggesting we "bring JG onto the job." JG is our trusty jobsite Craftsman table saw. Earlier in the year at the London Underground in Ames, we found JG next to an empty Miller Lite keg in the basement one morning. Yeah, he may have had a few pints the night before, but he performed like a champ that day.

Funny, JG is just where you'd expect to find him - bellied up to the bar. Too bad nobody told him the Miller guy has yet to drop off any inventory... GOOD DAY!

Haiku - booth installation...many days

Here's the progress of the Haiku built-ins after a week's worth of installation work. 2x4 frame construction with true 4/4 solid white oak. I spent the good part of Christmas Eve staining the entire build a water-based "Espresso" stain with Terry's HVLP gun. Initially, the plan was to have only a clear polyurethane topcoat - then the chairs and tables arrived. Both are finished dark. Very dark.

The booth runs are 20' and 30', respectively. Hopefully Haiku will be open within the month. Sushi anyone?

Haiku - booth construction, day 3

Lots and lots of glue-ups...

Haiku - booth construction, day 2

We be jammin'...

Frames are done and we moved on to some sizable glue-ups.

Haiku - booth construction, day 1

Here's a side view drawing of what is going to be 50'+ of seating for a new restaurant by the name of Haiku on the Drake campus. Plywood? Hell no. The backrests and seats on this installation will be solid 5/4 white oak.
















Bob and I tore through over 200 bf in the planer with a couple of passes on table saw as well for preparation of glue-ups tomorrow. 2x4 frame construction 16" on center is probably overkill on something like this, but that's the way I want it. Besides, who's to tell me I'm wrong? I've been accused of over-engineering before...and I honestly don't mind it.

Gabriel's platform bed - video footage

la cama from Gabriel Saenz on Vimeo.

Thanks, Gabriel!!!

Colombian church pew

As I pointed out in some recent posts, Gabriel Saenz's mother and stepfather both work in the trades in Colombia as a carpenter and steel fabricator, respectively. With my limited knowledge of Catholic furniture, I'm betting these pews are just that with the permanent knee rest on the backside. No padding? Hmm... sadistic indeed. Must be a tough monsignor...

Looks like steel framing with wood seats and backrests. Gabriel says they built 34 pews in total. Nice. Thanks for passing on the fine work from south of the equator...

Gabriel's platform bed - delivered and assembled

Here's the final product in the fabrication process of Gabriel Saenz's platform bed. As you see above, the second photo is of the production bed this commission was based on. The feet have a little more of a sharper bevel on them and the headboard is flush with the side rails, but those are about the only differences. Oh, that, and the fact that the Factor II Fab build is ACTUAL WOOD, not particle board with some veneer glued to it.

Thanks again, Gabriel.