Pod Bookcase
This piece was a follow-up to the set of Pod Bedroom Pieces. My client had taken the usual leap of faith with me 7 years earlier, and obviously was pleased with the process enough to ask me to make a companion piece in the same room. The requirements of this piece were to hold her extensive set of "top 1000" CD's, and some very particular books below. The shelves can take 2 Cd's deep for less-current storage. I spaced the shelving pins so that one day it could be all CD shelves or all books. A couple of spare shelves were supplied, tucked under her bed. The shelves are solid hard maple with a cherry front band, so they won't be sagging anytime. (Something I'm very conscious of; I've actually embedded steel inside longer shelves that need to stay standard thickness. It's a stubborn design thing, welcome to my world.) Since I assume that this piece is going to be passed down to one of her arm wrestling kids one day, and that it will likely be in a spot where it is viewed from an angle that is totally different than where I set it in the corner, I typically treated all sides equally, including the top which is presently slightly above her eye level, but she is very aware of it's nicely bordered curly maple panel. As with my previous Pod pieces I've done, the simple looking toed-up look of the elliptical feet are the most demanding. This is because they need to look like simple animated feet while being attached to a mating elliptical joint that is strong enough to take the weight of a fully loaded case. It looks good, and I have some satisfaction tucked away, knowing that you could park a truck on that piece.
Nick Craine helped me deliver this piece in Guelph Ontario. If you need an amazing illustrator, OR, an amazing musical being, google away. He's been accurately described as being "disgustingly multi-talented" (!!!). (And seeing that I haven't gone on about anyone else in this entire blog other than myself, that's underlining it.)
And finally, this all leads me to say, that fully satisfied repeat customers are the best, and the pay-back is feeling really good these days. I have massive satisfaction in getting calls from very familiar voices asking: "So,...how's your schedule looking Jim?...". These people who were once strangers, became friends (nooo, not facebook level "frenz"...), and they now call me up and are right into their particulars; there's no more scoping me out, wondering if I'm up to the task, and if they're investing in the right place. They already know the value of the end piece, they're already sold, it's that simple and blunt. We chit-chat, and then the emails start flying, complete with pics, room dimensions, colour swatches, scanned sketches etc etc., and back into it we go. Not to sound cheesy, but I know that this process is what makes me feel at the top of my living existence, and I get a sense that my clients are experiencing a similar rush. They become part of a unique and personal evolution of design with the person who is going to be mentally and physically creating a piece just for them. The end satisfaction for me is priceless, and I actually know that I can say that it is for them too; when I leave after a final delivery and we're all settled up, I can see it. Everyone's happy.
Nick Craine helped me deliver this piece in Guelph Ontario. If you need an amazing illustrator, OR, an amazing musical being, google away. He's been accurately described as being "disgustingly multi-talented" (!!!). (And seeing that I haven't gone on about anyone else in this entire blog other than myself, that's underlining it.)
And finally, this all leads me to say, that fully satisfied repeat customers are the best, and the pay-back is feeling really good these days. I have massive satisfaction in getting calls from very familiar voices asking: "So,...how's your schedule looking Jim?...". These people who were once strangers, became friends (nooo, not facebook level "frenz"...), and they now call me up and are right into their particulars; there's no more scoping me out, wondering if I'm up to the task, and if they're investing in the right place. They already know the value of the end piece, they're already sold, it's that simple and blunt. We chit-chat, and then the emails start flying, complete with pics, room dimensions, colour swatches, scanned sketches etc etc., and back into it we go. Not to sound cheesy, but I know that this process is what makes me feel at the top of my living existence, and I get a sense that my clients are experiencing a similar rush. They become part of a unique and personal evolution of design with the person who is going to be mentally and physically creating a piece just for them. The end satisfaction for me is priceless, and I actually know that I can say that it is for them too; when I leave after a final delivery and we're all settled up, I can see it. Everyone's happy.