Recently we had an opportunity to outfit an entire office space in Chicago. Here's how it went.
We started by chatting with a few people from the office, as well as a friend who was helping with the design. They needed 6 pieces: a kitchen island, lunchroom table, meeting room table, barn door, conference room table, and reception desk. We built every piece from Rock Maple, and finished some black, and some natural. Rock Maple is an incredibly hard wood, which lets it take a regular beating. This makes it great for a kitchen counter, or lunch table.
The kitchen area has both the lunchroom table and the kitchen counter. At the time of our photos, the counter wasn't in place yet, so only the table is shown. These are both Natural Rock Maple, making them durable and light. It helped this space pop and feel bright and approachable.
 |
 |
The meeting room received a large 6 foot round table. This table was also rock maple, but this time finished black. The round table makes it easy to have conversation in the space, as everyone can make eye contact. This helps to counteract the hierarchical nature of some tables and spaces. In a square room, this was a no brainer.
The last three pieces were each particularly unique. First, the barn door. This was a thin piece of rock maple, with a natural finish, and it had their logo carved into the door. Right in the front hall, this door would make an impression on anyone who came into the office right away.
The reception desk sat in the same space, right across from the door. It's a large U shape desk, leaving room in the middle for the receptionist. The U shape creates lots of space around the desk for paperwork, printers, computers, or anything else that might be necessary. It has a privacy panel to block anyone who walks into the office from seeing under the desk. It also has a shelf sitting a foot above the desk, a comfortable height for someone to stand at. This allows for a space for small packages to be delivered, or signing documents. Each of these pieces have a black finish. Below the shelf is the real magic of the desk. A single piece of live edge maple sits in front of the desk, holding up the shelf. This piece has a natural finish, helping it pop dramatically from the rest of the desk.
 |
 |
The final piece was the most magnificent. Perhaps the most magnificent table we've ever built. It's a massive rock maple book matched table with epoxy poured to fill all the cracks. The table has all the charm and character of a live edge top through the epoxy, but a square edge makes it easy to use. It's a perfect combination of style and function. Not only that, this table is also nearly 15 feet long, and 5 feet wide. This conference room table is an absolute stunner in this office. It even made the 85" TV look a little small.
 |
 |
All in all, everyone loved the tables, and it pulled the whole office together. We were so happy to be able to outfit their entire space.
