An Economy of Space

We recently completed this project for PWG Architecture (http://pwgarchitecture.com) in San Francisco, a firm dedicated to promoting energy and environmental conservation through sustainable building practices. As part of a ground-floor remodel of a Mission district residence, we were contacted to build a wall of cabinetry that would serve a dual purpose: to provide storage and organization for a bathroom on one side, and serve as office, media and entertainment cabinetry on the other. As an added layer of complexity, the cabinetry needed to be constructed around (or otherwise encompass) two structural posts that are original to the home. It quickly became apparent that an economy of space was the motivating factor behind this type of customized cabinetry. Lucky for us, the principal at PWG, Pamela Goode, had already figured the math and designed the cabinetry layout according to the most efficient use of space.  The cabinetry is constructed of FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified solid Cherry, FSC certified Cherry plywoods and FSC certified pre-finished Maple plywood. The protective finish applied to the cabinetry is a water-based urethane.

Above is a view of the 10' tall, floor-to-ceiling cabinetry on the bathroom side. Below the towel bar on the left is a magazine rack. A tankless, wall-mounted toilet will be installed on the wall adjacent to the magazine rack. 

Below is a view of the toilet paper compartment. 

In the photo below, two doors open to reveal a full-height (6 feet tall) medicine cabinet. Directly behind this cabinet is one of the two historic posts (as well as the media cabinetry on the other side), thus requiring such a shallow cabinet.

The detail above shows a stile-and-rail type design that borrows from Shaker style cabinetry and furniture. However, the stiles (vertical members) and rails (horizontal members) are flush with the flat panels (as opposed to panels which are recessed), lending the cabinetry a more modern aesthetic. 

A privacy window above the toilet allows natural light to filter in from the lower-level entry just on the other side of the wall. 

A view of the wall of cabinetry facing the family room. The bathroom door is to the left and the lower level entry is on the right. While the bathroom cabinetry extends from floor to ceiling, the family room cabinetry stops at 8 feet 10 inches in height.

The view above shows that the cabinetry turns a corner and continues to an adjacent wall. 

This short run of cabinetry includes the privacy window of the bathroom, a fold-down desk with open shelving below, and a bank of shallow drawers.

Concealed behind a drawer (removed in this photo) is a power strip and phone/data outlets. 

Desk drawer reinstalled.

A door folds down to rest on the open desk drawer, providing an office work surface. An access hole cut into the desk top, close to the back wall, allows access for turning off the power to the power strip below.

A view of all drawers open. 

Above: The larger drawers on the bottom were sized to accommodate hanging files. If you look closely you can see two aluminum bars along the top edge of the drawer sides that carry the hooks of hanging files.

All of the doors and drawers (except for the three drawers adjacent to the desk) use touch latches as opposed to door or drawer pulls. They open and close by simply pushing on them to either engage or release a magnetic catch or spring mechanism. Eliminating the need for additional hardware allows for a much sleeker appearance.

Originally designed to be a fixed panel, the door below was made operable as an after-thought with the hopes of gaining just a bit more storage. Being able to actually see one of the old posts is just an added bonus. 

Two views of the big picture. 

Frey Norris Gallery

We occasionally build displays for the Frey Norris Gallery in San Francisco. http://www.freynorris.com/

 These illuminated boxes were done for a recent Andrea Dezsö exhibition, "Things We Think When We Believe We Know."  http://www.andreadezso.com/

A challenge to photograph because of the lighting, these pictures don't do the artwork justice. Since this show is about to come down, we recommend following the links above to see more work of Andrea's, as well as the other artists represented by Frey Norris.

New Shop.

We took possession of our new space last week.

Still small, for a woodshop, but it's about twice the floorspace of our part of the shared previous location.

First order of business was white paint on the green walls.

We left the beams and sprinklers colorful.

A few days later, and we are in the thick of organizing the stuff we've moved in, building work benches and shelving, and soon to be resuming work on our current cabinet project.

Radiator/AV Cabinet

"Clayton Woodworks did an exceptional job on a very challenging project. Precise, punctual, professional and passionate. They custom built a cabinet to house both a radiator on one side and several media components (receiver, DVR, cable box, Sonos) on the other side, all within the same cabinet. They carefully followed the measurements and specifications of the other contractors who installed the media components. They even sourced the original and exact traditional metal grating for the front cabinet cover to match those covering the radiators in the other two rooms of my home. The details of their work is outstanding - they thought of everything! I have already referred them to several friends with the utmost confidence that they will deliver above and beyond."

Deck/Retaining Wall, Potrero Hill

"I was first introduced to Clayton Woodworks by my gardener. They were one of the service providers I considered to build a new deck and stairs on the side of my house. Their detailed CAD drawings helped me visualize what I wanted my deck to look like, and made them stand out from the other deck people I was interviewing. Once they were hired they did an amazing job. Their work is precise, the fasteners are all nicely countersunk and evenly spaced. Their aesthetic choices are informed. They are a pleasure to work with (very clean and courteous.) They helped me with several challenges, coming up with great solutions for design conundrums. They installed a counter-weighted trap door in my deck to hide the stairs to the garage below. And they even fixed some rotten framing that they found in my house. I couldn't be happier. The view out my kitchen window has gone from yuk to amazing! Since the deck is done, I have also hired them to replace the treads and risers on my front steps with ipe. Once again they have been a great asset, helping me to explore the options for amending a problem with the stair height on the existing stairway, and coming up with a creative and simple way to update the poorly-built, funky looking staircase. The steps are finished and they look great! Major curb appeal update. When Clayton does work for me, I feel like I am getting a very high quality of craftsmanship. I also trust them to advise me correctly. While decking may sound simple, the quality of their work is something closer to custom cabinetry (which they do as well.) I'd trust them to do almost anything, and I will continue to use their services when needed."

A small deck with two staircases alongside the South wall of the client's Potrero  Hill home.

We were referred to this job by Peter Forrest Kline, the landscaper.   peterforrestkline.com   He is renovating the back yard.

The lower set of stairs lead to the garage. They are seldom used, and take up a large amount of the potential deck area just outside the back door. We had the thought of creating a trap door in the new deck to utilize the entire available space. The old planter in the photo below was to be eliminated.

The upper staircase would now extend to the fence, and the fence would be faced with rough-sawn redwood, oriented horizontally, with some grooves added for a little detail.

Two of Carl's sketches representing the proposed work:

Once the demolition of the old deck was done we discovered some rotten framing in the walls and floor of the house that needed replacing. We removed a few pieces of siding and installed pressure-treated lumber in place of the old rot.

Here's a test fit of the upper stair stringer.

                                                 

The four stringers installed, with temporary treads up the middle.

The new fencing going up.

New treads and risers, new decking installed.

There's a little landing at the top, with which the new landscaping will merge.

In this photo everything is done but the trap door . That is being shop-built out of the same decking (1"x 6" Ipe) on an aluminum frame, and will swing on a 6' long continuous (piano) hinge. The net weight of the door will be about 140 lbs, so it will be counter-balanced to make it easy to lift and lower.

Peter is going to give the back yard a complete make-over. For our part we are putting in two retaining walls and a redwood trellis.

These retaining walls will be faced and capped with ipe to match the deck after the major landscaping is completed.

The trap door in closed position...

And open...  It worked out nicely that the trap door becomes a safety rail for the stairwell when open.

The counter balance is suspended from the two outermost aluminum frame members. It is made from a 7 foot long piece of 6 inch diameter cast iron pipe, swinging on clevis pins run through the frame. The pipe contains some steel bar stock for additional weight - about 160 lbs total. We were fortunate to have adequate space beneath the deck for all this to operate within.

A simple pivoting leg was added to stabilize the trap door in the open position. 

The door is easy to lift, whether operating it from above or below.

Below are a few shots of the completed landscaping.