Under Table Shoe Tree
July-August 2023
This shoe tree served as a collection companion to the entry stool, though it utilized different materials and aesthetics in order to better match the existing entryway table it would reside underneath. An important part of this project was matching the existing furniture, and for that I chose to use cherry wood and a commercial stain, despite my personal preference against using stains. This design began in the CAD and prototyping stage, where I decided to utilize king posts in dimensions similar to the existing table legs while using a slatted shelf construction both to use less material and allow for dust and dirt to fall off the shoes onto the floor below, with an elevated frame for easy cleaning. Whereas the entry stool leaned towards form, this piece was significantly more function oriented. The more numerous design challenges presented by this project offered me several ways in which to improve my design, planning, and fabrication skills.
I selected both 4/4 and 8/4 cherry wood to use in this project. I quickly got to work getting the rough part blanks cut out, but I had underestimated how much effort would go into the shelves' shape. This served as a small setback, but it allowed me to rethink my goals and formulate a better timeline for myself throughout the rest of the project. Below are the initial phases of getting the blanks cut out and the initial blocking out where the pieces would go.
One of the early design choices I was unsure of was whether to use a 4 or 5 slat design for the shelves. I eventually selected the 5 slat design, due to the better aesthetic quality alongside the ability to support more types of shoe. Due to the varying heights on the shoe tree's different shelves, I kept constantly checking with my work boots as a reference to ensure I was preserving enough space as my plans changed from the original vision in different ways.
After the initial development, I started fabrication and gluing in full stride in order to complete the project on schedule. this part of the work flew by, and before I knew it I was ready to move into finishing.
I began the staining process with the shelves. Through my finish tests, I had discovered that the finish required around 3 coats in order to match the table. A very long afternoon was spent applying coat after coat to each and every face of the slats, ensuring as uniform a finish as possible across all six shelves. Afterwards, the frame was brought out and stained to the same specifications.
prior to the finishing process, I decided to slightly widen the base layer of the shoe tree, through the addition of the exterior cross pieces on the lowest shelves, so as to fill a bit more space underneath the table. The top shelf was chosen to remain in place via a friction and gravity fit, while I chose to use 18 gauge nails to affix the smaller shelves in place.
With that, the shoe tree was complete on time, and immediately took up function holding its capacity worth of shoes.
This design proved to be just as much of a challenge and a watershed for me as the entryway stool, as I had to forego a number of my usual design preferences and design to specifications outside those to which I am usually accustomed. Because of this, the project pushed both my craft and design skills to the next level.