Under the Stairs

This Client wanted a better solution for hiding her storage area under the stairs in her loft in Chinatown. We designed and built this two piece rolling bookcase system. She was so excited to tear down the black curtain that had been hanging there for years! The result is a bookcase system that looks architectural. It blends in with the black stairs and has a visually interesting negative space effect.

A bit of a showroom

We finally have a small area to show off our creations. It's located in the shop at 4001 E 18th Street in Vancouver. We'd love to have you come by. Hours vary, so it's best to call, text, or email for an appointment. 503-784-4570 or swiftd@saratogawoodworks.com

Editorial Columns

This Client had always wanted to have a more substantial visual divider between her living and dining rooms. The top photo is the before picture.

The 1925 vintage house is a great example of bungalow architecture and the owner is a collector of vintage glass and furniture. She had a picture in her head of exactly what she wanted. I simply had to interpret her words and build it.

This is what we came up with. A simple column system that complements the original woodwork, and doesn't look like an add-on.

A View to the Finish

This house has an amazing view of the Columbia River, but the cabinets were nothing to look at.

They were, however structurally sound, and the owner wondered what we could do to update the look of her kitchen without the expense of all-new cabinetry.

I suggested using a tinted lacquer to change the color of the cabinets. We also added a matching cabinet where the fabric once hung, replaced the tired hinges, and added knobs for the doors and drawers.

We also added a flat display shelf above the upper cabinets along with s simple crown moulding.

It took around a week to refinish the doors and drawers in my shop and a couple of days to do the on-site work. The result was a great transformation, with almost nothing going to the landfill.

How are you going to do that?

When we were leaving the client's house after a design meeting, I showed Clint and Josh the photo that the client had given me.

"How are you going to do that?", Clint asked.

"I don't know yet."

But projects like this are the reason I love this business. I love the challenge of solving complex problems.

There were several design concerns with this project. I was going to be building a small bathroom vanity in the style of the large kitchen island in the picture that the client had given me. Even coming up with a design proposal that had appropriate scale would be a challenge.

Fortunately, I nailed the drawing on my first try. "Love it!", said the client.

Then there were the challenges of building the cabinet I had drawn.
Most shops would have taken simpler approaches to each of the problems, but we want our projects to be a level above "most shops".

In the end, we created the lattice work for the false front by dadoing small strips of lumber into a solid piece of alder.


The door is constructed much like a common raised panel door, but material is cut away to leave the diamond in the center. a cove is cut into the edges of that diamond. This makes a grain that stays consistent all the way through the panel. A simple applied lattice, or an applique for the diamond would have looked cheap and wouldn't hold up.

We couldn't be happier with the result.

The Tweener Cabinet

My Clients had always wondered what this space was intended for. Between the living room and the dining room, there was this gap. It was parallel to the entryway, and only a foot away so it served no practical purpose.

They decided that it needed a cabinet. The dining side would provide storage for wine and glasses, while the living side would be home to stereo equipment.

The primary challenge in this project was making everything fit. The depth was tight when we considered the amplifier and the wine glasses, but in the end, everything fit perfectly.

Note the unusual angled shelves for wine storage and the fabric panels designed to allow the use of remote controls.

dis mantle isn't working for me.

This mantle in a 30's era Vancouver cottage probably looked great at one time. The basic form was crafted from plaster. But the oak mantle top was dated (dated 1979, actually. It said 'Tom Petersen, master craftsman' on the bottom. The Heat n' Glo fireplace was added more recently, as was the green marble tile with the awkward square cutout around the damper operator chain.

The client wanted to update with a simple design that was appropriate in scale, and would preserve the operation of the damper chain.