The idea for the design of this shelf unit came from a random Flickr search where I was actually looking for a particular type of gazebo when I came across a photo of a folding unit on someone's stall photo and stopped in my tracks as I knew this was exactly what I needed but didn't know it before then! A display with height, portability, versatility and which would give me the ability to see my customers through the unit as well.
Several days of on-line hunting to try and find the supplier of the display, I had to give up on sourcing them when I discovered they were made by an American Company who didn't freight internationally, and even if they did, the size and weight would likely have made it very expensive to ship here.
After some consultation with my retired carpenter/joiner father who suggested I could make similar using wooden dowels and square posts (I'm reminded of baby cot sides!) and a couple of other thoughts about various ways of routing, glueing and screwing wood slats to get the same effect (I was even considering reworking wooden blinds!). I remembered a piece of plywood sitting in our garage which my husband had had routed out at his work to use as a wall display/shelf back in our games room to-be.
Well hey if they have the machinery to do that, surely my shelf unit would be possible? And it was! After I'd worked out the dimensions I wanted it was just a matter of waiting until they could fit me into the routing schedule - a one-off job takes a bit of setting up and programming. A couple of weeks later I came home to 4 panels exactly as I wanted them just requiring some hinges and a couple of shelves to finish. And this is the end result....
I'm not sure what I like best about them - probably that they can be used more than one way and as they are only joined in pairs, they can be moved apart and used seperately :)
And while I was debuting my new shelves, I also used my new necklace busts for the 1st time, and had made new earring and ring displays - I may do a couple of 'how tos' for these as they are super easy to make and very functional.
It looks fantastic Mel - really impressive! Good old Kiwi ingenuity at its best. Have a great week. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Denise :)
DeleteWow Mel it looks like a pop up perfect retail shop on the street! Just perfect!
ReplyDeleteAnd can you believe it Louise - I wasn't the last person to finish setting up or packing up at the other end. Goodness, could I be becoming organised, that would be odd!!
DeleteYou have come so far Mel...you are an inspiration! I remember in the old days and the market at Haumoana...you have come so far with your work and should be so proud of yourself xx
ReplyDeleteOh thank you so much Ange ... that you would say that means so much to me :) And were it not for you and our shared stall, I would not be where I am today!! xo
DeleteLooks awesome Mel and so easy to assemble. I was lucky last year when looking for shelving for my studio and found something similar - but not quite the same - from an older gentleman who used to be a wood turner. He had made a hinged frame that went in the shape of a W or M (depending on which way you look at it) and used melamine shelves to display his works of art. A bit bigger than your great table size as it takes up half my studio. The best part is that it is made of Rimu and I purchased for $70. Definitely the best way of having easy to store shelving.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness Diana - I just went trawling your FB albums to see if I could find it - and did! What a great shop display and a fantastic find. AND you've given me another way of using my units for display (I wouldn't have thought of arranging them that way!) - thank you :D http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/308997_276955805677330_796171245_a.jpg
DeleteVery nice indeed, cheers
ReplyDeleteThat's very cool - I love the rounded slats
ReplyDeleteWow I love your new set up Mel. It looks very chic. Nice clean lines and spaces. Love that you had it handmade:)
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