The Square Cut Burl is a new addition to our portfolio. The orthogonal table top is made from an irregularly shaped historic burl and clear, cast resin. The images below document some of the initial process.
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about pricing or to place an order.
Desk 2 is a 10′ x 38″ x 3″ historic old redwood burl paired with our sand-cast aluminum ‘Wishbone’ legs.
The top is finished with natural oil and wax and the legs are hard anodized clear. Both Wishbone castings are installed flush with the underside of the slab using countersunk, stainless-steel machine screws.
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about our work, pricing, or to place an order.
In October 2012, we posted a schematic proposal for our first private table commission in New York. The project is now complete. Our signature ‘wishbone’ legs are shown below in a polished bronze finish and are paired with a book-matched black walnut tabletop with corresponding bronze ‘stitches’.
For information about our work, pricing, or to place an order, please email us at info@stacklab.ca
Images are provided by Toronto photographer: Alan Hindle
We recently posted about our new signature cast table legs called the ‘Wishbone’. We now have three finishes available on a made-to-order basis out of our studio on Eastern Avenue in Toronto. The images below show two aluminum finishes: hard anodized (1-2); and polished (3-5). The third finish we are offering is cast bronze. Stay tuned this week for some spectacular images of the bronze that we are using in our first american table commission.
For more information about pricing, or to place an order, please email us at info@stacklab.ca
Our friends Estelle and Sean did a terrific job of designing and refurbishing their new place in the Dundas West area of Toronto. Proof again that with time and patience, homeowners can do something special with a realistic budget. We collaborated with the pair on a few a-la-cart pieces that give recognizable brands a bit of a personal touch.
Image 1: Historic redwood burl coffee table top paired with classic hair pin legs from Lunar Lounge Design.
Images 2 + 3: Solid black walnut island surface fastened to a standard base from the IKEA kitchen line.
Image 4: Solid black walnut shelves supported by four of our custom stainless steel side-mount bracket sets.
Image 5: Reclaimed, white-oak bench seat atop two signature low-table legs from the Eames Collection.
Photos courtesy Module Media
For information about our custom design and build services, pricing, or to place an order, please email us at info@stacklab.ca
In April of last year we posted about a table leg prototype that we were developing called the ‘wishbone.’ Originally, the leg was intended for smaller tables, however, due to demand, we have redesigned the leg to bear greater loads. Currently we are in the process of making the first three pairs in a limited series for sale out of our studio on Eastern Avenue in Toronto. We are offering this leg design in three materials: polished solid cast aluminum, polished solid cast bronze, and hard anodized cast aluminum.
Prior to making the first casting (shown below in rough aluminum), we performed a number of stress tests to optimize the leg shape and volume for heavier loads. The diagrams below show a series of exaggerated stress conditions that helped us finalize the design:
1) Force applied from the side ( simulating a heavy nudge in direction x); 2) Force applied from the side ( simulating a heavy nudge in direction y); 3) Force applied from a corner ( simulating a person sitting / leaning XYZ); d) Force applied from above Z (simulating a person dancing on the table)
Stay tuned for further news as we go through the last stages of production. For information about pricing or to place an order, please email us at info@stacklab.ca
Toronto architect Rochelle Moncarz recently commissioned us to make a big, blue ribbon leg for a butcher block island in a house she designed. The leg was fun to make as always, but it was especially good to meet Rochelle and see her work. She was able to transform a typical, terraced-style, Toronto home interior without breaking the bank. Her material choices, finishes and plan alterations work well together to create a space that is easy to use, comfortable and stylish. Not an easy feat with a small, downtown floor plate. If you need an architect, we suggest Rochelle. Below you can see a photo of the kitchen, courtesy of photographer: Scott Norsworthy.
For information about our custom fabrication services, please email us at info@stacklab.ca
Last week we posted about the 11′-1″ American Elm table that we made for the Union Lofts sales centre. The space is now open and we are proud to show off a few preliminary shots of our piece in situ. There will be more photos coming following a group shoot with the interior designer and our collaborator: Studio Kantelberg.
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about our design + build services.
Union Lofts, the latest from the Windmill Development Group is opening their sales centre this coming Saturday, November 17th, and we will be there. Union will be a church-turned-living space located at 243 Perth avenue in the Junction Triangle. While construction on the lofts hasn’t begun yet, part of the church interior has been beautifully transformed by Studio Kantelberg. We had the honour of collaborating with Andrea Kantelberg on the design of an 11′-1″ American Elm communal table that will serve as a feature of the space. This table is especially important to us because of its origin.
The top: comes from Wychwood Park. A very good friend of ours named Robert Green slabbed the fallen Elm on site for us about two years ago. Once we secured the commission, we called Rob up who now works with a new crew of talented woodworkers P & P Custom Living to see if he would work with us on the project. He agreed. It is very nice to be working with Rob again, and to see him involved in bringing the piece to completion
The bow tie joints: are CNC milled from a mahogany stair tread that we reclaimed from a farm house in Caledon. They were milled, yes, but they were installed the old fashioned way.
The legs: are bright bright purple. A big thanks to Ben Lowry ( on the development side) and to Andrea for supporting the idea of a leg modelled after an old set of colorful saw horses we use in our shop. We’ve wanted to do this for a long time.
See below for some images of the making of the table – including one shot of the original elm tree before it fell. Stay tuned for more of the completed piece, and, please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about our design + build services.
Walnut 2 is a proposal for a private commission in New York City.
The 10′-1″ table top will be made from two mirrored walnut slabs cut from the same fallen tree. They will be flattened to a 1 3/4″ thickness and bookmatched. The legs are a slightly modified version of our Wishbone Leg prototype. For this project, we will be casting the leg in bronze and increasing it’s overall size to accommodate the larger table top.
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about our custom design + build services
Rue Pigalle is one of our favourite retail stores in Toronto. Their brand new Queen St location is full of innovative jewelry and accessories that are handcrafted in Europe. Go check out the clever ways that these artists and artisans use material. We were especially impressed by a fantastic series of necklaces made of cast rubber!
Isabelle, the store owner graciously commissioned us to make her 3 28″ x 28″ display tables shown below. We made these pieces from local reclaimed wormy beech and tubular steel. The top of the legs sit flush in routed pockets in the underside of the top. The mid-leg passes through the lower shelf which is supported in place with 4 set screws. The feet have a built-in levelling adjuster. Thanks to Isabelle for the support and to Rue Pigalle for the inspiring products.
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about our custom design + build services
Benji’s Walnut Table is a recent commission we built for a private client in downtown Toronto. The reclaimed black walnut slab top is 2″ thick and runs 7′ -7″ in length. Our tapered ribbon legs are welded, pickled and oiled, hot-rolled steel. We finished the table with a VOC free hardwax oil and the legs in a clear gloss powder coat. A very big thanks to Benji for his support!
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about our custom design + build services
This is a continuation of last week‘s post – documenting our process of modelling and fabricating a prototype cast aluminum leg for our retail portfolio. We are now one step away from having a finished custom leg: These casts were hardened using a heat treatment and then prepared for finishing by grinding away the draft (the excess aluminum) and then sandblasting. Stay tuned for updates on this project and please feel free to contact us at info@stacklab.ca with questions or comments.
Currently, we are in the process of prototyping a cast aluminum leg for our retail portfolio. The wishbone shape shown below starts with an inset crotch arch and then curves and tapers downwards in two directions. This week, with the help of our collaborator Styropatterns Inc., we will CNC mill a positive and negative mold pattern for each leg. Once we have the patterns milled, we will take them to a foundry where the metal workers will cast the shape for us. Stay tuned for updates on this project and please feel free to contact us at info@stacklab.ca with questions or comments.
*The schematic diagrams below are representational
A client recently commissioned us to design and build a kitchen banquette in their new home in the Toronto Bluffs. Our proposal pairs an oblong plywood table and bench with two geometric steel structures. The table base is a hyperboloid comprised of the smallest possible spindles for the load. The bench structure can be thought of as an arch on its side – made up of narrow, skeletal voussoirs. Stay tuned for updates on this project and please feel free to contact us at info@stacklab.ca with questions or comments.
*The schematic diagrams below are representational
The table and bench are recent commissions built for a newly renovated house in downtown Toronto. The owners completely transformed the interior into a simple and elegant contemporary space that we drew easy inspiration from.
The reclaimed white oak table top is 1 3/4″ thick and spans 9′ between two custom steel legs. We designed our legs as ribbons that allow the passage of light and material. The bench is an all-steel structure with a single band of white oak trim that we made using off-cuts from the table construction. The inset cushions are upholstered in vinyl and are filled with a dense foam that helps to keep their orthogonal shape.
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca for information about our custom design + build services
Our salvaged walnut table is now complete! We planed, jointed and finished this locally salvaged slab entirely by hand in our downtown shop. It measures 9′ – 4″ x 3′ – 3″ and is finished with a VOC free hardwax oil. This is the first time we’ve used our colorful steel legs, so please come by to have a look while they are on display in the Stacklab studio.
For more information on customization and pricing please email us at info@stacklab.ca
We created this 7′ x 4′ maple dining table for a client and friend. The maple came from a tree we salvaged last year from a nearby landfill. When we slabbed it, we discovered that it had a beautiful black coloration (known as spalting) that is caused by fungi in dying or dead trees. The maple face is jointed in two locations with teak bow-ties to help control splitting and it is finished with a VOC free hardwax oil. The configuration of the steel base was intended to maximize seating room and to work with the natural form of the wood. Using cold-rolled material allowed us to achieve seamless weld connections while maintaining a raw steel finish.
Photos by Glen Reichwein
The Mosaic Table is a recent custom commission for e11even restaurant located at 15 York Street in downtown Toronto.
The table top is made from antique hemlock that was buried below York St for over a century as a part of the historic Conner’s Wharf. What we loved about this material was that in the time it spent underground, the hemlock timbers absorbed the vivid green and red mineral tones in the lakefront soil. After experimenting with many different concepts, we proposed a 14′-2″ communal top made up of nearly 300 off-cuts that we recovered from a commercial flooring project. We found that pairing smaller modules gave us added control over the composition and that incorporating discarded knots, piths, and cathedrals added considerable dimension to the design.
Each piece of hemlock was individually cut and pocket-hole screwed to the plywood underlay.
The structure is pinned hot – rolled HSS steel tubing. It comes apart into pieces for easy transportation.
This week we are developing one of our table leg prototypes. The design features a tapered 4″ x 3/8″ steel ribbon; a 1″ x 3/8″ web; filleted corners and a 3/8″ thick top plate that will bolt to the underside of a solid, wood top. The legs are also angled and are designed to work with the table to achieve stability – here they are shown upside down in a 1:1 scale chipboard model and in steel. After they are finished and powder-coated, this set of legs will make up the base for a 9′ walnut slab dining table.
Please email us at info@stacklab.ca to find out more about the available colour options.
