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Title: Design and construction of burnt tulipwood suit hangers with suit bags Company: Private Client Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 17/12/2014

Title: Design and construction of hardwood coat rack Company: Private Client Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 5/12/2014

Title: Design and construction Tulipwood and Scaffolding Shelves Company: Private Client Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 15/11/2014 Having built a bed for this same client out of scaffolding boards and scaffolding poles he also wanted an open wardrobe/shelving unit that was in keeping with the industrial aesthetic. With 100% of the construction to be visible, it was decided that a more decorative timber should be used for the shelves rather than the rugged softwood scaffolding boards used for the bed. These shelves were glued, planed, cut and waxed from 40mm thick rough sawn tulipwood boards. Other wood types were considered but for its hardwood properties, colouration and it's cost tulipwood was the preferred wood of the client. The jointing of the shelves was simply achieved using a biscuit jointer and each shelf was hand planned to the desired thickness of 35mm. The shelves were finally Finished with 240 grit sandpaper and three coats of natural beeswax polish and some buffing of the wax once the structure was constructed. The vast majority of the poles were cut to measure on site. The simplistic design of kee klamps allowed for the construction to take less than half a day with two men. Each flange was simply secured with an Allen key and then screwed into the bottom and top of the shelves to secure to make the whole structure rigid and capable of holding a huge amount of weight. Flanges on the bottom and top were fixed into both the floor and wall to prevent the unit from becoming unstable and collapsing under its weight. For the longevity of the shelves, I instructed the client on how best to maintain the wood with the occasional buffing and eventual re-waxing with more natural bees was and Lindt-Free cloth.

Title: Design and construction of two wooden tripod based car headlight lamps Company: Private Client Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 23/10/2014 This was a build that had to be completely designed around the idiosyncrasies of the two reclaimed 1930's car headlights. Naturally on the market there are similar tripods to this both in design and finish. The problems lay in the shape of the fittings on the bottom of the lamps. With a long male threaded bar welded onto a number of stepped flat plates of increasing size that formed the bottom of the lamp meant it would have been harder to try and modify a pre existing design than building something bespoke for these lights. From 21mm plywood a circular base plate was cut with a hole in the middle of it and three arm sections extending from thee point all equidistant from each other. The whole in the middle was to accommodate the bar on the bottom of the lights. On top of this a much smaller piece of tulipwood was cut and shaped to be an exact match to the bottom of the lights. All sorts of minor groves had to be cut into this piece of tulip wood to form a negative that the many different angles and set parts to the bottom of the lamp could fit exactly into. Much of this work had to be done with refined chiseling. Once for,Inge the exact negative of the bottom of each lamp the piece of tulipwood have a whole drilled in it to allow the pole to pass through. This piece was then let to sit loose on between the lamp and the base plate. This was because the weight of the lamp kept the piece to sit flush with the lamp but also would allow the lamp to be swivelled around. This would not have been possible if it were glued to the Baal plate. Gluing it to the lamp itself would have also been a mistake as it was my intention to keep the lamps in as original form as possible. For the construction of the tripod legs these were made out of tulip wood. For each leg four pieces of tulipwood were ripped and then planned to the exact same length, width and thickness as each other. Then onto each end of one of the four matching pieces a rectangular piece of tulipwood of exactly the same dimensions as the longer pieces except in length was glued and clamped flat. When dried the second length of tulipwood was glued and clamped flat on top of it. Taking one of the last two lengths of tulipwood, a same sized small piece of tulip wood was glued on its edge in the middle of the longer length. This was repeated on the other end as well. Once dry this piece was place on top of the of the other glued up lengths so that the protruding wedge would slot into the gap. Flipping it over the final length of tulipwood was glued to the flat edge of the protruding wedge. Once glued up this would allow for the legs to slide making it possible for the lamp to have a variety of heights that it could be raised and lowered to. Holes were then drilled through two of the flat faced sides of the leg so that with some sanded down pieces of dowel would act as stoppers preventing the legs from sliding either up or down. Naturally these steps were repeated to make the six legs required for both tripods. The natural colouration of the tulipwood was too pale for the client so after some discussion it was agreed that by staining the tulipwood with a driftwood dye and then heavily sanding it back it would be of the desired aesthetic of the client. A natural beeswax finish was applied by hand to protect the wood but also deepen the colouration and give the legs a very subtle sheen. For construction the tops of the legs were drilled and bolted with coach bolts to the plywood stand. To prevent the weigh of the lamps from splaying the legs out uncontrollably a safety mechanism had to be incorporated. This consisted of three pieces of equal length chain that was threaded through the holes in the legs that determined the height of the lamps. Onto the outside link of the chain a silver ring was threaded on to prevent the chain just falling. Ack through the whole. In the middle holding all three pieces of chain was a larger ring. When all linked up this very simple mechanism would stop the legs from splaying to the point where they could not hold the weight of the lamps above and consequently crash to the floor in so damaging the lamps on top. The final stage was to rewire the lamps with red fabric woven electric cable to give them a contemporary feel. Another buffing with a lint free cloth gave both the wood and metal an expensive feel and look.

#Carpentry #Joinery #Woodworking

Title: Design and construction of scaffolding pole bed Company: Private client Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 17/010/2014 This was an easy, quick and innovative solution to building a bed for a customer who was unable to find something to their liking within the budget that they had set for themselves from the high street. The construction materials were reclaimed scaffolding poles, the corresponding fixtures for the 23.7mm circumference pole and scaffolding boards. A construction itself was cutting all the poles to size as drawn in the diagram. The boards had to be cut to size and sanded thoroughly. The effort to use a skinnier scaffolding pole meant that once the bed was fully constructed there was some natural flex to the pole giving the whole frame some flex for additional comfort. To make sure that the boards didn't slide off wither end or side on their reverse a block was screwed in on the inside edge of both the top and bottom with enough of a gap to wedge between each crossbeam (both too and bottom). The main advantage of a bed of this design is that not only is it incredibly strong but due to its modular construction, it can be disassembled and thrown up with the most minimal of fuss.

#Carpentry #Up-cycling #Woodwork

Title: Design and construction of decorative panels for commission stand at Selfridges Company: Mighty Fine Chocolate Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 08/09/2014 Different to many of my previous builds this was a commission to decorate a pre-existing structure. The client had previously experimented with highly traditional softwood cladding but was unhappy with its aesthetic as well as it's performance. Slightly dissolutioned with this whole approach they were at first not convinced a cladding aesthetic would be what best suited their brand image. Yet after thorough discussions and my creating of tester boards to show the varieties of different cladding techniques available to them, they were happy to go ahead with my proposal. The idea was to modernise the traditional approach to cladding by replacing the vertical or horizontal pieces of cladding by firstly fixing them diagonally then varying the length of each piece of cladding to break up the uniformity. This would also allow for individual sections of the cladding to be painted one of 4 different colours that they widely used in their packaging. To keep costs down roofing battens were ripped down to the correct thickness then randomly cut to a whole variety of different lengths. Then to the backing board of moisture resistant MDF (pre cut to size) individual pieces were glued on the diagonal and butted up together piece by piece. Once all three boards were glued up the edges of the boards were trimmed and mitre cut so when fixed to the front of the concession stand they would form a seamless surface. Before final assembling the boards had to be sanded down using 240 grit sandpaper then hand painted and lacquered up before being shipped out of the workshop. To try and match the colours exactly to those colours already used for the packaging a combination of wood dyes and traditional watercolour pigments proved to be the most accurate method. The whole process was quick, easy and visually very arresting.

Title: Design and construction of jewellery display unit Company: Tada & Toy Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 12/08/2014 The purpose of this build was for a jewellery trade show at Earls Court in London. In order to reelect the Tada & Toy's contemporary design and ethos I was instructed to come up with something that would not follow the traditional tropes of jewellery displays associated with high street displays. The display was to serve Tada & Toy as more than a one off experiment and if received well at the trade show would form the basis of all their displays to future buyers and stockists. With an environmental agenda in play as well the choice of materials had to come from a sustainable source. Focusing on the portability of the display the basic structure was a thick piece of maple veneer plywood piano hinged to another piece of equal size to form the backboard. To prevent the top from slamming onto the display two small latches were fitted at either corner of the display locking the structure in place when opened. The display units fell into three separate categories: 1) bracelet holders 2) ring trays 3) necklace holders 4) earring tree The bracelet holders were fashioned out of turning lengths of pine then chiselling the ends into sharpened points. After thoroughly sanding them down they were ebonised and lacquered. For their stand type one had a hole drilled in the bottom of it for some dowel to be fitted into the hole which in turn was drilled and glued into a base plate of tulipwood. The larger tiered box display was 4 pieces of male veneered plywood with the two side panels carved to allow the points bracelet holders to sit level and equally spaced from one another. Thins too was ebonised and lacquered with the edges being finished with rose gold paint which at a later date got foiled with rose gold leaf. The ring trays were made of tulipwood with the pointed ends being solid and stuck to some thinner boards that formed the tray. Everything was but jointed and glued together allowing enough of a recess for upholstered cushions to be placed inside for the rings to sit on. The necklace displayed was made from more tulipwood. Indenting form the far edge of the base a line was routed into the wood at the same thickness as the back piece and at a slight angle to allow the necklace to fall and be supported by the back piece. The back piece was then slid into the grove. The heavier base made sure that e structure did not fall down. This display was ebonised, lacquered and trimmed with rose gold. The earring tree followed a similar pattern to that of the necklace holder. Made from tulipwood ten base plate had a line routed into it at the same thickness as the carved upper part. This in turn was carved to lighten the appearance of the structure and allow space beneath the drilled holes for the earrings to hang freely as they would on an ear. Finally on the back of the main display board the Tada & Toy logo was foiled with rose gold foil to allow those standing behind the stall to see the brand and attract them to come view the jewellery up close.

Title: Design and construction of a mobile pop up kitchen unit/bar Company: Filomania Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 17/07/2014 This was a commission for filo pastry chefs Filomania who we re approached by wembley stadium to test run a different type of food stall for match days. In order to stand out sufficiently yet provide something that was still familiar to the customer, I designed a mobile food stall that referenced a traditional market stall with old fashioned display signage yet with unusual materials to give it a contemporary feel. The client made it clear that a strong visual impact was necessary to compete with the more established stalls at the stadium. The budget was somewhat limited making the decision to build the whole stall out of OSB (oriented strand board) quick and easy. The large particle texture of the board is what is attracting creatives to use it more adventurously rather than simply for very rough and ready temporary structures on building sites. I wanted to go a step further aesthetically than just giving the natural board a high gloss finish. I experimented with a process of first burning the surface of the OSB with a roofing torch then coating the burnt board in a satin water based varnish. As the client didn't ant it that black I then burnt the varnished board again to give it that camo effect. It was crucial to let the initial layer of varnish to cure fully to give a consistent colouration for when it was burnt for a second time. The final stage was to lacquer up the boards once constructed to make the bar. The inside was simply lacquered to provide a nice contrast between the exterior and the interior. The construction of the bar was by simple biscuit joint holding the board in place. Scaffolding poles provided the necessary strength and aesthetic to hold up the menu boards. Furthermore a line was routed on the top of the bar as well as the bottom of the service shelf allowing a sneeze screen to be slid in to pass all food hygiene rules and regulations. Finally the signage was all hand painted with the wing extensions hinged to the main body of the bar.

#Woodwork #Carpentry #PopUp #Joinery

Title: Design and construction of a mobile pop up kitchen unit/bar Company: 26 Grains Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 25/06/2014 Working alongside Alex Hely-Hutchinson, the creator of health food brand 26 Grains, the brief was to build her a mobile kitchen/bar unit that she could pop up at various locations through the summer and into the autumn throughout London. Simple and clean design, loosely based on an Scandinavian aesthetic was thought the best represent her brand image. The basic construction of the bar used veneered sheets of MDF biscuit jointed together to form the skeletal structure of the bar. Flexible shelving units were possible with the use of small metal brackets. A top panel was cut to allow for the sinking of kitchen units to be flush with the working surface. Hinged wings with removable wooden struts allowed for the extension of the working surface, much of which was lost to the hob and Bain Marie. To prevent people mistakingly touching and interfering with the food preparation a raised surface bar was supported on wooden pillars to serve customers from and double as a surface for the customer to lean on. For maintainable high levels of food hygiene all surfaces were tiled over. Ten whole structure was supported on wheels allowing easy and practical manoeuvrability. A front panel made of glued planks of tulip wood stiffened up the structure and allowed a surface for the 26 Grains logo to be hand inlayed into. To finish, the bar had multiple layers of a clear, satin polyurethane varnish from Polyvine built up on it. A more refined finish was considered but due to the extensive travelling that the bar would have to endure and be popped up both indoors and in the open, a tough yet decorative varnish made a for a more logical choice for the finish.

Title: Shop window(s) design and install for the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club Company: Sprout Design and Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 16/06/2014 In collaboration with Sprout Productions and Wendy Olver the job entailed the design and dressing of the 7 windows of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club's shop. The brief required a lavish take on what the spirit of Winbledon is to the tournament's returning players! spectators and those less familiar with it. The tennis ball dresses designed by Wendy Olver were to be the centre pieces of each window containing a female protagonist. Therefore I was required to design and embellish the rest of the windows with smaller props and general set designing. Continuing the tennis ball recycling theme, the turning of old tennis balls into bumble bees was the perfect fit. The bees construction were made by a central tennis ball that had a third of a sawn tennis stuck onto its front and back to from the head and rear of the bee. I designed a template to cut the wings from using both yellow and red coloured acetate. Th mixing of colours gave a dynamism to the bees and a suggestion of movement. The antanae were small pieces of pipe cleaner shaped and then glued onto the front of the bee. For the stripes, rather than painting them on, a quicker and more effective method was used. By gluing a small section of trouser elastic into a continuous band, it was possible to position the bands so that they would cover the joins of the different tennis balls. This way the bee was able to look less modular but also have a different texture to the rest of the bee. For the flowers novelty miniature tennis rackets formed the petals and main structural part of the flower head. By wiring a complex web of intrlocking wiring, a tennis ball was glued onto the front to form the central and most decorative part of the flower. Other designs for this part of the flower were created but simplicity in the end became the preferred choice. By sparing the tennis rackets white brought the whole flower together and an elegance that is synonymous with the Wimbledon aesthetic. Two 14 hour days saw the successful installation of the windows. On site work not only included some last minute design changes to the dresses but also the upholstering of various pieces of furniture in fake turf but mending and re carving of the polystyrene props used to provide background decoration for the windows. Apart from the actual installation of all the various elements of the window the upholstery and prop repair work was completed by myself whilst all dress alterations were carried out by Wendy Olver. The displays will be in place for the entire period of the Wimbledon Tournament.

#Prop Making #Window Dressing #Upholstering #Wimbledon

Title: Double Bespoke Bike Build Company: Private Client Design & Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 10/6/2014 Sourcing and researching rare and collectible road bike frames is where any build starts. Build 1: It was based around a near mint condition Ammaco badged and decaled Tony Doyle "World Champion" 60cm road frame from 1986. The tubing is steel and hand lugged. Judging by its weight alone it came in lighter than other frames I have built up that used Reynolds 531 tubing. That is not to dismiss the possibility that it is constructed from Reynolds 531 tubing. Tony Doyle's two World Pursuit Championship wins of 1980 & 86 were won on frames built by Chas Roberts, son of Charlie Roberts of Roberts Cycles in Croydon. Of course this particular frame is not built by them as they don't mass produce any model. What I suspect is that Ammaco (a company more closely associated with high end bmx manufacture) wanted to break into the road market by entering their own high end product with a signature athlete attached. Thus I'm convinced the frame is constructed from the best materials (Reynolds 531) and craftsmanship which would explain the frames' very light weight and also the fine lugging. I also would suspect Ammaco would have wanted to give a nod to the quality of Tony Doyle's World Championship winning frame, exquisitely built by Roberts Cycles. The rest of the build was constructed within the means of the clients budget thus buying and sourcing the best parts that the budget would allow. The main expense was a new set of Halo Aerotrack wheels with Gatorskin tyres. Other details included a Campagnolo headset and bottom bracket with a Nitto handlebar stem and seatpost and a vintage raleigh repro crankset to the clients one steadfast demand. Ten handle bars were a customised recycled lot that were going spare in the workshop to make sure the build came perfectly to budget. Build 2: This build was based around a very good condition 1980's Alpina frame from South Africa. The frame itself is made from Reynolds 501 tubing and is also nicely hand lugged. Alpina was a bike manufacturer based in Kew Johannesburg which was started in 1970 and now no longer in existence. The frame used in the build is from the time when they imported Merrill frames from Italy that they rebuilt and modified under the Alpina name in South African factories. This explains the Italian wording in their name so specifically alluding to the Italian origins of their frames and tap into the distinguished associations of Italian bike manufacture. As demand grew they later just cut and silver soldered the frames themselves. In it's heyday it's stable included successful Raport Tours cyclists Erkies Bezuidenhout and Robbie McIntosh. The end of the factory came when Allen van Heerden was forced to sell the company. Strangely he never raced under the Alpina name due to more lucrative sponsorship deals available to him at the time. The rest of the build was constructed within the means of the clients budget thus buying and sourcing the best parts that the budget would allow. The main expense was a new set of Quella deemed rimed wheels with Bontrager inner tubers and Gatorskin tyres. Other details included a bespoke altercated Campagnolo Crankset, Shimano headset, Nitto Handle bar stem, handle bars and seatpost. A Selle saddle completed the build.

#Fixed Gear #Bike Build #Alpina #Ammaco #Tony Doyle

Title: Floating Hardwood Shelves Company: Private Client Design & Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 31/03/2014 Built from Tulipwood for the exterior and Douglas Fir for the internal supporting structure, this commission proved trickier to execute than originally foreseen. The client wanted floating bookshelves that were narrower than 4cm. This meant figuring out how best to provide sufficient support without succumbing to using metal supports commonly used by ready made models of the same design fitted into solid planks of timber. The solution was to build a reinforced inner structure made of Douglas Pine which would be secured to the wall with 4 coach bolts evenly spaced along the back rail. The tulipwood exterior sleeve was a simple construction. Having precision cutt 9mm thick tulipwood planks into 4 panels they were glued and clamped together to form the exterior shell. Once installed and slid snugly over the inner frame the exterior shell braced the shelf further enabling it to take the weight of the books placed on it. To fit in which the aesthetic of the room the Tulipwood shell was stained with calligraphy ink to match the colour of the painted wall. This was an untested technique but due to the lack of variety in commercially available wood dyes I was forced to experiment. The result was a success and I would use this technique again. The calligraphy ink was absorbed deep into the wood and once sanded and polished with natural beeswax none of the natural beauty if the wood was lost. Depending on the concentration of the ink used a variety of differing affects could be achieved most noticeably a marbling effect that made the timber look as if it were petrified. This was not the final aesthetic that the client wanted but a discovery whilst playing around with the calligraphy inks.

Title: Free Standing & Modular Bookshelf Company: Private Client Design & Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 22/03/2014 This was yet another brief in which the client was requiring something highly functional and reliable at an affordable price that would fit into any internal decor. Custom built to the exact specifications of the space, the client requested 19mm oak veneered MDF stained white to retain the grain pattern of the wood and retain the illusion of a solid timber construction. Thought the white colour would inevitably be comparable to an ikea aesthetic, closer inspection would reveal the key details typical of superior constructed custom built furniture. All of the raw MDF edges were finished off with oak veneer trim making sure that the grain patterns were all running in the same direction. The nature of the design being open backed and very narrow meant that for the structural safety of the bookshelf forced selected shelves to be fixed permanently into the timber frame. All other shelves were loose allowing them to be positioned in a number of different positions depending on the size of the items to be placed on the shelves. The clients disliking of a varnish finish meant bees wax was used to protect the shelves and give a subtle polished look that only further enhanced the grain pattern of the oak veneer.

Title: Portable DJ Desk Company: Private Client Design & Construction: Robert Prentice Date: 28/02/14 This was a commission for a client who required something highly functional and reliable at an affordable price that was bespoke in both design and construction. The budget did not enable for the desk to be built out of solid timber so 21mm oak veneered MDF panels provided the required illusion. The simplicity of design put extra pressure on the need for the construction and finish of the desk to be of a high quality. The mitre joints of the base frame were reinforced with dowels and not splines (only for aesthetic reasons). All of the raw MDF edges were finished off with oak veneer trim making sure that the grain patterns were all running in the same direction. The final faux ebony finish was achieved by building up layer after layer of finely applied ebony wood stain with both wet and dry sanding occurring before the application of the next coat of stain. Due the client's insistents on a finish that would weather the affects of heavy use a final thin coat of varnish was applied as the outer most level of protection. Further platforms will be built upon the base structure to house the client's CDJ's and speakers once the client finds the desired models.

Title: Stand Design & Fitting for Nordic Elements at Top Drawer Company: Nordic Elements Design & Construction: Robert Prentice Venue: Top Drawer, Earls Court, London Date: 12/01/2014 Following a brief requiring a clean, minimalist Scandinavian aesthetic, I chose simple white trestles and plywood sheets for all the tables and wall decoration. Other options had included using re-claimed timber cladding but, due to budgeting constraints and a small time window for installation, this idea was abandoned. Wanting to retain the notion of some kind of paneling for the back display wall, I chose to use four sheets of 4 x 8ft BB grade 12mm construction plywood. To avoid any visual association with the popular up-cycled aesthetic now commonly used, I whitewashed the boards. The final effect mimics high spec ash/birch plywood sheets. It was an easy decision to continue this effect throughout the stand and have the table tops and shelves painted in the same way. Hanging the sheets of plywood on the back wall off the ground, created a framing device for the products displayed rather than a just simple a backdrop. The final aesthetic of the stand fulfilled the client's brief fully.

#Carpentry #Woodwork #Retail #Installation

Title: Infinity Mirror Lightning Bolts Artist: Lauren Baker Design & Construction: Robert Prentice Venue: HangUp Gallery - Stoke Newington, London Date: 06/12/13 This was a sculptural/installation piece that I designed and constructed for Lauren Baker's first solo show. Using a template for two different shaped lightning bolts, the final structure was built up from the template. Individually joining over 100 sides for both lightning bolts, the lightning shaped boxes were then fitted with an inner layer upon which was glued the reflective mirror sheet. The LED light strips were then fitted around the outside and hidden beneath the reflective mirror sheet. After painting the lightning bolts silver the two way mirrored acrylic tops were fitted to the top of the boxes and fixed in place with specially designed brackets.

#Woodworking #Installation #Commission

Title: Shop Installation/Window Dressing Artists: Lauren Baker Construction, Design & Art Direction: Robert Prentice Venue: Lucy In Disguise - Soho, London Date: 15/11/13 Using a single skull of Lauren Baker's latest skull series as the centerpiece for the scene, the window's theme was based around a twisted interpretation of the wardrobe from Narnia. By suspending the skull in the middle of the wardrobe flanked by vintage fur coats, the deer is seen to be bursting through the flung open doors about to enter the winter dreamscape beyond. Hidden lights provide the drama and mystery that is the core essance of a shop of the mould of Lucy in Disguise.

#Window Dressing #Commission

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