CUSTOM WINE RACK – UXBRIDGE

Background

This client had been wanting to design a project for a while. They approached us to design and build a one of a kind decorative wine rack.  It was intended to be a piece to hang on a wall and hold 4 bottles of wine and 4 glasses.  We had been to the mill several months prior and saw a wonderful piece of Box Elder with interesting edge grain patterns showing some really cool burl.

I had been wanting a custom wine rack forever, but could never find one in stores that I loved. Then I met Aether, and the rest is history! I loved that I got to be a part of the design process, from beginning to end. And got to be in the shop seeing different options in real time. I had high hopes to begin with, but the end result was still better than I expected! I feel like the piece truly reflects “me”, and fits my home perfectly. Thanks Aether!

  • Deanna, Uxbridge
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Inspiration

On a visit to the mill we picked up a piece of Box Elder that screamed wine rack shelves to us.  This project was great for us as we had purchased the undefined raw material prior to having a customer lined up.  When they came to us asking for a wine rack we were excited to design and build.

Client Participation in the Design

The other rewarding part of this design & build was that the client wanted to participate in the process.  This means a visit to the shop where we presented many options and focused the design to what you see.

Our Materials

Upper & lower shelves – box elder (one piece that we cut to create the shelves)

Metal Backbone – 3” x 1” metal tube

Wine Bottle Holders – 1.75” x 1.75” L channel

Upper Shelf Support – ½” x ½” metal solid bar

Glass Holders – ½” x ½” metal solid bar and 1” od gas pipe

Our Process

The process first began with acquiring the single piece to start with, it screamed at us to take it.  The natural shape and length of the piece lent itself to being cut and used as a complimentary set of live edge shelves.

The other theme that developed is the idea of having a backbone or central spine that would run vertically through the components.  The shelves and wine supports are all attached to the spine making the piece solid and visually interesting.

The wine supports were challenging from a design perspective as the client wanted something unique and different.  We went through several iterations and settled on welding each one to the spice.  The process allowed us to make use of many of our vice grips…this is always satisfying.  The channel that supports the bottles are minimized as much as possible.  The first question we got was ‘are they long enough to hold a bottle’?  That’s what we were going for!

As a design feature we added the upper shelf support.  It was bent over the spine and welded to it on either side.  Although it probably wasn’t required it does help add a flavor to the piece.

The glass holders are the product of much experimenting with defined raw materials.  We ended up with the design as it adds a relaxed or informal feel to the function.  It would have been easy to go to the store and purchase a premade glass hanging system but that isn’t what we do.