Wood Tiles

I have a nice collection of images from a project I have been working on for the last four months. Back in September I attended the Surf Expo trade show here in Orlando. I got to talking to one of the reps from a retailer who, as it turns out, was discarding their entire booth comprised of probably more than 100 sheets of 4'x8' thin plywood. I called DIBS! on their trash (my treasure) and walked away with almost 70 sheets of very nice wood with a variety of stains and grains.

After a few laborious steps I had turned the entire stack of wood into many stacks of 9"x16" wood tiles.

Soon after this good find I was approached by some friends who are involved with the Urban ReThink space in Thornton Park near Orlando. They asked me to consider a few projects including a small kiosk area near the entrance.

When they described the aesthetic it was almost as if they knew I had those wood tiles waiting to find a home. Check out the Urban ReThink site. It is going to be a great addition to the Orlando creative world and it will benefit everyone that takes advantage of this community hub.

Bracketry

Came across this image of the reinforcement brackets I made for the wall mounted cabinet project I did last year.

Sneak Peek

Here is a sneak peek at the latest project. This will have to suffice until I can get some professional looking images, and some without people in the way.

Down in front!

Delivered!

My first major client-driven project has taken most of my spare time and 7Side's online presence has suffered most. I apologize and promise to do a better job keeping up with the blog and twitter.

Did someone order 7Side?

Had a great milestone the other day when I delivered and installed my latest project. I still haven't really disclosed details and will probably wait until I get some better quality images of the final installation. The client seemed very pleased with the results and it turned out to be a great addition to their contemporary space.

Using the official 7Side ride to its full size potential.

Motivated

The project that I started back in March has been taking a good bit more time than anticipated. Unforeseen material and process challenges are working against the high quality results that I expect.

Despite this, I have been so pleased with the results of each step that staying motivated has not been an issue. I will admit to a few sweaty late nights where I had to remind myself: "As long as I am making dust I am making progress". In fact that became sort of a mantra for this project for a period that involved an absurd amount of hand sanding.

Panels lined up to get a high build primer sprayed. Right after this was taken, I sanded forever.

Burning late night electricity.

Can I quote myself talking to myself? Sure, it's my blog right?

"As long as I am making dust I am making progress".

- Matt Tierney

Project Udate

There's only so much time you can allow an image of a 1986 Tercel to be at the top of your blog without loosing respect and I am well past that point. To break that streak are some images of the project I am working on right now. A full recap once the part is installed in the client's home, but I had to share some of these crafty images

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Vintage Tools

Has "vintage" killed the "used" market? Why sell used goods when you can slap a vintage label on on a microwave and charge a couple more bucks? Marketing spin for the privateer? Maybe, or maybe vintage has come to define used products with a higher value?

1986 Tercel advertised as Vintage and Retro.

That would be a perceived value of course, but that would describe my elated feelings when I became the steward of this Superior Power Tools Heavy Duty 18 Speed Drill Press. I say steward because a tool as solid as this will one day be passed on just like it was generously bestowed upon me by a good friend who was making room in their garage. I gladly took it in and have begun some mild refurbishing.






The drill came to me well cared for, but I will get some more pictures up when it is shining like new. I am glad to have it in my arsenol of tools.

The Grill Part 2 Inspiration

The flat white treatment for the wall mounted Jeep grill was inspired in part by the album cover art of Jay Z's latest release "Blueprint 3" which is the work of artist Dan Tobin Smith.

Off that album is "On to the Next One". This video, directed by Sam Brown, has such a striking visual language I find it truely inspiring. Like them or not, artists such as Jay Z, Kanye West, Rhianna and Lady Gaga have established themselves as products that lead tomorrow's trends.

Grill Part 1

While I would prefer to see this CJ5 Jeep grill actively serving its intended purpose as a functional item, the simple beauty brings it to adorn this wall- at least for the time being.

Traveling

The posts have been less frequent than I would like, but I have been traveling some with my job that pays the bills. Fortunately for me my 9 to 5 is in a creative environment and when we travel it is generally a learning and inspiring adventure.

So here is some color for the blog with more posts soon.

Sneak Peak

The post will be up this coming week, but I wanted to share an image from the project I had going over the weekend.

Split Mirror

The Split Mirror was a weekend project that came together using seconds from the Sanguine project.
I had always wanted to do a "white wash" look and this custom mixed stain achieved the desired look and even gives the Poplar frame a semi transparent skin-like quality; the grain like veins.

Vibrant red strips of high quality vinyl were chosen for the deep texture that when paired with the unique white stain likens to tendons. This is where the "Split" name comes from.

Over all dimensions are approximately 50"x 37"x 1.5".

Nixon the official 7Side French Bulldog checking out the Split Mirror.

North American International Auto Show Part 2

The Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan is a massive produciton. Manufacturers rolling out their latest product spare no expense to provide an environment as inspiring and attention grabbing as their vehicles. For somone like me this is inspiration overload. While this show is noticably scaled back compared to years past, there is still plenty of fodder to keep any creative type occupied.

Volkswagen's immense display at NAIAS.

Interactive display by Volkswagen speaks to all the senses.

Chrysler brought this sleek information desk.

Desk inlay detail.

Smartly furnished private meeting space also in the Chrysler area.

North American International Auto Show Part 1

The stout GMC "Granite" concept.

The NAIAS goes down each year in Detroit's Cobo Hall and I have been fortunate enough to attend four out of the last five years. Each calendar year I manage to attend a handful of events but for me the Detroit Auto Show is like right brain Red Bull. The colors, shapes, materials, technology and textures showcased on the latest production vehicles and concepts keep me going for many months. Here are just a few of the highlights from this year's show.

Exquisite seats in the Hyundai concept vehicle "Blue-Will".

Beautiful combination of textures on a Mercedes CL63 AMG grill.

Lexus' highly anticipated supercar the LF-A.

Plush interior of the Cadillac Escalade EXT.

One of the most exciting vehicles at the show was Tesla's Model S all electic sedan. A four door vehicle who's near perfect perportions slip across 300 plus miles before it needs its next $5 charge. The huge center mounted "Apple approved" touch display garnered a reaction from all that peered through the windows. I was especially excited since I had just (finally) picked up an iPhone myself. More on that in the future you can be sure.

Nautiques of Orlando Product Literature Table

This project came together with an opportunity to use some high quality materials that were left over from a larger display built for the local Nautique dealership, Nautiques of Orlando. The low top table houses product literature and samples and is the center piece of the lounge area.

Approximate dimensions are 42"x 42"x 26". The legs were custom made with the same aluminum pipe material used on many Nautique products.

The engineered veneer certainly has an eye catching exotic pattern. Drawer faces are a brilliant white acrylic, the same that is used inside the Nautique line of boats.

Smooth sliding full extension drawer slides.

Specific display and storage for color samples and literature.

Amazing Assistant

Speaking of photography, I was very fortunate to have Alison of "A Breath of Frake-Air" accompany me as photography assistant and creative director on my last two shoots.
Certainly she has many more talents than just a great eye for photography and I consider her a partner and advisor to 7Side Design. Her creativity challenges my own and her strengths compensate for my weaknesses. You may have only caught a glimpse of her in posts thus far, but she is always involved and critical to the 7Side process and its success. Thanks Alison!

Look for the results of the photo shoot for the Split Mirror, shown above, very soon.