Form & Heritage

Process

How we design

Every piece is designed, engineered and built in-house, and each step is checked before the next one begins.

Close-up of the steel cable anchored to the live edge of the Study Hall desk
Study Hall: a slim cable ties the desk’s front edge back to the wall

Design

We start with the space and how the piece will be used. Proportions, joinery and reinforcement are worked out early and deliberately, in sketches and in CAD.

Engineer

Loads, spans and connections are evaluated and refined through iteration before anything is cut. Bases, cantilevers and wall mounts are checked against the loads they will actually carry.

Build

Materials are chosen for performance and longevity, from solid hardwoods to steel. Each piece is built to age well, stay serviceable, and be refinished rather than replaced.

One bracket, three versions

The steel bracket for a wood and steel wall shelf. Version 1 is a mostly solid fin with the Form & Heritage mark cut through it. Versions 2 and 3 were shaped by the computer: it is told where the bracket is fixed and how much weight it carries, then removes every bit of steel that isn’t doing work, so what’s left follows the path the weight takes. Engineers call this topology optimization. The shelf is designed for 100 lb with a safety factor of two.

  1. Version 1: a mostly solid steel fin with the Form & Heritage mark cut through

    01Mostly solid

  2. Version 2: a thinner plate with openings shaped by topology optimization

    02Thinner steel

  3. Version 3: three openings shaped by topology optimization for the stiffest fin

    03Shaped for stiffness

More in the workshop notes

Pair of rough walnut slabs laid side by side before flattening
Walnut slabs, matched in the shop
Color-coded structural analysis of a shelving frame showing stress distribution
Structure checked before the first cut
Hand plane resting on a board with freshly cut finger joints
Joinery cut to fit
Walnut slab with bow-tie shaped butterfly keys set across its cracks
Butterfly keys stop cracks from spreading
CNC router cutting a walnut book page holder (2× speed)

Why it matters

Confidence for everyone at the table

This approach gives homeowners, interior designers and architects the same confidence. Quality isn’t a promise or an aesthetic choice. It’s built into the structure of every piece.

Have a space in mind?

Tell us about the room and what you want in it. We reply within one business day with questions, ideas and a rough range.

Start a project