Liese Wine Cabinet

The client wanted a counter-height wine cabinet, but something more interesting than just a plain square grid. After going through several options, we learned about an interesting circle-packing tiling arrangement called “snub square” which also resonated with the client. Furthermore, when we realized the shelving that is natural to hold the bottles in that pattern is an even-more interesting kumiko-like arrangement, it was like the clouds parted and the chorus sang! We studied up on kumiko and used some of those techniques, but in the end had to do several things differently due to the thickness and hardwood (maple) that we thought was required for the bottle shelving versus traditional kumiko. For the initial cabinet, we made a parquetry top of the snub-square tiling from cherry and maple, showing the source of the shelving geometry. Some other versions do not have the parquetry on the top or the small subshelf. 

This design was shown in Fine Woodworking magazine No. 302, April 2023.