The bar came from a vacant store in the plaza. The cabinets we received for free from Habitat for Humanity store in Sodo. We still have to purchase a countertop.
Beginnings of our scrap wood wall. This design is inspired by local carpenter-artists Luke and Jake who were the first to design such a wall for a restaurant in Seattle (Frank's Oyster House and Champagne Parlor, which we highly recommend for its food, service, and decor). Our design and construction is nowhere as polished as theirs. On the left you'll see the beginnings of a face made of scrap wood. The mouth protrudes enough to be used as a bookcase. We'll either stain or paint each piece of wood.
This probably isn't the best time for us to be spending as much time as we have with restaurant design work. A smoothie shop isn't as dependent on design as are some restaurants. But now that we've started it, we have to finish it before opening. This design project may not be the best use of our time, as we have many other issues to deal with.
Hopefully, the design, which is unique in our area (not so much in politically Green parts of Seattle) will prove attractive enough for people to spend time in our lounge area and use it as a public gathering place. None of the smoothie chains offer comfortable sitting areas and most smoothie customers aren't accustomed to hanging out in a smoothie shop.
Our design could generate some controversy. We'll explain more in another post.
Luke and Jake also designed How to Cook a Wolf, Tavalota, and are currently working on Ray's Boathouse.
This is a refurbished 1912 couch we purchased from an estate sale. It's proving problematic, as a few gym members tell us that they don't want to see it get ruined. Someone insisted that we purchase vinyl covering for it because "it would be a crime to ruin it."
The concerns are legitimate and we probably should've gone with a darker colored couch that doesn't inspire as much sentimentality. But this was the best we've found and its style and structure fits well with the store decor. It's comfortable to sit-on for activities such as discussion and reading, but not so much so that people will fall asleep on it.
Our granite tile tables, made and provided by I don't remember the place we got it from. The legs we received for free from some architect getting rid of stuff. We spent $80 and an hour of our labor for four of these tables.
actually, it is a good time to be spending a lot of time on the design. Designs always sell. With out a good, interesting design, people won't want to buy. It's why companies pay millions for people with degrees in it.
ReplyDeleteI would highly advise you to come up with a color scheme and possibly think about painting the scrap wood wall as well. With the design you are heading for at this moment, you should go for clean lines and to make it a little more modern, some contrast between those lines. The couch is also an easy fix. There are plenty of covers that can be fitted to it and 'tacks' (for lack of a better word- can't remember the name) that can be used to hold them in place.
We're in the process of painting the wood scrap wall because we don't have the artistic sophistication and patience that Luke and Jake have. We've learned that it's difficult to make a wood scrap wall look deliberate. Adding color has made it look much more artistic and intentional. Still working on building "clean lines."
ReplyDeleteWe're still working on the color scheme. Smoothie shops tend to be light and cheery. Starbucks is dark and sophisticated. Thus far, we have an awful mix of both. We're concerned about the impact our design will have on customer experience.
If we had the funds, we'd hire an architect to design the store so that it becomes a public meeting place. Next store, perhaps.
the behr site has a wonderful tool that allows people to pick a color and the site will generate nice color schemes around that color (or colors). You should check it out. I've used it a couple times and it works pretty well.
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