The Building of a Studio

Since Maribeth and I started Adjacent in 2012, we’ve always taken the bootstrap approach to studio purchases, and upgrades to our studio space were no exception. Still, every year we manage to scratch a few studio enhancement items off of our long, long wish list. This year was one our most ambitious to date.

Before I get into the enhancements we are doing in 2018, let’s take a little walk down memory lane so you can see how far we’ve come.

2012

Space Walkthrough

Although it was rough, we could see the potential!

Space Layout Planning & Modifications

While we knew the space was overkill for just Maribeth and myself, we wanted to ensure we could stay in the space for a long time, even while growing the company.

Setting The Mood

Maribeth created a mood board which would help us ensure improvements over the coming years tied together and felt cohesive.

Carpet Design

Before we were even designing our website, we were designing a pattern for the main area rug that would live in the middle of the office. Tricky part was to work around the 2 beams that were smack in the middle of the space.

Desk Building

We were bootstrappin’, so that meant making things where we could. Since Maribeth’s uncle had a sweet woodshop, her husband Rob and I set out to build our desks.

Move-In Day!

Even though we had practically no furniture and the place felt like a gymnasium (echos galore!), it was super exciting to finally move into our new studio space.

Post Move-In Modifications & Painting

After getting into the space, we got to work hooking up ethernet connections, replacing outlets and switches, patching drywall, and painting countertops and trim.

More Furniture

Over the next weeks and months, Rob and Uncle Dave continued to finish more pieces to help furnish the studio. We’ll be forever grateful for their craftsmanship and all the time they spent creating the pieces.

Black Wood Chairs

Uncle Dave

Gray Stools

Uncle Dave

Drafting Table Refinishing

Rob

Drafting Table Refinishing

Rob

IT & Device Cabinet

Rob

Coffee Table

One day at lunch, we spotted some pieces on consignment at a business down the street, all created by local artist Doug Drumm. We snatched up some repurposed furniture, including a coffee and bar top table.

2013

Exterior Signage!

Because we were so overwhelmed with work, we were still operating in “stealth mode”—nobody knew we were here or what we doing. We thought it’d be a good idea to finally mark our spot in Armory Square with some signage on the building.

Conference Room Table

Due to the narrow width of our conference room, we reached back out to Doug Drumm to custom-build our conference table to fit the room. He had a beautiful piece of black walnut that we loved and felt would family well in our space. Doug worked with another local company (https://www.raulliandsons.com/) to create the custom base. They create buildings, so we had confidence they would weld us up something that could hold our laptops and coffees :).

Conference Room Chairs

Our conference room chairs eventually showed up, despite a lengthy delay.

Flat File Cabinet

Despite it not being on our “immediate need” list, when a photo of this beauty appeared in Rob’s Facebook feed—from a fellow designer who was selling it—we jumped at the chance to own it. (Thanks Tim!) The really cool part is that it breaks down into banks of three, making it easier to move, and allows configuration at 3 different heights. This unique flat file provides loads of much needed storage for all of our supplies and printed samples. No regret on this purchase, as it’s become a staple piece in the studio.

2014

Conference Room Expansion

After a few weeks, we began to notice just how small the room was. It really didn’t feel like “us”, only corporate and cramped. So, I came in over Christmas break and busted down a wall.

Conference Room

before

Conference Room

after

Whiteboard

We wanted something minimal and not your “typical” office whiteboard. After some searching around we found something that fit the bill nicely.

Standing Desks

While the desks we built worked great, we knew we wouldn’t have time to build another one when Rob joined the team. The decision to purchase standing desks was unanimously approved.

2015

Unexpected Interior Updates, Ceiling Leak Edition

2017

Conference Room Lighting

We commissioned a custom chandelier for over our conference table. Boom!

Conference Room Wall Art

2018

This year, we decided to tackle some long overdue studio updates: lighting, interior painting and reorganization and updating of our Device Lab.

Device Lab Update

Since our inception, we’ve always maintained a suite of real test devices here at Adjacent. We believe simulators can only get you so far, and real devices are significantly better whenever possible. Over the last couple of years, we had gotten so busy that we hadn’t been keeping the devices we’d been accruing documented and organized, leading to dysfunction and dead batteries. It was time to carve out some time and get everything back up to snuff.

Lighting Update

We had been living with terrible, terrible fluorescent box lights since we moved in. We hated them and their light so much we never even turned them on. They were long overdue for an update. So, we bit the bullet and called up an electrician and ordered the new lights. It is by far one of the most dramatic updates we have ever made.

Interior Painting

With all of the updates, damage (see 2015), and construction over the years, all of the different shades of white were starting to reveal themselves. It was time for a universal coat of white so everything would feel new and clean.

Over the years, we’ve added various other pieces of furniture, technology, and artwork to help complete the space. The long studio wish list we started with has become much shorter, couldn’t be happier with how it has turned out.

Future

Exterior

We’re excited about some changes coming to the exterior of our building in 2019.