Dave Lauridsen/Dwell

Faced with the possibility of camping in a kitchenless space, we’ve been thinking about ways to forge a makeshift kitchen. Lately, we’ve come across a number of kitchen islands made out of sawhorses and a slab of wood. Although they have a pleasingly ad hoc feeling, sawhorses naturally seem to possess a low-key architectural aesthetic, as witnessed by our many posts on saw horse tables (more below). Unique slabs of wood make for compelling surfaces, like this massive slab of cypress featured in a recent Dwell slideshow.

Dave Lauridsen/Dwell

We especially like the undercounter storage created with crates and plywood boards.

We spotted this great sawhorse + wood slab counter at Ultramarinos, Maricel Priscilla’s Latin American take-out and housewares shop in Hoboken:

Sally Schneider

Google “slab wood” for sources, although a sheet of veneered and sealed plywood would do. We also find WoodFinder to be a good resource.

LoadingDocks Architects‘ sawhorse island looks like it might be made of rough stone, another interesting idea:

Long wooden tables can make great islands, except that their 30-or-so-inch height is too low to work comfortably. We’ve been known to prop tables up on concrete blocks, or thick wooden blocks with a shallow hole grooved out on the top of each to keep the legs from sliding off.

You’ll find an archive of sawhorses here.

If we DO devise a makeshift kitchen, we’ll be sure to post the process.

Table island photo via My Sweet Savannah

Related posts: copy this: hinged, folding/expanding table top
sawhorse tables as solution + sculpture
d-i-y expandable table pt.2 (round) for holiday and other celebrations
one big swell table from several smaller ones

If you’ve found illumination, joy, or inspiration in this post, please consider supporting Improvised Life. It only takes a minute to make a secure donation that helps pay our many costs. A little goes a long way towards helping Improvised Life continue to live ad-free in the world.

Support Improvised Life ♥

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *