Sycamore & Cherry Panelled Shelves

A free-standing five-tier shelf in sycamore and cherry by Jana Spence.

Each shelf is a frame-and-panel construction — a pale sycamore surround with a cherry panel floated inside it, the way a cabinet door is built rather than a plank cut to width. It is the traditional answer to timber moving with the seasons: the panel is free to expand and contract inside its frame instead of splitting. Here it is turned outward and used for the grain contrast, warm cherry against near-white sycamore.

The shelves are threaded onto four turned uprights that run the full height and stand slightly proud at the top, so the piece reads as a light frame rather than a box. No back, no visible fixings.

Dimensions

• Width 700 mm
• Depth 260 mm
• Height 1500 mm

Solid sycamore and cherry. Hand-made, one of a kind — small variations in grain and colour are part of the piece.

Jana Spence was scouted by Trendease as an emerging designer and has since been honoured by King Charles III as one of the 35 under 35, a network of makers and changemakers marking the 35th anniversary of the King’s Foundation. Her work features in the Creatives Wings docuseries.