New Custom Standing Workstation!

*UPDATED BELOW*

 

Over the weekend I was able to pick up the standing workstation that I had custom built. It was designed to be 41″ – tall enough that my arms can rest at a comfortable 90 degrees and my computer can be tilted so it’s perfectly at eye level.

The desk is 5′ wide and 2′ deep and half the table has the ability to tilt up to 45 degrees. It came to me unfinished so I stained it and varnished the top at home. I plan to varnish the entire desk, but right now it’s too cold to have all the windows and door open long enough for the whole thing to dry. In the spring we’ll do the rest.

In addition to the drafting side, it als has a very deep drawer that is the same width as the desk.

As you can see, the drawer can hold a lot of stuff, including two 11×17 pads of bristol side-by-side. Now all my works-in-progress and finished line drawings will have somewhere to live until I’m ready to really store them.

I haven’t finished decorating the wall area yet and I still have some organizing to do. Some of those boxes won’t be on the floor and there will be another little set of drawers on the left-side. Overall it will be much neater than my old set-up which was a computer desk and a separate drawing table, neither of which had much in the way of storage. We still need to get some shelves for our closet so I can store lots of stuff in there as well. I’m an adult now – it’s time to get rid of all the clutter! Or at least make it look organized.

The carpenter who built this for me, Roudy Clapper, did such fabulous work. He even built it so that the legs can come off, which was essential to fitting it in the back of our little Honda Insight. He said that he had a great time building it and enjoyed the challenge of doing something he’d never done before. I provided him with a sketch and a description of what I wanted and he took it from there.

He is absolutely interested in building more of these, so if you are interested you can contact me. He is located in rural Nebraska so if you aren’t near there you’ll have to work out shipping with him. He may also be able to sell his plans if you would like to build one yourself. Obviously the height and the size can be totally customized to fit you and your needs.

I’ve only been using it since last night, but so far I feel more awake at the desk than I do if I’m slouching in front of the computer. I definitely need to get a stool and a mat to stand on since I’m not used to standing all day. I’ll update this post with a full review in a few months.

Also, doesn’t it look great?

For an example of another, more do-it-yourself desk check out Chris Oatley’s.

*UPDATE*

I’ve been using my new desk for a little over a month, now. I’ve had a tiny issue with one of the boards cracking, likely due to the altitude/humidity change, but the carpenter is going to repair it next time I visit my parents. Luckily, the crack hasn’t impaired anything and the area is still super stable thanks to very good craftsmanship.

As for how I like using it? I love it! My back and shoulder aches are gone and I’m so much happier when I can avoid hunching over to draw or to paint digitally. I feel truly energized by being able to stand for a good portion of the day I thank my husband on a regular basis for letting me make this investment.

I highly recommend a standing desk of your own, whether you build it yourself, cobble it together from IKEA pieces, or have a carpenter build it. And let me know if you are interested in having my carpenter build one for you or draw up plans so you can DIY.