#HTE

Today’s Urban Design Observation: Boutique Hotel Lounge Table Design Fails

One of those hip little boutique hotels opened up a few years ago on the Bowery. Here it is in Google Street View. They have a lounge downstairs that is open to the elements.

These are the tables the lounge is populated with. As you can see they are custom-made. And they are absolutely horrible.

This tabletop has been fashioned from what looks to be tongue-and-groove flooring. Even when treated properly, wood is a terrible choice for outdoor furniture in a four-season city like New York, and this wood does not look like it’s been treated properly.

No design considerations were made for wood movement. The boards have cupped, bowed, moved, split, and done everything but stay still. In this photo you can see the tabletop is bowed along its length.

The table legs have been welded together from square bar stock. Note the napkin shoved under one foot to keep the table level. This table is sitting on a tile floor, so either the tiles weren’t laid flat or the table was welded together out-of-square.

And the legs have of course begun to rust.

Note the inconsistency of the very shitty welds.

The materials used aren’t even consistent. This table has a plywood core and even that isn’t one piece, but two.

No effort has been made to hide the ugly ends of any of these.

It angers me that somebody made these and sold them to this hotel, and whomever’s in charge of procurement for the hotel didn’t know better than to reject it.

This type of anti-craftsmanship is worse than the other kind, where mom-and-pop stores are trying to build their own displays.