Paul Kiarie crafted a beautifully organized and practical cutlery tray for Nadine, thoughtfully accommodating every utensil with care and precision. What's your wish?
A request by Nadine from Kronberg, Germany
Made-to-measure cutlery tray. Length: 67 cm. Width: 50 cm. Height: 5 cm. Compartment division: Individual. – Compartment for forks
– Compartment for knives (normal knives)
– Compartment for tablespoons
– Compartment for small spoons
– Compartment for small forks
– Compartment for chopsticks
– Compartment for sharp knives incl. knife “block” or holder
– Small compartment for rubbers and accessories
– One long compartment (width for kitchen scissors)
The Journey of Creating Custom 67cm Cutlery Tray with Knife Block
Negotiation & Planning
Hello Nadine, I hope you are well. My name is Paul and I would like to realize your idea.
1. To make sure we craft something that fits just right and works smoothly, could you please let me know the type of material you’d prefer for the cutlery tray? The locally available options are Pine and Cypress which are softwoods and Mahogany and Mvule which are hardwoods.
2. We'll make sure the compartments are tailored to the sizes of the cutlery and accessories you plan to store. If there are any specific measurements for the compartments including the knife block compartment, sharing those would be quite helpful too.
3. What finish would you like used on them? the available options are varnish, paint and oil.
1. pine tree
2. i tried to upload a drawing, but i am supef bad at that. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
3. color: black-brown (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine, I hope you are well.
1. What measurements would you like us to use for the compartments?
2. Would you like both black and brown or just one of the two? To achieve the colours we would go with a varnish
Hello Paul,
1. the approximate dimensions are drawn in the compartments on it
2. black would be my preference. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine and happy new year 🎊
From the sketch you've shared I see you'd like a knife block that can hold 12 knives.
I can make slots for 6 knives at the top and 6 knives at the bottom.
Would you like the slots/sheaths to be 17.3cm long?
Hi,
happy new year 🎉
Exactly, the slots have to be 17.3cm long, that's the length of my longest knife that I have to accommodate. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine, I hope you are well. Okay will make the slots to that length. How long is the handle of your longest knife?
Crafting Process
Artisan’s Progress Updates
Hello Nadine, I hope you are well.
Here's the pine wood being cut and planed to it's final thickness which is about 1 cm thick.
Hello Paul,
I still have to answer your knife question. Our longest handle is 15cm long. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine, I hope you are well.
Here I've attached two boards to make the bottom of the tray and then I'll add the borders and partitions.
Looks great! (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine I hope you are well... here's the tray fully assembled and partitioned.
Looks very good! Thank you. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine, I hope you are well.
For the knife block I was hoping you could give me some clarification as to how high you would like it to be and any other measurements you would like me to adhere to.
Hello Paul,
The cutlery tray may be a maximum of 5.25 cm high including the base. This also applies to the knife block. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine, I hope you are well.
In that case the base of the knife block will be 1cm thick leaving 4cm of height for the two tiers of the knife block.
Dividing the 4cm into two leaves a height of 2cm for each tier. Will your knives fit a height of 2cm?
Hi Paul,
that will actually be a bit tight. Our largest blade is 3cm. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine
With the thickness of the base at 1cm thick plus the 6cm for the two levels for the knives the block will be approximately 7cm high
Then we'll just make a knife block, otherwise the box won't fit. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine
I have attached a sketch, what do you think of it and the measurements?
Hi Paul,
Unfortunately, 7cm is really too high, the drawer won't close. So it's better not to go for a double-decker. (Automatic translation)
Hi Nadine, would you have a particular design I could use to make the knife block and for how many knives since the 12 wont fit anymore?
Hi Paul, sorry for my late reply, unfortunately I've been ill the last few days. I thought your drawing was good, but now only for 6 knives. (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine
I wish you quick recovery.
I will then proceed with making it for the 6 knives using the measurements indicated earlier.
great, thank you! (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine
I have made the knife block without the second tier for 6 knives.
Looks very good, thank you! (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine
Here's the tray and the knife block completed.
Looks so good, thank you! (Automatic translation)
Hello Nadine,
I hope you're doing well.
This is Vicky, the local operations manager. I just received your tray and knife block from Paul and it looks simply beautiful, I especially love the design of the knife-block. I have taken photos showing different angles and dimensions of both the knife block and the cutlery tray. In one of the photos, I have labeled the cutlery slots from A to I for clarity. Here are their dimensions:
Overall dimensions: 67 × 50 × 5cm
A: 48.2 × 9 cm
B: 36.6 × 14.2 cm
C: 36.6 × 8.3 cm
D: 24.1 × 8.5 cm
E: 24.1 × 8.5 cm
F: 24.1 × 8.5 cm
G: 24.1 × 8.5 cm
H: 17.5 × 14.2 cm
I: 33 × 17.5 cm
The knife-block dimensions are; 32 × 17.5cm
Let me know if there’s anything specific you’d like me to check or verify. Please have a look and share your thoughts.
Warmest regards,
Vicky Achieng.
Looks really great! (Automatic translation)
Final Delivery – The Completed Piece in Photos
Customer Photos After Delivery
The Finished Unique Piece – Individually Handmade
Reference: ON015742E-73867
Detailed Cost Breakdown
| Price | |
|---|---|
| Cost of material |
35.23
|
| Cost of labour |
35.23
|
| Cost of packaging |
3.91
|
| Cost of delivery to local operations manager |
4.7
|
| Subtotal – payout to artisan |
79.07
|
| Customer acquisition costs (advertising etc.) |
7.91
|
| Handling fee Urban Change Lab |
7.91
|
| Shipping costs from Kenya to Germany* |
75
|
| VAT (Germany)* |
32.28
|
| Total |
202.17
|
*Shipping costs and VAT vary depending on your location.
