Sanjo Studio: Handmade furniture & custom builds

A traditional Dutch pipowagen (a wooden living wagon), converted into a complete 10m² living space. The build covers laminated curved roof ribs, insulation and airtightness of a barrel-vault roof, custom joinery for a small kitchen and wet room, and integrated water, ventilation and electrics, all designed around two people of very different heights.

A made-to-measure cabinet that fills the awkward space under a staircase. The sloped side panels follow the line of the stairs, and the shelves step up to match, so dead space becomes usable storage. It’s built from 18 mm moisture-resistant MDF so it holds up in a hallway or near an entrance where the air can be damp. I designed it in 3D first, so the client could see exactly what they were getting before I cut anything.

This lounge chair I made as my final project at the Hout- en Meubileringscollege (HMC). It’s based on the lounge chair Jens Risom designed for Knoll. Risom was Danish-born and trained in Denmark, and his chair was originally constructed of simple maple frames and discarded parachute webbing due to wartime material restrictions. In my version the curved sides that form the back and seat are bent-laminated from 3mm strips of beech glued up in a mould. They’re joined to a frame with splayed legs, curved armrests, and a mix of traditional and modern joints.

A table lamp made from reclaimed wood. The cap started as an oak half-circle offcut, which I milled into a rounded shape and hollowed out to hold a 5 V COB LED. The stem is an old beech bowling pin, shaped into a mushroom base with help from a woodturner. I chiselled out the inside by hand and filled it with iron weights, so the lamp is bottom-heavy and stands steady. The light runs on a USB dimmer. The first version used a 24 V COB LED with a built-in transformer and switch, but the transformer ran too hot and was too loud, so I switched to 5 V.

A coffee table I made in my second year at the Hout- en Meubileringscollege (HMC). I started from the school’s kitchen table design and changed the dimensions to make it a coffee table. The frame has tapered legs, rails joined to the legs with mortise-and-tenon joints, and a drawer on wooden runners. The top is furniture linoleum with solid wood edging

I designed the interior of a Mercedes Sprinter in 3D and drew it up as flat panels ready to cut on a CNC machine. That covers the kitchen block, the overhead cabinets, the seating and a fixed bed. The plywood is 9, 12 or 15 mm thick depending on the job each part does, which keeps the build light but stiff. I also installed an off-grid Victron electrical system with a lithium battery, solar, DC-DC charging and 230 V for the induction hob.

I fitted my VW T5 with a new swivel base for the double passenger seat. The kitchen sat right behind that seat, so the interior had to be rethought. I designed a new compact kitchen cabinet with drawers that does several jobs at once, and had it cut on a CNC machine.

A small plant table I made in my first year at the Hout- en Meubileringscollege (HMC). The base uses hand-cut joints: two rails cross each other in a halving joint and connect to the legs with mortise-and-tenon joints. The top is 18 mm plywood, veneered on both sides, with solid wood edging and an inlaid veneer pattern.