About us

Who Is Kerf Design?

We are a small team of people in Seattle who love plywood and colored laminate. We believe in making objects that are human, useful and beautiful. Good joints should be admired. Construction should be simple and honest. We tinker, we improve and we consider every detail. We are Kerf Design.

Nathan Hartman Owner
Shara Lee Design Manager
Yu Ito Designer
Ben Carter Designer
Mark Richardson
Mark Richardson Designer
Ben Capshew
Ben Capshew Designer
Erica Anpo Technical Designer
Eden Marsicek Sales / Estimates
Zach Urban Shop Manager
Dan Knauff CNC wizard
Moe Covington Builder
James Halsch Builder
Eric Winters Jr. Builder
Katie McMahon Builder and CNC Operator
Quincey Caldwell Builder

We are green

Kerf is committed to creating a sustainable product. In addition to our exclusive use of FSC certified sustainable wood, low VOC finishes and formaldehyde free glues, we are voluntarily participating in a carbon offset program to ensure that our products are not contributing to global warming.

On average each kitchen we build pays for about two metric tons of carbon offsets, which are purchased quarterly through The Gold Standard. Visit them and learn how you can get involved.

Inside our shop

We are located in the heart of Northwest Seattle, in Interbay. It is a 9000 square foot section of a warehouse originally built in the 1940s as a millwork supply company. We now share the building with several other small businesses

The majority of our cutting and joinery is done with a CNC router. This means a lot of the “cabinet making” work happens in the office, on a computer. Drawings of each part are created and sent to the router to be cut. The resulting puzzle pieces are then cleaned up and dry fit in the shop by a cabinet maker. Next, we glue up the cases, finish the edges and install the drawers and doors. Local projects can be delivered or picked up at our loading dock, and long-distance jobs are packed in crates and shipped to the site.

Job opportunities

 

We don’t have any open positions at the moment, but we always love to hear from people who want to work with us! Send your resume to hello@kerfdesign.com