It finally dawned on me upon entering a friend's home that this practice of removing ones shoes was becoming commonplace. When the time came to leave and I was bending over, groaning loudly, to tie my shoes I realized this procedure would be far more comfortable while sitting down. I … returned to my studio and began sketching out designs for what was to become this little shoe storage bench.
"Tansu" is the name given to traditional stand alone Japanese cabinetry, sea chests & storage chests. As the first 5 of these were of Bamboo, with a vague Asian style and I could both spell and pronounce Tansu, the name stuck.
I've since made a number of these from a wide range of species and have altered the heights, widths and depths to better fit my client's particular space.