A Bespoke Smithers Project with Real Heart
Every now and then a piece arrives in the studio with a story that stops you in your tracks. A woman contacted us with an old travel trunk that had belonged to her grandfather. He had used it to escape a Nazi war camp during the Second World War. The trunk was battered, stained, fragile and full of history. You could feel the weight of it just by touching the lid.
She didn’t want it polished up for display. She wanted it reborn. A proper heirloom for the family. Something alive again. Something worthy of the man who carried it through hell.
We took it on with total respect.
The Transformation
Before we touched anything, we studied the trunk inside and out. The lining was water damaged, the structure was tired and the hinges had done a lifetime of work. We kept as much of the character as possible and rebuilt the parts that could not survive another decade.
The request was clear. She wanted a home bar inside the trunk. A centrepiece that could tell the whole story without speaking. So we designed custom shelving, gave the interior serious strength and created a bespoke layout for glasses, spirits and lighting.
One of the standout details was the faux mercury mirror finish we created at the back. Not real mercury, of course, but a fabricated effect from the Smithers workshop that gave the interior a smoky, vintage glow. You can see in the pictures how it catches the bottles. Pure magic.
We put the whole piece on castor wheels so her family could move it easily. The entire build took around six weeks.
The Moment That Stuck With Us
When she came to collect it, she cried. Real tears. Proper emotion. She told us her grandfather would have loved it. That everything about it felt right. That moment stays with you. It reminds you why bespoke work matters. It is not just furniture. It is family history with new life.
How We Turned a WWII Trunk into a Home Bar
The short version
• Strengthen the frame
• Rebuild the inner structure
• Design custom shelving for bottles and glassware
• Fabricate a vintage mirror effect
• Fit lighting to bring it alive
• Mount on castor wheels for ease of use
The real version
You need a workshop that knows how to handle antiques, metalwork, carpentry, finishing and design all at once. This is the part Google never tells you. Turning a trunk into a functional bar is simple in theory, but you need the skills to take something fragile and rebuild it without killing the soul.
That is the Smithers difference.
Have Something Precious You Want Reimagined?
If you have an old object sitting in your home or family that means the world to you and you want it converted into something special, contact Smithers. We work on heirlooms, oddities, antiques and personal pieces that deserve a second life. Bring us your stories and we will give them a future
Smithers Studio – Shoreditch, London
Custom & Bespoke Furniture and Neon Sign Design
89–90 Paul Street,
EC2A 4NE
Call us: 0207 8890077