Fact & Theory
The respository where you'll find definitions, philosophy, and the long answers to questions you didn't even ask yet.
Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it also gave us one that is both alive and dead until we open the box.
Table Anatomy
Acrylic Layer
The Acrylic Layer is the top layer in the Game Vault. It keeps your games safe, flat, and free from spilled drinks. It is also usable as a whiteboard!
Bamboo
We know it's a grass and not a tree. Keep your pants on.
Fabric Lids
A fabric lid is a kind of single-piece Game Keeper which covers the Game Vault and comes in three styles: plush velvet, stretched velveteen, and speedcloth, all with a functional craftboard back. It is replaceable, but not refinishable.
Game Keepers
cover the Game Vault and form the flush surface of your table. Options of Game Keepers are hardwood leaves (lengthwise or widthwise), or fabric lids.
Game Vault
Geek Chic's innovative dropped play surface. Every table offers at least 2 ¼" of protected space in which to lay out your games.
Hardwood Leaves
A Game Keeper, which covers the Game Vault. These sit flush to your table and create its surface. They are available lengthwise or widthwise. Read more to find out about their anatomy and various options.
Insets
Optional surfaces that rest on the Acrylic Layer inside your Game Vault. We offer three lightweight, one-piece fabric insets, and a magnetic inset just for Legos!
Rabbet
At its most basic, a 90° groove cut into a length of wood. In our case, the rabbet is the ledge around the edges of the Game Vault that your Game Keeper sits on.
Wood
We currently stock black walnut, maple, and cherry. Wood samples can be sent as part of your deposit package if you're unsure which to choose.
Definitions and expositions
Bespoke
What we call custom pieces of furniture. It doesn't really apply to custom-engraved tower flags, for instance, so much as it applies to gaming furniture that you have highly modified to make your own.
Custom
As a boutique shop, we can customize most items to your satisfaction. This could be stain, this could be laser engraving, this could be an altered table or a thing you want that we haven't made yet.
Emerge ex Hypogaeo
Our motto. Latin, meaning, "Come out of the Basement."
Geeks, nerds, and dorks
Coming soon, the rabble-rousing title distinction section! Why we're Geek Chic and not Nerd Chic. Why we're nerd hot, but not Nerd Haute.
Heirloom quality
Heirloom quality furniture harnesses materials and construction techniques with the intent to outlast you. We use hardwoods, which are refinishable, and we engineer our tables to be structurally sound.
Refinishing
We build our tables out of quality hardwoods. No veneers, no plywood, just wood. This means that if it gets scratched or scuffed, or you if don't appreciate the kind of character you table has gotten over years of use, you can have it refinished so it will literally be good as new.
Velvet
Velvet isn't what the fabric is made of, it describes a woven tufted fabric with evenly distributed threads and a short dense pile. The fuzzy part is called the nap. There are many types of velvet out there in the world, made from many different materials-- not just silk or cotton.
Q&A
What table should I get?
That really depends on your requirements. Need it to function as a dining table and a game table? The Emissary, Portal, or the Vizier are your best choices. Want a dedicated game room table for miniature battles? Consider The Spartan. Do you want to play RPGs and Miniatures on the same table in a dedicated game room? That's Sultan territory. Your valet will also help you with this decision.
"Why isn't there a [insert high tech gadget name here] in the table?"
We are determined to give you a table that will withstand the test of time. For example, if you wanted a music player in your table in the 1970s, you wanted an 8-track tape deck,1980s a casette tape deck,1990s a CD player, 2000s an iPod docking station, 2010s a streaming device, and 2020s small spike that you impale into the listener's tympanic bone, which is now the only way to listen to music, rendering the installation of any of the previous technology a useless scar upon your beautiful table. (No, we don't actually know if that last one is where music is heading, but if it does, you heard it here first.) The same goes for laptop electrical cords. We can install attachments to deal with power cords, but at the rate battery technology is changing, like your cellular phone or mp3 player, you may just have a docking station you set it on at night, rendering the need for cords obsolete.
Where do you get your wood?
The question you are really asking is, are we building our tables in an environmentally conscious way? The answer is a resounding yes. We use only domestic hardwoods from sustainable forests with real oversight. We are constantly evaluating manufacture to reduce our environmental impact. Do you want to learn more about our Wood?
I have a great furniture/product idea to send you!
Noooooo! Please don't! It's not that we don't appreciate you. But in order to protect ourselves legally, we must stick to a strict "no submissions, please" policy. If you want to commission a custom piece, you can contact sales and outline your current need (Ex. my computer desk sucks or I own this particular game and want something custom built for it.) Do not send plans, pictures, or anything beyond what your problem is, or we cannot and will not respond to you. We can then let you know if there is something we already have on our list, or something that will be coming out soon-- or if that really is a custom project you have on your hands.