Ameerah Wooden Cabinet

There's a certain confidence in a piece that keeps its lines simple and lets the finish do the work. The Ameerah Wooden Cabinet is made from solid mango wood with a hand-rubbed, deep black finish, dry-brushed along the edges and panels to expose the pale wood underneath. The two doors feature Mughal-style arched cutouts opened by small iron ring pulls. Turned finials at the back corners and rounded feet at the base give it the dignified shape of a piece from an old temple town.

Behind the doors are four shelves, a good amount of hidden storage in a footprint that stays tidy against a wall. The shelves hold stacked plates and serveware in a dining room, books and folders in a study, or linens and everyday clutter in a bedroom, while the flat top takes a lamp, a framed picture or a low ceramic bowl. As a wooden cabinet it works as a sideboard or media unit, and as a small storage cabinet it fits a hallway, a guest room or the quiet end of a living room.

This is a piece for those who like a bit of drama in their furniture, the worn black finish, the arched doorways, the feeling of something taken out of an old haveli and given a second life. Stand it against a light wall so the silhouette reads clearly, or let it anchor a room full of brass, ceramics and warm textiles. Each one is hand-finished by skilled artisans, so the depth of the black, the wear and the grain will vary from piece to piece, proof that a human, not a machine, made it.