About Grif

  
  When it comes to making furniture, Griffin W. Okie combines a craftsman's know-how with an artist's eye. His highly developed sense of aesthetics is balanced by the more practical considerations of function. The result is unique furniture that emphasizes the beauty of wood grains in simple yet sculptural forms. Although you'll find Grif's furniture in galleries such as K. Crowley Pacific Designs in San Anselmo, California and The Craftsman's Guild & California Heritage Gallery in San Francisco, you'll also find it a stylish addition to your living room.  
     
   
     
 

Like the pieces he designs, Grif is a study in contradictions. A woodworker who graduated from Yale, Grif is as comfortable in his aromatic wood shop as he is at his clients' elegant homes. He has been an active member in the California Contemporary Crafts Association (formerly Baulines Craftsman's Guild) for over 20 years, and has served as a teacher of apprentices, a lecturer, and on the Board of Directors.

He began his affair with wood in 1972 (he calls himself a "wood-a-holic"), and opened Griffin W. Okie Hardwood Design in San Rafael, California, in 1975.

Since that time Grif has created a welcoming place in Santa Rosa to showcase his incredible talent---a place where Grif and his assistant for over 25 years, Leo Galli, work together to create harmonious pieces of art. (Leo is incredibly tuned into the way to do things right. In his spare time he is an expert gardener and makes many beautiful hardwood lidded boxes with wooden hinges.)

Easygoing and down-to-earth, Grif loves working closely with clients to help them both define and realize their vision.

 

  
  You'll find Grif's furniture at:  
 

The Craftsman's Guild & the California Heritage Gallery
300 De Haro Street
San Francisco, California 94103
(415) 431-5425