Evening in an entry hall. A white oak Recess is set into the wall between a dark front door and a lamp-lit living room, with two phones resting on its shelf and two different sets of keys on a brass rail.

Recess · for the front door

Leave the phone
at the door.

Recess is a hardwood niche built into the wall by your front door. Your phones rest there, charging and quiet, while you're home with the people you came home to.

WHITE OAK · 8:47 PM

re·cess.

noun  /ˈrēˌses/

  1. A space set back into a wall.
  2. A pause from work. A time to rest.

We build the first kind, so you get more of the second.

RECESS makes quiet things that live inside your walls. Home can be a sanctuary again: a place for family, for books and dinners and long conversations, for rest. It starts at the door.

One evening, two ways

The day follows you home in your pocket.

Phone in your pocket

  1. You walk in mid-email. Hello happens over a screen.

  2. Dinner, with three phones face-up next to the plates.

  3. "One more video" pushes bedtime to 9:40.

  4. Still scrolling in bed. The day never really ended.

Phone in the Recess

  1. Phone down, keys up. Hello happens face to face.

  2. Dinner. Someone tells a long story. Nobody checks anything.

  3. Two chapters of a book, read out loud.

  4. Lights out. The phone is charging at the door, not in your bed.

How it works

A small ritual at the door.

No app, no timer, no willpower. Recess gives your phone a better place to be than your pocket, and makes putting it down the easiest thing you do all day.

  1. 1

    Walk in.

    Recess sits at hand height by the door, the first thing you pass when you get home.

  2. 2

    Set it down.

    Phones charge on the brass dots and go quiet as they touch down. Keys hold to the brass rail above.

  3. 3

    Be home.

    Calls from the people you choose still ring through. Everything else waits until morning, fully charged.

Recess

Built into the wall. Built for rest.

We build custom cabinetry for a living. Recess comes out of the same shop, on the same machines, with the same finish: a piece of cabinetry scaled down to the one spot most homes are missing.

Close-up of a walnut Recess: a phone charging on the shelf, keys held on a flush brass rail, and a leather wallet.
Charging

Room for two phones

Two wireless chargers sit under the shelf, one under each brass dot. Phones are full by morning, so they never need to come to bed.

Quiet mode

Goes quiet when you set it down

A tag under each dot tells your phone it's home and turns on Focus or Do Not Disturb. One-time setup, about a minute.

Keys

A brass rail for keys

Magnets sit behind a flush brass inlay. Touch your key ring to it and it stays. No hooks to catch a sleeve.

Wood

Solid hardwood, cabinet-built

Mitered face frame, ¾″ solid shelf, 3½″ deep inside the wall. It sits ½″ proud, so the hallway stays clear.

Recess in white oak, installed by a front door.
WHITE OAK · RIFT-SAWN

Reserve

Choose your finish.

Finish

Every Recess includes

  • Two wireless chargers for any Qi phone
  • Quiet-mode tags for iPhone and Android
  • Brass key rail with magnets behind it
  • Low-voltage power kit, template and screws
White oak$259

Built to order in small batches. Free shipping in the continental US. Nothing is charged today.

Install

Goes in like a medicine cabinet.

About 30 minutes with a stud finder, a drywall saw and a drill. A full-size paper template in the box does the measuring for you.

  1. TEMPLATE 14⅛ × 10⅛ LEVEL 16″ o.c. STUD STUD
    Step 1

    Find two studs. Tape up the template.

    Level line and stud marks are printed on it. Any standard 2×4 wall with studs 16″ apart works.

  2. 14⅛″ 10⅛″
    Step 2

    Cut one opening.

    A drywall saw takes about ten minutes. Cut a small peek hole first to check the bay is clear; the template shows where.

  3. PLAN SECTION 3½″ + ½″ 15½″ FACE ROOM SIDE
    Step 3

    Slide it in. Four screws.

    Screws go through the sides into the studs. The face frame covers the cut edge, so the opening never shows.

Power is one more step. Drop the thin low-voltage cable down inside the wall to the included plate beside your nearest outlet. No electrician needed.

How it's made

Made on the same machines as our custom cabinets.

Every part is cut in-house. The box is dadoed and glued like a drawer, the face frame is mitered like a picture frame, and every piece is sanded and finished by hand before it ships.

Exploded view of Recess: face frame, hardwood box panels, shelf with brass charge dots, back panel with brass rail, six magnets and a wireless charger.
  1. 1
    Face frameSolid wood, mitered corners, eased edges. Covers the drywall cut.
  2. 2
    Box½″ hardwood sides, top and back, CNC-cut and dadoed.
  3. 3
    Shelf¾″ solid wood with two brass charge dots. Chargers are pocketed into the underside.
  4. 4
    Brass key railInlaid flush with the back panel.
  5. 5
    MagnetsN52 neodymium, seated behind the rail.
  6. 6
    Chargers and quiet tagsTwo Qi chargers (one shown) with a quiet-mode tag beside each.

More from RECESS.

The rest of the house.

Everything we make goes into the empty space inside your walls, so the room around it gets a little calmer.

FLUSH

Bathroom

The Bin

Your trash can is the ugliest thing in your bathroom. The Bin is a flush hardwood bin that lives in the empty cavity of the wall. Cut one template-guided opening, screw in the frame, and your floor is yours again.

From $24920-min installHardwood face or Art Door
See the Bin

Recess, specifications

The numbers.

One size, sized to the space between two studs. Check your wall against the rough opening and you're done measuring.

Recess in white oak on its own, showing the 3½ inch deep box behind the face frame and the power cable.
Face
15½″ W × 11¼″ H
Clear opening
13″ W × 8¾″ H × 3½″ D
Rough opening
14⅛″ × 10⅛″
Projection
½″ from the wall
Wall
2×4 framing, studs 16″ on center (a 14½″ bay)
Woods
Rift white oak · walnut · paint-grade hardwood
Finish
Clear matte (oak) · satin (walnut) · primed · any Sherwin-Williams color, satin
Charging
Two Qi wireless chargers, any Qi-compatible phone
Quiet mode
NFC tags; works with iPhone Shortcuts and Android NFC automations
Weight
About 5 lb
In the box
Recess, low-voltage power kit, full-size template, 4 screws, shims, spare steel key ring
Lead time
Built to order in small batches
Fit guarantee

If your Recess doesn't fit your wall, send it back uninstalled within 30 days for a full refund.

Questions

Before you set it down.

What if someone needs to reach me?

Quiet mode uses your phone's own Focus or Do Not Disturb settings, so calls from the people you pick still ring through. Recess is by the door, so you'll hear it from most of the house.

How does quiet mode work?

A small NFC tag sits under the shelf beside each charger. You set up a one-time automation on your phone (Shortcuts on iPhone, an NFC automation app on Android) that turns on your Focus when the phone touches the tag. Pick it up and turn Focus off whenever you like.

Will it fit my wall?

If your wall is framed with 2×4 studs 16″ apart, yes. That covers most interior walls in US homes. On 24″ framing, add one 2×4 to narrow the bay; the template shows where it goes.

Can it go on an exterior wall?

Use an interior wall. Exterior walls are packed with insulation, and Recess needs the 3½″ of space inside the wall. Most entries have an interior wall within a step of the door.

What if there's a wire or pipe in the bay?

Cut the small peek hole first, inside the template outline, and look. If the bay is occupied, move one bay over. The bay right next to a door often carries the light-switch wiring, so check that one carefully.

Does charging work through my case?

It charges through the shelf and most cases up to about ⅛″ thick. Thick wallet cases and metal plates or rings on the back of the phone block it.

Do I need an electrician?

No. The power kit is low-voltage, the same category as speaker or TV wire. The in-wall-rated cable runs to a plate beside your nearest outlet, and the adapter plugs in there.

Can I get it in my own color?

Yes. Choose Custom color and give us any Sherwin-Williams color by name or number. We match the formula and spray it in our finish room in a satin sheen, so it can match your trim, your door or nothing else in the house.

When does it ship?

Recess is built in small batches. Reserve now and we'll email you before your batch goes into the shop, with the ship date.

10:30 PM

Lights out. The phone stays at the door.

It'll be charged and waiting in the morning. Tonight belongs to the people in the house.

Reserve your Recess

From $229. Nothing is charged today.

You're early.

The first batch of Recess is in the shop now. Leave your email for first pick, at the price you see today.

White oak · $259

One email when your batch opens. No spam, no sharing.