My wife is a realtor, and she currently has a listing during a time when things are anything but normal. With the pandemic still lingering, we decided to take the staging into our own hands. The plan is for me to build functional cardboard furniture—light enough for us to move easily, yet sturdy enough to actually sit on.

We put out a call for cardboard, and thanks to everyone’s recent reliance on home deliveries, we were flooded with supplies. I’ve ended up with a mountain of mattress, barbecue, and TV boxes, which are perfect because they provide such large, clean pieces to work with.

Stepping into the studio, I think I’ll start by building a coffee table. It seems like the perfect way to get a feel for the material before tackling the rest of the furniture.