Roughly half of our chabani leave the workshop as fully custom pieces. This article walks you through what commissioning a custom chaban from METADESK actually looks like — the process, the timeline, the questions we will ask, and how to make the conversation productive.
This is the article we should have written years ago, because it will save you time and save us the same seven questions we ask by email every week.
Who you will be working with
Custom orders are shepherded by Oleksandr "Alex" Danylchuk, one of our two partners at METADESK. Alex handles international sales and custom-order conversations. He works in English, Ukrainian, and Russian, and he replies within a business day almost always. Roman then leads the actual carving in Kostopil, and Eugene, our founder, gives the final review before we ship.
Start the conversation
Write to metadeskukraine@gmail.com. The first email does not need to be complete. Even one sentence — "I want an ironwood chaban about 60 cm wide with a Tree of Life carving" — is enough for Alex to start a proper conversation.
What helps if you have it:
- Rough dimensions (width, depth, height).
- Wood preference (alder, ash, ironwood).
- Carving pattern or "no carving."
- Drainage preference (channels or grooves, if you know).
- Photos of your existing tea setup or the space where the chaban will live.
- A budget range, honestly stated.
The clarifying round
Once Alex has your first email, expect a few questions back. These are usually:
- How do you sit when you practice — cross-legged, seiza, chair?
- What is your main teapot or gaiwan (size, weight)?
- Solo practice or group?
- Does the chaban need to travel or is it permanent?
- Any constraints in your space — a specific shelf, a specific corner?
The answers change the design more than you would expect. A chaban that has to fit a 55 cm shelf is a different object than one for an open floor corner.
Sketches and confirmation
For anything nonstandard, Roman will sketch — usually a hand drawing with dimensions and grain orientation. Alex will send it to you. This is your moment to say "yes," "close but change X," or "different direction." Once you approve the sketch, we lock the design and start work.
Timeline
Lead time is 3-6 weeks depending on wood and complexity. Alder pieces are fastest. Ironwood is slowest because it is harder on tools and demands more careful, slower work. Carving adds time — a full Flower of Life or Sri Yantra can add a week on its own.
We deliberately do not rush. A chaban that ships in one week is a chaban we did not sand enough.
Wood sourcing
Our alder and ash come from Ukrainian forests, most of it from within a few hundred kilometers of the workshop. Our ironwood is sourced through trusted partners. We select each board personally — no wholesale grade-B lumber. If a specific piece will use a specific board, Alex can send you a photo of the raw stock before we cut.
Pricing
Custom chabani are priced by wood, size, and complexity. As of writing, small alder custom pieces start around a few hundred dollars, and large ironwood pieces with full sacred-geometry carving can reach the low four figures. This is honest hand-carved work, and we do not undercut ourselves.
Alex quotes in writing before we start. There are no surprise costs. If you want a firm number before committing, ask.
Payment
We take a deposit at the sketch-approval stage, and the balance before shipping. Alex will send payment instructions. We ship internationally — most of our orders go to the US, Western Europe, and Australia — with tracking.
Design examples we have built
To give you a sense of range, here are some real custom orders from recent years:
- Ironwood teaching-studio chaban, 90 x 50 cm, deep channels, no carving.
- Alder chaban with a personal mantra carved in Sanskrit around the drainage channel.
- Ash chaban sized to fit a specific wall niche, with a hidden reservoir.
- Alder chaban with an integrated small altar shelf at the back — a hybrid we now offer.
- Left-handed alder chaban with mirrored drainage.
Some of these live in our shop as inspiration pieces — see the Flower of Life chaban, the Tree of Life alder, and the River Stones chaban.
What we will not do
We will not use veneers or particleboard. We will not paint over defects. We will not apply plastic finishes. We will not accept a design we think will fail structurally, even if the customer insists. Better to lose the sale than ship something we do not stand behind.
What we love to do
Roman especially enjoys projects that combine practical constraints with a strong personal element — a customer's family symbol carved into an heirloom board, a chaban commemorating a wedding, a teaching studio's signature piece. Bring us your idea. If it is possible, we will build it.
Where to see our range
Before you write, browse our current chaban collection and our full workshop catalog. This gives you a sense of what we build, what we finish looks like, and where your custom order will fit.
Ready?
Write to metadeskukraine@gmail.com. One sentence is enough to start. We take custom work seriously — we would rather have a slow, careful conversation with you than sell you the wrong object quickly.