An Awesome Monitor Riser For My Desk

I always wanted a monitor riser for my desk that looked good, was made of natural wood and had internal shelves.  After searching online and coming up disappointed I decided to build my own.

Here it is:

The extra shelves instantly made my life better. The over organizer in me loves having dedicated spots for calculators, note books, noise cancelling headphones, tape measure, flash light, coasters, paper weights, todo list, etc…

The design allows me to tuck the latop’s HDMI cable under the first shelf.  It also has room to stash the wired keyboard that goes to my tower out of sight.

Stats:

• Width: 28″
• Height: 7 3/4″
• Depth: 9 3/4″

When building this I took several measurements to get the height just right so my monitor would be eye level with my desk in either sitting mode or standing mode.

Made of cherry wood.

Finished with Tried and True Original Wood Finish (Beeswax and Linseed oil).

My History With Monitor Risers is Ugly:

At past desks I’ve done all kinds of hacky things to get the monitor height just right. This included text books, reams of paper, or ugly looking hunks of plastic. Here was my workstation in 2006:

I recall just loving this desk with the 3 monitors. Today in retrospect it is a little sad looking…. This was at a startup so the fact it was cheap and did the job was smiled upon culturally.

Ergonomics Is Really Important For Software Developers:

The more time you spend at your desk the more it will strain your wrists, neck and lower back.  Having the right setup is important for your health. I’m not an ergonomics expert, but here is what works for me:

• Herman Miller Embody chair
• Sit stand desk which I elevate daily.
• Monitor at eye level (in both sitting and standing mode), which this monitor riser solves or me.
• Wrist pad for my keyboard.
• Wrist pad for my mouse pad.
• A daily walk / break away from the machine.
• Regular light exercise /  yoga.

You may not need a monitor riser like mine if your monitor’s height is adjustable. Even if my monitor was adjustable, I’d still want the shelving which comes in super handy.

A Desk Should Be Ergonomic, Functional, and Beautiful:

I spend upwards of 50 hours per week at my desk.  Might as well make it as appealing as possible, right?

This new monitor riser has added utility with the shelves, but it is also beautiful. I’m a nerd and a fan of Star Trek.  I was going for the lines of the bridge of the Enterprise NCC-1701-D, and touch of the LCARS user interface. I think I captured both and this piece would work okay as a prop on TNG.

Aesthetics are often overlooked in office environments. I’m not a psychologist and I don’t have a peer reviewed study to quote but my hunch is a better looking office no doubt leads to job satisfaction and higher productivity. That’s how I justify my Millennium Falcon 5 piece canvas set that hangs on the wall:

Inspiration:

I did a lot of looking around for a monitor riser with internal shelves and a cool design.

This one from CaseBuddy (Australia) is elegant but has no shelving:

This one from StudioHalf (The Netherlands) was my ultimate inspiration.

I went with 100% cherry (as opposed to fir / pine) but kept the exposed end grain design. My version has taller shelves and more aggressive angles and curves. I figure I spent about $80 in wood and it took me 8 hours total.

Hope this inspires you to make your desk ergonomic, functional, and beautiful!