Your career as a massage therapist depends not only on you r education and skills training but also on your ability to use wisely the tools of the trade. As with any other skil led arti­ san, the massage therapist will use tools to express or imple­ ment massage.The tools of the massage therapist include the table and related accessories, the lubricants, and the environ­ ment where the massage takes place. I n this chapter, we wi ll open the therapist’s toolbox and examine each instrument. Practical suggestions are included to assist the student in making decisions when choosing equipment and accessories or when designing a room. First, we need to distingu ish the difference between a massage room and a massage office.