The Brief
We like to visit the client to see where the intended piece of furniture is to go. This is useful in gathereing the information we need: it's purpose, size, surroundings, the customer's tastes and the budget or deadline we need to work to.
The Design
Next, we prepare designs for discussion, together with estimated costs. After full consultation with the client and any necessary design modifications, we put forward our final proposals including a firm quotation.
The Order
At the point of ordering we ask for a 20% deposit and the work is booked into our schedule. For us, making is as much a creative process as designing - we rarely work from rigid blueprints, so some details are left to the workshop rather than the drawing board.
Clients are always welcome to come and see their work in progress and share in the pleasure of seeing their piece evolve.
All of our designs start at the drawing board by making quick sketches, allowing concepts to evolve and develop, instinctively feeling our way. If necessary, ideas will be worked up on the computer to a photo-realistic render.
The creative process is influenced and informed by so many factors, not least the client’s vision, the choice of material, the purpose of the piece of furniture. Form and function must be balanced, worked out, thought through. Chairs must be comfortable, tables must provide good leg-room. Each piece must be appropriately fit for purpose and for its setting.
As furniture designers, we are inevitably influenced by contemporary aesthetics but we are not distracted by passing fashion. The warmth and infinitely variable nature of wood inspires us to treat it with respect, rather than design in a way that ignores the material we are working with. We think a blend of subtlety and character is key to enduring design. It is relatively easy to design for immediate but fleeting impact - much harder to design for long years of warm appreciation.
We have a long and celebrated reputation for innovative design. Everything we make is unique. The design process can involve the client as much or as little as they like, and the result is a collaborative process between us.
We are all craftsmen at heart, it's just that our backgrounds means that we apply this in different ways. The thing that we all share is the craft, and this underpins everything at Waywood. Everyone in the workshop, whatever their role, was and is a maker first. We all have an obsession with doing things exceptionally well, and making work which stands the scrutiny of other makers (especially those in our own workshop!)
In our workshop, one maker will be responsible for your commission, from the initial marking and cutting of the wood through to the application of the finish. Like many before us who are trying to uphold the craft tradition, we believe that this is vitally important. It is the commitment of the craftsman that breathes life into each piece. So much more than merely a useful object or an impressive showpiece, it becomes a genuine pleasure to own.
As well as using traditional hand skills and tools, we also embrace modern technology. CNC (computer numerical control) machinery and CAD (computer aided design) technology has enabled us to use new techniques and make an increasingly diverse range of work.
In recent years we have built on our traditional training as craftsman by investing in training and experimenting with CNC and CAD technology. We see using old and new techniques hand in hand as a natural development of traditional craft skills. This technology continually pushes the boundaries of what can be achieved in woodworking, opening up new possibilities in our work.
For more information — cnc.waywood.co.uk