A slower one in the workshop over the past months has lead to a little more thinking and less making to deadlines - Possibly this is more the theme for the past year as my output on the number of jobs feels like it slowed compared to previous years of back to back to back commissions.

Could be that I say ‘thank you, but no thank you’ more these days (a much better balance).

My gauge of this is the finished project photos I’ve been able to take, along with more behind the scenes work I’ve taken on. Especially the projects I have completed with Roads2Joya as we collaborated on upholstery & bespoke frame making resulting in less to show from my side as it’s all tucked away neatly under fabrics.

At the start of December I applied for ‘Design Skills for Circularity’ Programme with URGE Collective which builds on the Design Councils framework to upskilling one million designers in green design skills by 2030.

As a furniture designer and maker, I am increasingly aware that much of my work relies on virgin materials, particularly imported sheet materials. My pieces are made in my Peckham workshop and installed in private residences and studios, and while I design with the hope that they accompany their owners when they move, I know little about their lifecycle beyond my studio. I hope to gain a better understanding of the realities of circularity, material choices & possibilities of re-use.

This has gotten me thinking about the objects I make and the waste that is produced at the production stage in the workshop, through to when the final customer moves home and it is no longer fit for their purpose. This does make me want to work on more freestanding projects as opposed to built in cabinetry.

I’ll be sure to share if I’m selected - It’s the first programme / course that I’ve applied for and the first interview I’ve had for a very long time (last was an internship in 2011)!