Yes, you read that correctly. People still make furniture in 2018. Custom made furniture, albeit not the norm, is quite prevalent still today. When done correctly, it will last for generations.
Custom Made Walnut Occasional Table
Custom Made In 2018
Why have a custom furniture piece made?
Often I get clients that are looking for custom furniture due to one of two things: a unique piece that no one else will have, or they simply can’t find exactly what they’re looking for at a “traditional” furniture retailer.
Most mass market furniture that I have come in contact with is fairly generic. The times I find something that is a little different, it’s an emulation of a custom made or craftsman made piece. For example, I constantly see furniture stores selling their version of “Live Edge” tables. If you’re unfamiliar with what true Live Edge is, it’s a piece of wood, or a slab, that is cut directly from a tree, bark and all. The piece is cut to show all the imperfections and curves of the tree as it naturally grew. What I see at furniture retailers however, is not a traditional true Live Edge piece. Instead, those tables are made of several dimensional pieces of lumber, glued together where the edges have been intentionally sanded to look like a “natural” live edge of a tree.
When I make a Live Edge piece you get a truly live edge, cross section of a tree. It is complete with the sapwood, light outer edge of the tree (where the bark normally is), knots, cracks, and character. You get a single piece of wood that only exists in this furniture piece. No two pieces of Live Edge are the same. They may all come from the same tree but, each one has its own character.
In the case of clients who want a piece to fit their space or unique needs, having something custom made is the perfect option. A great example of this is a desk I made for some great clients. They are both tall people and have never been comfortable sitting behind any store-bought desk. The desks they had found or used in the past were the standard 30” tall, which to most people is a perfect height. But for taller folks, a 30” height is rather uncomfortable. These clients came to me looking for a taller desk, above that standard height. I was commissioned to make a desk for them that sat between 32-33” tall. They are constantly telling me how much they love the desk because it fit them; they can sit comfortably behind it and do their work.
When you entertain the idea of a custom piece of furniture, you don’t have to conform to the normal standards. Custom made pieces have virtually no limit to what can be achieved, save for the laws of physics and the maker’s comfort level.
