Behind the scenes – the art of custom furniture in luxury interiors

by | Jan 5, 2024 | Inspiration, Interior Design | 0 comments

Definition of “custom-made” – ‘made or done to order for a particular customer.’

Creating custom furniture for clients is a speciality that intertwines luxury and individuality. I am an interior designer, who finds furniture design fascinating. Creating bespoke custom-made furniture is something that most interior designers will do for their clients, especially when a certain piece is proving impossible to find. It is something that we do quite frequently for our clients. It’s one of the advantages of working with an experienced interior designer, being privy to such skills and suppliers. 

Natural stone outside shower - Marylou Sobel Interior Designer Sydney

Commitment to Craftmanship

When the perfect piece can’t be found for a space that we are designing, we are fortunate we can take matters into our own hands. This also gives us the opportunity to support local Australian craftsmen. Each piece is not just a furnishing; it’s a testament to the thriving design community and a commitment to fostering homegrown creativity. Together, we can create custom solutions that perfectly complement the vision for the space and for the client.

Investing effort into creating custom pieces for the home will not only ensure a cohesive design outcome but assure you of a high-end quality that is timeless. We have been working with our suppliers for many years and whether it is a bespoke bedhead, side table, custom sofa or chair, we take care of every detail to produce something perfect. Read more about Our Trusted Trades. 

Custom Furniture in Luxury Interiors

Creating custom furniture for luxury interiors goes beyond ‘custom’ furniture that high-end retail stores offer. For example, you may think you are creating a custom sofa, but quite often all you are doing is choosing a fabric (usually from a limited selection) and an off-the-shelf design. That’s not to say that high-end retail stores aren’t able to offer genuine custom pieces, as some can, and regardless they can still be incredibly well designed and made.

When we are designing a custom sofa it could be to create a piece that fits seamlessly into the living space. Or it could be that the client is particularly tall, and requires different dimensions for comfort. It may be that it’s for a media room or to watch TV and needs to have a slant or neck support. Different people like different levels of comfort, some would prefer down cushions and others foam (we often use a foam core with a down wrap). 

Natural stone in kitchen interior design - Marylou Sobel Interior Designer Sydney
Marylou Sobel Sydney Interior Designer on site

In our Ferris Street project, we created custom swivelling chairs in the living space that would allow a person to easily spin around to watch the TV or position themselves to read quietly in the sunshine by the window. We designed something that worked perfectly within that particular space. Understanding the nuances of different spaces, our approach to custom furniture ensures every element is tailored to suit the unique needs of our clients, and what they need from that particular piece, is always considered with comfort and sophistication. 

My Favourite Custom Furniture Pieces

I personally love to design bespoke ottomans – they are versatile pieces with dual functionality, useful as both a footrest and as a coffee table. Embracing design elements like diamond button tufting and fringing, ottomans add both character and practicality.

The creation of a custom bedhead involves meticulous design, material selection, and attention to details like trimmings and fabric. These pieces, often the focal point of a bedroom, are tailored to stand out whilst aesthetically harmonising with the room’s theme and style. 

I am also a fan of ‘up-cycling’ furniture pieces. The art lies in recovering, restoring, and repurposing existing pieces, giving them new life and aligning aesthetics with environmental responsibility. They then become their own custom piece, to be enjoyed by current and future generations. 

Advantages of Custom-Made Furniture

Contrary to common belief, custom furniture doesn’t necessarily translate to longer wait times. In fact, it often proves to be a more time-efficient choice compared to long waiting periods for importing pieces from overseas for example. Not just time efficient, it can also often be more cost-effective when designing custom-made furniture, when all elements are considered such as taxes or shipping costs. 

By creating custom-made furniture here in Australia, you are also supporting the local design and craft industries. These specialist artisans are superb at their own individual crafts, and by working together with them to create unique pieces for the home, everyone benefits. And you become the owner of something unique and special, created with you in mind.

In a world that moves so fast, interior design often falls prey to fads, and unfortunately furniture that isn’t made to stand the test of time, rather just appear for a short period and then disappear into memory is becoming more common. Creating custom-made furniture for luxury interiors gives us full control, allowing us to create timeless designs with high-quality materials and finishes that will stand proudly for many years to come. 

 

An invitation to collaborate

Contact our Studio to discuss your project.

Stephanie Nadel

Assosciate Interior Architect

What makes Stephanie Nadel’s success story so remarkable is that she has come so far, so fast.
Stephanie, the Associate Interior Architect at Marylou Sobel Interior Design, has gained more experience, and handled more responsibilities in the past ten years than many other design professionals take on in their careers.

Stephanie, a multi-talented full service professional, carried out a wide variety of commercial and residential design tasks while she was based in London. She worked for three prominent interior design firms, as well as on her own, and served clients around the world.

In the process, she helped complete within 12 weeks the design and installation of a penthouse suite on The World, the luxury residential yacht that circumnavigates the globe. Prior to this Stephanie lead the full refurbishment of a lavish, Grade II listed, five bedroom home in the Hampstead Garden suburbs in London.

During her five years in London, she worked with Gensler, the world’s largest collaborative design, planning and consulting firm; MoreySmith, a leading design and architecture studio, and Fiona Barratt Interiors, an award-winning luxury design firm.

Assisting with projects for those firms, launching her own residential practice, and interacting with vendors worldwide provided her with project management, creative problem solving, sourcing, technical and other skills that benefit her clients today.

Stephanie earned her Bachelor of Interior Architecture degree at the University of New South Wales.

While she is adept in several aspects of design, she’s particularly interested in the challenge of refurbishing existing spaces. “I enjoy the problem solving that’s involved with existing buildings,” she says. “Although it is always a privilege to design alongside a team to create new and innovative structures, I love creating meaningful design from older properties and taking inspiration from heritage details.”

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