Post Partem

I just delivered!

This happens whenever I complete and deliver a custom piece of handmade furniture to its new home: a sense of deflation, a feeling of loss and even, well, separation. It sounds odd, even a little weird, that one could get so attached to a freshly made piece of furniture or custom cabinet; however, as much as I’ve tried to fight it, this happens over and over again. I’ve come to accept it as part of the territory.

After all, in most cases, I’ve spent months thinking first about the design of this one-of-a-kind ‘baby’ and then planning how I’ll actually make it. That means several drawing iterations and probably a full-scale mock-up and then the trial and discovery process that’s part of the custom making.

The thing is that most of what I make is unique which means that the first piece, the prototype, will become the actual finished piece. To anyone familiar with production processes, this makes a mockery of ‘true product development’ because it means that there can be no unfixable mistakes; that is, any screw-up that’s part of the learning process of building a new design must be resolved seamlessly. Scrapping the ‘real’ materials that go into what will be the finished product simply is not an economic option.

So, what I develop is precious, irreplaceable and, hopefully, adorable. Not exactly the flesh and blood variety but part of who I am as a custom furniture-maker just the same.