Award winning Anselm Fraser Furniture, which runs alongside the Chippendale International School of Furniture, completed a bespoke kitchen installation for a client just in time for Christmas.  The furniture design and furniture restoration business has created and installed more than 80 bespoke kitchens over the years.

Beautiful olive ash kitchen tops to finish the installation.

However, this installation was different from some commissions, reflecting the recessionary environment and tighter budgets that all craftsmen are having to work with.

Anselm Fraser, the Furniture School Principal, says:

“Developing ‘bespoke’ kitchens allows us to be flexible and respond to changes in market conditions. In this case, the budget did not allow for a completely customised kitchen, so we had to be a bit more creative, developing only some components of the kitchen.

“We created beautiful olive ash worktops. These were fitted on top of a good quality, off-the-shelf manufactured kitchen which was then hand painted.  The end result was still impressive and our client is very happy.

“Other ways to enhance a kitchen redesign include having a bespoke Welsh dresser or kitchen table made.”

Students at the Furniture School benefit from working with professional craftsmen, and learn the commercial acumen and expertise required to succeed in the business world; this includes responding flexibly to changes in market conditions.

Learning business skills form an integral part of the intensive woodworking course. Consequently, many students go on to set up their own furniture making, woodworking or furniture restoration businesses.  Read about some recent students’ new furniture making businesses and see our graduate directory for more stories.

Some newly graduated students stay on in the Chippendale Incubation Centre where they can run their fledgling furniture and woodworking businesses in a subsidised workshop with the support of the Furniture School woodworking community, its tutors and networks.

Students learn business skills on the furniture course.

So, if you dream of setting up your own furniture making or woodworking business, you should consider joining the next furniture course at the UK’s leading Furniture School.