How to Commission Your Own Bespoke Piece of Furniture | Art Commissions UK | Commission a Mural Artist

Commissioning your own piece of bespoke furniture can seem daunting and expensive at first but there are many furniture designers and makers out there who cater to different budgets and are happy to help your vision become a reality.  Here are some tips to help you get the piece you want.

What problem are you solving?

Identify why you want a custom-made piece of furniture.  Perhaps you have an unusual space that is just too big or too small for regular pieces of furniture.  Or maybe you are trying to match a particular architectural style in a new home or business.

Develop the Concept

Once you have identified the issue and you know exactly where your bespoke piece is going to go and what its purpose will be, you can start to look at the aesthetics of your piece.  Gather pictures, fabric swatches and colour ideas to create a visual record which you can use to explain to your designer-maker exactly what it is you want. Allot of our clients tend to create a Pinterest board and share it with us, in addition to sending some photos for inspiration.

Stay in Budget

The way something is made will determine the cost of it. To ensure you stay within your budget but also create your dream piece it is important to know something about how your item is made.  Do some research to give you an idea of what you can afford and an idea of what it will entail to make.  As a general rule of thumb, you are likely to be paying around the similar cost of a piece of custom furniture to the cost of a similar piece in any boutique furniture shop. The more involved you are in the designing and making of your piece the more satisfied you will be with the outcome.

Create your brief

Once you’ve decided what you want and done some research to ensure it is within your budget, you need to get down to the details.  You need to measure the space and decide on the measurements of your piece.  Keep ergonomics in mind.  (There is a science behind heights of furniture and distances between pieces etc.)  Make a list of materials you’ll need and colours you like.  Have photos or pictures demonstrating what it is you want.

Stick to your specifications when discussing your piece with the designer-maker.  It is easy to get caught up in the excitement and ask for things that are more complicated than you need.  This will catapult you beyond your budget and your time frame.

Get a Quote

Don’t settle for the first furniture maker you find.  Take your brief to a few different furniture makers or use a specialist service like Commission it who obtains quotes from the most suitable furniture makers and guides you through the entire process.  Your interior designer, if you have one, may be able to lead you in the right direction.  Each furniture maker may come up with something different and may have some new ideas for you.  Once you’ve seen how each approaches your project you can choose the one that best fits your vision. You can also get a quote from specialist bespoke furniture platform Commission it.

Payments and Contracts

Once you’ve chosen your furniture maker make sure you understand exactly what is included in the price.  Ensure both parties understand when payments should be made and the time frame and deadlines of each stage.  Discussing these issues up front will reduce disappointment later. Using a specialist Commissioning platform like  Commission it, means they completely safeguard all payments between you and the furniture maker in addition to being able to reducing the likelihood of any issues happening. They also have a Code of Conduct and Dispute Resolution service as standard all helping to greatly reduce your risk.

Support Traditional Skills

Custom built furniture is around three times as expensive as off the shelf pieces however it’s going to be the perfect solution for you. It should be better quality as well as reducing your carbon footprint as most artisans use locally sourced materials when possible and keeps traditional skills alive which is important in an instant, plastic world.  Bespoke pieces are an investment and are unique and should last longer than most off the shelf furniture. It feels good to step away from the sausage factory and acquire a real piece of art for your home.

Once you get your new bespoke piece of furniture home and into its spot sit back and enjoy it, knowing it is one of a kind and a creation of your mind.  Who knows, as you sit admiring your work of art you may begin to design your next piece of bespoke furniture.