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Lydiates
Lydiates are designers and makers of fine contemporary furniture. Combining the woodworking prowess of father and son, Paul and Richard Staples, Lydiates’ work focuses on simple, classic designs with attention to detail at the forefront. Richard developed his passion for wood and the art of furniture design during his time at college. After several years of working under some of the finest makers, Lydiates was born, named after the family farm where Paul ran a successful fine joinery business for over 40 years. Inspired by Scandinavian minimalism and Japanese design techniques, this father-son team are never happier than when bringing their own designs to life in the workshop, which they now share in northern Herefordshire.
Maker's Story
Lydiates are designers and makers of fine contemporary furniture. Combining the woodworking prowess of father and son, Paul and Richard Staples, Lydiates’ work focuses on simple, classic designs with attention to detail at the forefront. Richard developed his passion for wood and the art of furniture design during his time at college. After several years of working under some of the finest makers, Lydiates was born, named after the family farm where Paul ran a successful fine joinery business for over 40 years. Inspired by Scandinavian minimalism and Japanese design techniques, this father-son team are never happier than when bringing their own designs to life in the workshop, which they now share in northern Herefordshire.
THE PROCESS
With acute attention to detail and great understanding of traditional techniques, Lydiates’ elegant seating designs are crafted from English and American wood, and each piece is handmade in their Herefordshire workshop. Legs and spindles are turned on a lathe and wedged through tenon joinery. Lydiates take pride in everything being well made, whether that be ensuring the perfect fit on a dovetail joint, or that the brass pins sit perfectly flat, or perhaps sourcing the best quality veneer and aligning it perfectly.
Q&A
1. What motivates you to make?
My father’s joinery workshop was based at our family farm where I spent much of my childhood. Being in and around a woodworking shop was simply part of everyday life. This definitely influenced my love of timber, and was a real catalyst in my early interest in making ‘things’ from this material that grew all around us! Of course, it was only natural that I followed in his footsteps into craftsmanship.
We are both motivated by the satisfaction of evolving ideas into reality and making heirloom pieces that last a lifetime. We always find the best way to start any idea is by putting pen to paper and sketching something that is aesthetically pleasing, before moving on to iron out the details and proportions. Once we’re happy with these elements we’ll bring the design to life with a prototype, making sure a piece ‘works’, whether that be in terms of practicality or simply the combination of materials. We play to each of our strengths, generally I sketch and draw up using digital programmes and then my father will step in on the making process, particularly when it comes to ensuring quality and attention to detail.
2. What and/or who are you most inspired or influenced by?
As designers and makers of contemporary furniture, we have adopted an aesthetic of clean lines and simplicity first, inspired by Scandinavian minimalism and Japanese design. Our work is rooted in traditional cabinet making and focuses on simple, classic designs with the very best craftsmanship at the forefront. One of my main influences is George Nakashima for the way he reinforced simplicity in design. He would select beautiful raw timbers and put pieces together so elegantly, and with visible, honest craftsmanship. I find a real empathy in his work, and enjoy his fuss-free designs - something Lydiates aspires to recreate in our work.
3. What is your unique approach to your craft, and how have you honed your skills?
As a family business, we have combined the expertise of more than 40 years working in traditional cabinet making with the art of contemporary furniture design. My father (Paul) is the original perfectionist and so this must have rubbed off on me! We take pride in everything being as well made as possible, whether that be ensuring the perfect fit on a dovetail joint, or that our brass pins sit perfectly flat, or perhaps sourcing the best quality veneer and aligning it perfectly. We particularly love the use of a continuous grain to give a sense of ‘flow’ to a piece. It’s the small details, which may go unnoticed to the untrained eye, that really bring a sense of quality and craftsmanship.
4. What is your defining or proudest moment as a maker so far?
We have recently collaborated with a world-renowned interior design studio on bespoke pieces inspired by our own designs. There is nothing more rewarding to us than seeing our designs take their place as part of well-curated and inspiring projects.
5. What is your dream project?
We are currently working on a variety of projects, including creating bespoke and custom pieces of furniture. Ultimately we would love to be able to focus our attention full time on our own collection.
