Tom Rowell

Words Jo Denbury Photography Katharine Davies

Working with his hands is something that comes naturally to furniture designer, Tom Rowell. ‘As a child, I would gather old wooden pallets and break them apart and build chicken houses. I remember that feeling of addiction, of not wanting to stop and working outside in the summer until there was no light outside,’ he says. ‘It was very satisfying.’

School for Tom, now 25, was less satisfying. ‘I am dyslexic and was struggling massively. When a teacher would write on the white board and say “copy this down” I could never do it, although Thomas Hardye School did have really good support for dyslexics. But I loved the hands-on approach of Design and Technology. The whole experience, through the right teacher – Mark Richardson – was so good. He let me stay on late at school and hang out in the department.’ In the end, Tom created a coffee table and gained himself an A* at GCSE. >

At the time however, another career path beckoned. ‘I had been attending Weymouth Sailing Academy. I followed all their courses and got into racing,’ he explains. ‘Then I joined the Youth GBR squad and did that for two years.’ By the time Tom was 19, he had to decide whether to continue professionally in the world of sailing. ‘It is really expensive. You are either self-funded/wealthy or win a sponsorship deal with the likes of Volvo and work towards getting into the Olympics. I suppose I had a bit of a reality check.’

Tom hadn’t been interested in university and knew it wasn’t for him – ‘I didn’t think it was necessary’ – so instead he needed to think about how he was going to earn a living and what made him happy. Tom knew that the answer was to work with wood. ‘Wood is like that,’ he explains, ‘there is something to show for the hours you spend working on it. You get to go home knowing you have produced something and feel tired for it. I like to work for myself. I get something stuck in my head and work on it,’ he says. Tom then pursued an apprenticeship of sorts. ‘I was a labourer on building sites for 18 months because they promised they would teach me carpentry but nothing came of it, so I left and joined a furniture restorer and maker called Andrew Murray from Dorchester. He took me on at his workshop to help with the restoration jobs. Andrew showed me the detail – the OCD side to it – and I was with him for six months learning the basics.’

That led Tom to a furniture-making course in Bristol which he did in one year rather than the supposed requisite of two. Then, after a short trip via Sri Lanka and India, Tom was back in Sherborne, armed with sketchbooks and ready to set up as a furniture maker. ‘I always knew I wanted to work for myself. I think it’s because of my dyslexia. It makes you plan how you want to do things in a way which is a little different to how other people do it. That hasn’t always been easy. I pre-plan and do my own steps for each project.’

Nowadays, he produces a series of batch-made pieces for the home. They include the Burton nesting tables which were inspired by a walk at the coast on Hive Beach. ‘It came to me while I walked there and looked at the shapes of the pebbles,’ Tom explains. Like the pebbles on the beach, the Burton pieces come in the softest of oval shapes. Made from sustainable oak or ash, their smooth rounded edges sit neatly together. The Eype is another geologically inspired coffee table, >

its soft, lean curves reminiscent of Scandinavian design yet imbued with Tom’s personal touch. Other smaller pieces for the home include a plant stand in American walnut (incidentally the only non-local wood he uses for its colour) and a steam-bent hanging planter made from Ash. ‘I live in a flat and miss having a garden, so I made them for myself and other people who like to have plants in their home.’ They are an ideal way of adding natural interest without covering every surface or window-sill with pots.

On arrival at Tom’s workshop, you’ll most likely be greeted by Ru, his friendly cockerpoo. Before you know it, Ru will have led you to his favourite spot and one of Tom’s ongoing projects – the conversion of his Vauxhall Vivaro into a campervan. It has a wonderful, curved timber ceiling and the neatest of kitchens. ‘I am thinking of building shepherd’s huts or maybe garden offices,’ muses Tom. ‘I know my mum – Kitty who runs Upstairs Downstairs – wants a shepherd’s hut. But for now, with the staycation thing, van conversions are very popular.’

While Ru stays perched on his favourite cushion in the front of the van, I spot a beautiful oak desk which is waiting to be delivered to a client in London. ‘The client bought one of my coffee tables,’ explains Tom, ‘and then asked if I could make him a desk.’ Made from pale oak, the desk has two soft-close front drawers decorated with a hand-carved scalloped design adding detailed interest to the clean lines of the piece. ‘The design comes from a dream that I had,’ offers Tom. ‘I woke one morning and emailed him the idea and he commissioned it.’ The key to its construction is the subtle manner in which the rails of the desk run into the leg. There are no unsightly joints, instead, it flows into one. It’s the perfect accompaniment to another of Tom’s creations – his comfy wishbone chairs.

‘I really enjoy knowing that what I make has longevity,’ says Tom. ‘Our environment is so important and we need to value what we buy. I aim for things that are going to last or are fixable. It’s ridiculous the hours that go into making these things but they are going to last for generations.’ Tom uses a sawmill in Sturminster Newton where he sources the wood and then air dries it. ‘I’ve just invested in a kiln so I can use wood from a windblown tree. I can take a plank of green wood and it only takes two weeks in a kiln whereas it takes a year to season a plank of wet wood. It also means that if someone has to fell a tree, I can create a piece of furniture from their own wood.’

‘The ecological side of my work is huge for me,’ adds Tom. ‘Quite a lot of the younger generation are switched on. We all need to be more eco-friendly but for my generation it is built into our consciousness.’ Tom grew up in Cerne Abbas and the local habitat is very close to his heart. ‘Being raised in the countryside makes you more connected with the beauty of it. Those beech trees at the foot of the Cerne Giant are huge. They have carvings in their trunks dating from 1918 which makes it all feel very ancient.’

Tom finds solace and inspiration in nature. ‘It comes to me while I am most peaceful such as on a hike. Random designs pop into my head.’ He still likes to spend as much time as possible outside and keeps bees in Cerne Abbas and Alton Pancras. He uses the beeswax to make polish for the finish to his pieces and gives a pot to each client. ‘I think I was quite fortunate that I was still a child just on the cusp of the period when mobiles weren’t dominating children’s lives. Smartphones weren’t there. I used to work on a local farm where I could help out with the chickens, pigs and turkeys and I’d get paid in eggs. It was pure country life. I find myself most happy outside. If you go outside for a walk, it changes everything. You’re not even aiming for a solution but ideas pop up.’

Another influence on his creativity has been the lack of a steady father figure. Tom explains, ‘I went out of my way to learn the skills that I suppose a dad would have taught me. If my bike broke when I was a child I’d learn to fix it myself. I felt I had to teach myself because he wasn’t there to do it.’ What is for sure is that with admirable determination and independence, Tom has carved his very own path and is deservedly enjoying the journey.

"I used to work on a local farm where I could help out with the chickens, pigs and turkeys and I’d get paid in eggs."

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