6 Steps 1 J. Byrne 2014

ResearchDesign ConceptScale Drawings /ModelPrototypeTestingPresentation 2 J. Byrne 2014

Familiarise yourself with furniture design history and styles. Be aware of different period furniture styles and materials used. Keep up to date with contemporary furniture and designers so that you know what is trending. Sometimes you will have a non descriptive or non existent brief, client requests a bespoke piece of furniture without any specific requirements, other than perhaps the size and or cost. Be aware of safety regulations especially for public domain and children's furniture. In general keep up to date with furniture in top shops as clients usually want you to make something similar. 3 J. Byrne 2014

This is the first step from where your design starts and grows, the concept. It may be from scratch or from guidelines in your clients brief. Always document your ideas and keep your sketches thus allowing you to revisit earlier drafts as sometimes clients may choose an earlier design. Sign and date your work as this will provide evidence that it was your original idea in case it is later copied by someone else. If you are designing on a larger scale for the market you should consider patens. 4 J. Byrne 2014

Scale drawings will allow you to work out appropriate material sections and jointing techniques. A scale model will allow you to see what the proportions of the product will be like. A scale model will identify any design problems before proceeding to build a full scale prototype. Some problems don't show up on paper, and they can be dealt with at this stage. The scale model can be made from any material. 5 J. Byrne 2014

Prototyping is really only necessary if you are designing a product for mass production or if the material is very expensive. If you are in fact creating a one off bespoke piece of furniture then that would be your prototype. A prototype is basically a full size model. So in the case of mass production the construction techniques and materials used would be the same as those used in mass production so any adjustments would be made at that stage. For bespoke furniture it is not always cost effective to make full size full products so sometimes a section of the product to study jointing techniques or proportions may be constructed. 6 J. Byrne 2014

Before mass production several stress tests are carried out on a few prototypes to establish the maximum load bearing etc. of the product. The maximum loading may need to be gauged on shelving. Weight bearing on a chair would need to be established to ensure that it is fit for purpose. There are many other safety tests carried out on children's furniture to ensure that collapsible or movable furniture do not become trapping hazards. 7 J. Byrne 2014

Always take the time to position your products carefully and take good quality photographs of them. Photograph all of your work and display them in a portfolio or online in a gallery. Don’t have dust or smudge marks on your furniture's surfaces and make sure that there are no distractions in the back ground of the photo. Consider signing and dating your work or for small artefacts invest in labels with your contact details provided on them. (free advertising) 8 J. Byrne 2014

Irish Patents Office: ge.aspx ge.aspx 9 J. Byrne 2014