Crafting for connection
- Tamasine makes furniture that highlights the beauty in ageing and decay
- Her work seeks to spark emotion through thoughtful design
- Intent on working in harmony with nature, she uses many reclaimed or innovative materials
Tamasine Osher launched her furniture brand in 2016, blending sustainability with exquisite design. Drawing inspiration from both nature and architecture, she reveals the hidden beauty of ageing, decay and wilderness – juxtaposing natural and human-made materials in unexpected ways to highlight the tensions produced when they interact. With a background in architecture and a master’s in furniture design, Tamasine honed her making skills alongside her uncle, an expert carpenter. She often works collaboratively with a network of carefully selected local craftspeople, and creates pieces using reclaimed wood, stone and marble. "I also use more and more pioneering fabrics such as Pinatex, cork and recycled leather," she says.
Interview
- How did you learn your craft?
- I studied architecture at university and went on to work in London for a number of years. Simultaneously I pursued a master’s in furniture design at Buckinghamshire Chilterns University. Learning new skills now happens organically as designs require it.
- How is your craft connected to your environment?
- I resonate with natural forms, materials and landscape. A particular focus is the emotional response created by the meeting of human-made, often decaying structures, and the natural world. I spend as much time as I can immersed in wild places.
- Where do you source your materials?
- Where possible, materials are from the UK and local. I work closely with tree surgeons to sustainably source British wood from fallen trees. Marble and stone pieces are waste off-cuts obtained from local stone suppliers.
- Can you describe what making objects means to you?
- Taking a germ of an idea into reality through making and seeing it in its final home, is hugely rewarding. Preserving organic forms and heritage crafts, blending traditional materials and techniques with contemporary approaches brings me immense joy.
Tamasine Osher is an expert artisan: she began her career in 2016
Where
Tamasine Osher
