As part of our group project for the Professional Practice module we set up a small business rejuvenating (upcycling) furniture that was otherwise going to be discarded.
Myself and Jess Hoggins visited JuDe's for inspiration when we began talking to Derek who is the owner about our project. He was really interested and asked us to show him some images of the furniture that we had produced. He offered to sell some pieces in his shop at a rate of 20% commisson.
Following our conversation, Derek asked me to leave my details and later invited me to spend a day working in the shop.
Following our conversation, Derek asked me to leave my details and later invited me to spend a day working in the shop.
22/04/2014
11am-4pm (5hours)
Today I spent a day at JuDe. I painted a small bed side table which was a commission for a customer. I really enjoyed it. The customer specified that they wanted the bed side drawers painted in 'old white' Annie Sloan chalk paint and distressed. I then finished it in clear wax.
Various customers visited the shop of all ages, 3 people came to enquire about having furniture commissioned for them. A lot of furniture in the shop is not yet painted and is left for the customer to be able to choose their preferred colour. The extra charge for this is £20-£60 depending on size. People even came into the shop to pick our brains about the best way to restore pieces themselves.
Various customers visited the shop of all ages, 3 people came to enquire about having furniture commissioned for them. A lot of furniture in the shop is not yet painted and is left for the customer to be able to choose their preferred colour. The extra charge for this is £20-£60 depending on size. People even came into the shop to pick our brains about the best way to restore pieces themselves.
After spending the day there I was offered a part time job and commission based work.
Most of the items are carefully sourced from auctions, online and charity shops.
Most of the items are carefully sourced from auctions, online and charity shops.
After my first day we were invited to run the shop for a day to cover holiday. Completed pieces were picked up to be delivered, we helped give people an idea of the commission options available and also gave them other ideas of things they were able to do at home including decoupage, simple upholstery, mosaics etc. We gave out business leaflets to those interested in having work done for them. We asked them to send pictures of the furniture along with what they would like doing to them and told them that Derek would get back to them with a cost.
25/04/2-14 (7hours)
We finished this commision, a barley twist table in 'Old Ocre', we sanded the top down to reveal the grain and finished it with clear wax for protection against wear and tear.
I love working in the shop, the commission based work and furniture restoration is definitely something I would like to continue doing. We learnt a lot about the types of furniture in demand and the types of commissions that people are after. White, cream and greys are definitely the most popular colours and the majority of commissions are varieties of these colours and slightly distressed. We will continue to sell some of our furniture in the shop and also help out where we can with commission based work. The furniture that we have produced so far as part of our group project is far more unique and individual than that at JuDe's but we got an in depth insight as to what his client base are looking for.
