We had the distinct pleasure to interview award winning designer Designer Doorware about their original and creative Door Handle design work. Designer Doorware is an award-winning industrial designer, that makes our world a better place with their original door handle works.
Designer Doorware ("DD") answered Design Interview ("DI") questions about their award-winning work Monte Timber Collection Door Handle. Interview questions prepared by Frank Scott.
DD : The aim was to introduce warmth and comfort into our product range by utilizing the natural characteristics of timber. We were driven by the tactile aspects of the user experience.
DD : Preserving that homely feel associated with comfortable everyday use while still upholding high quality, contemporary styling.
DD : constant refinement and a greater emphasis on sustainability and artisan crafts that compliment contemporary interiors.
DD : Roughly four years from an idea. It was a slow but meticulous development process.
DD : We strive to create personalised products that beautifully fit the needs of the time, which is how the Monte Timber Collection came to be. It complements the emergence of sustainable architecture and interiors that bring the outdoors into the home.
DD : We exclusively produce and sell the product ourselves in-house. You can view our website and make an enquiry if you wish to purchase or gain more information on the range.
DD : We listen carefully to the needs of our customers, and with the widespread use of timber in architecture it presented us with an opportunity to further expand upon our product offering.
DD : We were only really influenced by our customers, in particular when it came time to determine how we would finish the timber since our company is all about making products personal.
DD : Primarily architects, interior designers, and home building designers.
DD : Consistency and being able to purchase pull handles, levers, cabinet hardware and more while still exhibiting aesthetic consistency across the board. It enables our customers to purchase timber door hardware without having to make compromises.
DD : We consistently try to give our products names that mean something to the people in the company and our customers simultaneously. We often lean on our cultural heritage to inspire the names we give our products and usually do this with the core company group over a coffee in the dream room.
DD : We work closely with our customers and many architects and interior designers. We believe seeking out and utilising feedback is critical to design. We drew upon our design acumen, the technical and practical skills of our in-house fitters and turners, and the feedback from the stakeholders mentioned previously.
DD : Additive manufacturing has improved efficiency a lot. We print dozens of prototypes to refine every last detail before commercialising our designs. In saying this, we still create hand-made prototypes during conceptualisation and early development.
DD : Our user feedback revealed our main design challenge. How do we develop a small range of timber levers to suit any modern or contemporary interior setting? While still complimenting our existing product offering? After many conceptual design iterations and a large number of hand-made and 3D printed prototypes we shortlisted a few refined lever designs. The solution to our challenge? The blend of traditional door hardware materials and timber. Lever designs with clean lines, simple curvature, timeless silhouettes, refined proportions and the ability to be purchased in over 100 finish combinations so that you can personalise the finish to your liking.
DD : It comes back to the importance we place on feedback. We strive to improve continuously and we want to be respected as a design-led business that produces products that invoke desire and pride. We use design competitions as one of the ways we can assess our design outcomes, and ensuring our design acumen is recognised at an international scale.
DD : Not in particular, however we’d like to sincerely thank you for showcasing our work and your time.
