How Steam Bending Can Reduce Waste
Steam bending is at the heart of our story, as an ancient skill that we’re proud to carry forward into the modern day. Not only does it drive our passion for sustainable design, helping us limit waste, but it also informs the very aesthetic of every creation we make. Each design draws on the curves, lines and twists that define the steam bending technique.
Used in everything from the hull of a boat to the waist of a violin, steam bending has been a valued craft across many industries for centuries. Today, our designers and makers continue to push boundaries using the timeless technique to inspire the shapes of our iconic lighting.
For us, the low-energy and environmentally friendly method of manipulating wood, minimal glues and very low levels of waste makes it a no-brainer. At the core of our business is using this sustainable technique to create lighting pieces that will go on to become heirlooms of the future.
Pushing wood beyond its natural limits through this technique enables our expert craftspeople to create beautiful unique wooden lighting.
We sat down with our founder, Tom, to find out just why this technique is so vital in our sustainability journey.
How does steam bending work?
We secure pieces of wood into tailor-made jigs with our steamers set to work between 80 – 100 degrees. Generally, hardwoods tend to yield the best results, so we opt for air dried ash and oak for our solid wood lighting (as kiln dried tends to break more easily during the steaming process), as well as ash, oak, birch and walnut for our sculptural lighting designs.
The fun is in experimenting for us! The length of time to steam a piece of wood can depend entirely on the individual piece, and it can be a trial and error process. We track this and keep notes for the future, but it’s all part of enjoying working with the material.
"Having such a good understanding of the material and the process ensures there are no restrictions on creativity – knowing that anything can be achieved is extraordinarily liberating”.
Tom Raffield, Founder
How does steam bending reduce waste?
By focusing on bending the wood into our desired shapes, steam bending allows us to cut back on scrap waste, instead focusing on the beautiful shapes and lines that can be created using just one piece of wood.
As wood is a natural material, sometimes splinters are inevitable. However, we try to minimise this by selecting the right types of wood to begin with – ideally, they’ll have a straight grain (for example, European oak is renowned for having a straighter grain than British, mainly due to the warmer temperatures and quicker growing speed on the continent). To further prevent splintering, especially when creating complex bends, we support each piece of wood with a steel strap which ‘hugs’ and supports the piece of wood through compression. Without these, the wood could break out at different angles due to the tensions it’s being put under.
By steam bending the wood into our desired curves, we’re eliminating the need for numerous cuts and joints to create the same shape, as well as the need for glue and additional fixtures – plus it offers a beautifully smooth, unique finish, strengthened by its grain continuity.
We’ve created some large-scale, impressive pieces through steam bending, including a set for the Chelsea Flower Show, showing that iconic designs can come to life without producing extra waste.
Posted: 19.09.25