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If Our Lights Were People: Five Personalities from the Tom Raffield Range

6 August 2026

Every piece we make is shaped by hand, and no two designs are quite the same. We matched five of the team to five designs, and asked who these lights would be if they walked into a room.

Steam bent wooden pendant lights from the Tom Raffield range

Every piece we make begins as a single length of sustainably sourced wood, steamed until it yields, then shaped by hand into its final form. No two curves ever set in quite the same way, and that variation is where each range finds its character. It is why the Skipper, No.1, Loer, Urchin and Cove Mooring each read so differently despite sharing a material and a method.

So, for a little fun, we matched five of the Tom Raffield team to our most celebrated designs: if these lights stepped into a room as people, who would they be?

The Skipper Pendant, a hand curved steam bent wooden pendant light

Skipper Pendant: The Effortless Host

Katie, Sustainability Coordinator and Design Assistant at Tom Raffield
Katie, Sustainability Coordinator & Design Assistant

The one who makes a gathering feel curated without ever appearing to try, the sort of person around whom a room seems to organise itself.

The Skipper Pendant is our most popular design, each piece hand curved and distinct. The kind of presence that elevates an evening simply by being part of it.


The No.1 Pendant, one of the earliest Tom Raffield steam bent designs

No.1 Pendant: The Quiet Authority

Callum, Head of Creative at Tom Raffield
Callum, Head of Creative

Understated, unerring, the kind of presence others are measured against without realising it. Someone who established their own style early and has simply never needed to reinvent it.

The No.1 Pendant Giant is among our earliest designs, and established the design language every piece since has spoken in some way. It has never needed reinvention to remain relevant, and a certain kind of presence rarely does.


The Loer Pendant, an elliptical steam bent wooden pendant light

Loer Pendant: The Contemplative

Kele, Finance Director at Tom Raffield
Kele, Finance Director

Focused and poised, held slightly apart from the room's noise. Their stillness has a way of slowing everything nearby, simply by being in the space.

The Loer Pendant takes its form from the elliptical orbits of planets and moons, bringing a simple elegance to any room and a sculptural statement whether switched on or off.


The Urchin Pendant, formed from 32 steam bent curves and laser cut birch plates

Urchin Pendant: The Understated Tastemaker

Nick, E-Commerce and CRM Manager at Tom Raffield
Nick, E-Commerce & CRM Manager

Layered and considered. They have a quiet confidence that lets people discover their value and complexity naturally.

The Urchin Pendant is formed from 32 taut curves fused with laser cut birch plates, carefully manipulated to conceal the bulb. Its intricacy reveals itself only to those who take the time to look closely, and its depth becomes evident the moment you pay proper attention.


The Cove Mooring Table Light in a colourful shade drawn from Cornwall's coves

Cove Mooring Table Light: The Cultivated Escapist

Chris, Operations Director at Tom Raffield
Chris, Operations Director

Striking yet composed. Someone with the same steady character underneath, but a bold and exuberant exterior.

The Cove Mooring Table Light is a familiar silhouette reconsidered in colourful shades drawn from Cornwall's hidden coves. The same steady character beneath, and a touch more ease, but no less of the original design.


Each character begins as the same sustainably sourced wood, brought to life by hand in our Cornwall workshops. It is the making, not a mould, that lends every range its personality.

Posted: 06.08.26
Updated: 06.08.26

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