YARD Furniture is a bespoke recycled timber furniture business that creates modern furniture designs focusing on the basic design principles of simplicity, aesthetics, practicality and strength.
As passionate designers and furniture makers, we feel a moral responsibility to use recycled structural timbers. This allows us to lower our carbon footprint as well as preserving the environment. All of the timber we use is sourced locally within Victoria and 100% recycled. We finish our pieces with a natural and eco-friendly wax.
Each piece has a story to tell.
All of our furniture has a history and a story to tell. Whether it is timber from the historical Jam Factory or The National Gallery of Victoria – each piece is handcrafted and steeped in history. A major benefit of using this specially sourced wood is the depth of character and personality that each furniture piece takes on from the ageing and curing process that the wood has endured in its previous incarnations.
Each piece is finished to the highest degree using the most current and ecologically sound processes available. We focus on maintaining the raw integrity and visual richness of the original timbers, we like to let the timber do the talking.
Our Ethos
In today’s climate there are many reasons to buy recycled or reclaimed timber furniture. Firstly, Australian hardwoods are some of the most stunning in the world. Pieces made using these recycled timbers allow you to bring a natural element into your space, compliment a wide range of interior styles, and are durable and designed to last a lifetime.
When designing made to order, custom furniture, dimensions, leg styles and configurations are all adjustable to suit the requirements of the space and how the pieces will be used. This allows you to own your perfect piece, design for longevity and break away from the fast furniture trend.
The most important benefit of recycled timber furniture is that it is environmentally friendly. All of our timber is salvaged locally from commerical and residential sites in Melbourne. Some of these timbers date back to the early 1900’s.
Reclaimed timber saves landfill, new logging and the use of cheap, chemical laden materials. It sits in direct contrast to the fast furniture industry as eco friendly furniture can last a lifetime, reduce the need of cheap replacements and the creation of more waste in the future.
About the Designer
Peter McManus, the owner and operator of YARD Furniture is an Australian furniture maker, designer and timber lover whose parents came to Australia from Ireland on a 10-pound boat deal in 1968.
The main inspiration behind his passion for building, timber, sustainability, compassion and entertainment is steeped in the traditions of his parents’ upbringing in a rural part of Ireland. The stories retold of his homeland were those of celebrating the accomplishments of sustainable living; such as saving the hay for the winter or harvesting spuds from the field below. Furthermore, the realisation that his ancestors had no choice but to build and maintain the houses and everything else required to live in an environment that mostly supported itself.
From this necessity comes great training, all of Peter’s uncles and both of his Grandfathers were known as Carpenters and Stonemasons; Peter always knew he was going to follow along this path.
Learning his trade from his father and older brother in both commercial and domestic scenarios through to teaching at TAFE colleges around Melbourne provided inspiration and the direct design lineage to the structure and application of the magnificent personality of Australian timbers in his work.
Not merely restricted to wood-chip strewn sheds Peter spends his downtime singing in a soul band covering the masters of this idiom, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Sam and Dave. The same soundtrack you would hear visiting his studio as he imparts his soul into the piece of furniture you will call your own.