Tag: Totem Road

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Expert Tips Furniture

Choosing a dining table that will evolve with you

By Don Garvan

When deciding on the perfect dining table for a space, there are many things to consider to make sure it’s a piece that will evolve with your style over the years. Before you begin your search, here are a few things to think about to make sure you choose a dining table that will become a centrepiece within your home. 

CONSIDER YOUR LIFESTYLE

To begin your journey to finding the perfect dining table, it’s important to consider the lifestyle you aspire to live within the space. If you find that your dining table is a place for family gatherings then you will need a piece with plenty of room and seating for everyone. Compared to if you’re living in an apartment where space is limited, you may prefer a smaller dining table that is round in shape with seating that effortlessly stores underneath to maximise your space. 

TIMELESS DESIGN 

Once you’ve identified your lifestyle essentials, it’s time to consider the design of your table. This is an essential feature that will influence the overall look and feel of your space. It’s important to select a design that will evolve with your style over time, instead of tying you down to a trend. We recommend a timeless design featuring simple lines and a neutral colour palette that can be adapted with decorative pieces. This will give you the freedom to transform your style over the years without feeling the need to introduce an entirely new piece everytime you want to redesign your space. 

AUTHENTIC MATERIALS

To ensure the longevity and functionality of your dining table, we recommend investing in a table that is crafted from high quality materials, such as solid oak. We also suggest choosing materials that have been ethically sourced to support regeneration, biodiversity and the protection of native fauna. Investing in a dining table crafted from authentic, high quality materials will ensure your dining table is a functional piece that will stand the test of time. 

FLAWLESS FUNCTIONALITY 

The next step in purchasing a timeless dining table is to ensure it will be a functional piece that creates an unencumbered look and feel within your dining space. A simple way to make sure the dining table you’ve choosen will fit effortlessly within your space is the map out the dimensions on the floor with masking tape.  This will help you to easily visualise how different shapes and sizes will fit within your space, while guiding you as to whether or not your new piece will be a functional and enjoyable part of your home. 

–Don Garvan is CEO and founder of Totem Road, makers of authentic, sustainable furniture, with a showroom in Sydney’s Paddington. You can also shop online. 

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Furniture

Simple and chic: New marble and oak tables from Totem Road

Designed to last a lifetime, sustainable furniture brand Totem Road’s new range of white oak and Carrara marble tables have a timeless simplicity and more than a passing nod to Scandinavian and mid-century design principles. We think they’d complement just about any space which is no mean feat.

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Totem Road coffee table

“I love Carrara for its pale grey veins which bring a rich and fluid humanity to this fiercely dense material. We chose marble because we thought it would make a great accent to the white oak. We also chose it for its pure white neutrality that blends well the natural fibres, animal hides, natural crystals and organic shapes,” says Totem Road designer Elaine Bellew.

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Yet again marble proves the perfect complement to concrete, brass & wood.

Available in dining, coffee and side table sizes, the range is designed in Australia and manufactured in Vietnam and there is a clear intention behind its gorgeous, clean lines. “When we talk about visual sustainability, we are really talking about more than just the materiality of the product and the how long it lasts, we are talking about the overall design, the way it looks,” says Elaine who prides herself on creating enduring pieces – in both a design and durability sense.

Totem Road co-founder is at pains to point out the difference between ‘fast furniture’ (akin to ‘fast fashion’) and his ethically produced, high-quality wares. “Whilst the ticket price for this quality product might look high at first glance, both our marble topped dining tables, coffee table and side tables represent excellent value on a cost-per-wear or years-of-use basis,” says Totem Road co-founder Don Garvan.

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Sydneysiders, you can check out the Totem Road range at the brand’s new Bondi Beach pop-up store on Gould Street for the next five months.

Shop online.

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Designers Furniture Interviews

Beautiful furniture taking sustainability to the next level

It was the words of author Anna Lappé, who said: “Every time you spend money, you’re casting a vote for the kind of world you want,” that inspired Don Garvan to start furniture brand Totem Road.

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Committed to minimising the impact of our modern throwaway culture, Don began creating a range of timeless timber pieces that not only looked amazing but also made a difference socially, environmentally and ecologically. “If you want to encourage more conscious consumerism you have to create products and a community that people love and connect with,” explains Don. “There’s a lot of talk about sustainability at the moment but for us it goes beyond materials and environment. It extends to the communities and everyone that is involved in every part of the Totem Road process, it’s about giving and taking in equal measure.”

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[contextly_sidebar id=”KuNyKFMb6XctsNKzESwbQTdMFQFEIfh4″]From initial idea to final product, careful consideration is taken at every step. On a tangible level it starts at the timber, which comes from sustainable sources with a fully traceable chain of custody, and ends at the packaging, which is made from recycled paper materials. However, for Don, sustainability goes far beyond that. “What really makes Totem Road environmentally friendly is creating pieces that are made to last a life time… or three! Classic simple designs made from high quality and solid sustainable natural materials are more likely to survive those style makeovers and less likely to end up in land fill. That’s really what it means to Totem Road to be environmentally friendly.”

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Offering furniture for the bedroom, dining room and living room, the furniture is designed in Sydney and crafted in Vietnam, by a small team of furniture makers whom Don first worked with over 20 years ago! With a definite mid-century, Scandinavian influence, Totem Road use all solid natural materials, creating a connection with nature. “We focus on simple designs that are carefully considered, allowing the materials to speak for themselves and inform the overall construction. Our intention from the start is to create pieces that will enable you to evolve your own personal style and lay the foundation to a space.”

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As a business that favours the beautiful and sustainable you would think it couldn’t get any better, but it does. With Totem Road donating 5% of all sales (that’s sales not profit) to a registered charity of your choice. “The charities we are involved with cover all the things that are important to us: people, community and environment. It’s a big part of who we are and part of a commitment to taking and giving back in equal measure. The plan is to eventually set up our own foundation that gives back to the communities involved in the making of our products.”

For more information.