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Furniture designer

Furniture designers create designs for mass-produced furniture, furniture made in small batches and one-off pieces.

Potential salary
£18,000 to £40,000
Working hours
40 to 42 variable
  • design skills and knowledge
  • knowledge of engineering science and technology
  • the ability to come up with new ways of doing things
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • analytical thinking skills
  • persistence and determination
  • the ability to use, repair and maintain machines and tools
  • knowledge of manufacturing production and processes
  • thinking and reasoning skills
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

Your day-to-day duties could include:

  • carrying out research to develop ideas
  • working to a plan or 'brief' agreed with the client
  • producing new designs or improving existing ones
  • working out costs, practicality and availability of materials
  • preparing sketches for ideas, by hand or using computer software
  • testing ideas using models, prototypes and computer aided design (CAD)
  • working with manufacturers on the production process

You could work in a creative studio, from home or in a workshop.

With experience, you could progress to a more senior design position, or into a specialised area, like ergonomics.

You could also set up your own design consultancy.

You can get more advice about working in crafts and creative careers from Discover Creative Careers.

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