Grand Designs Australia – Issue 6.3 – May 2017

Dessein Furniture

Michele Chow brings new meaning to the notion of home-grown design

WORDS // ANNABELLE CLOROS PHOTOGRAPHY // HAYDN CATTACH & CHRIS CRERAR

W

hen a gap appears in the

market, you’ve got to be

quick to fi ll it or someone

else will. With creativity

strongly entrenched in her family, it’s no

surprise Michele Chow decided to take a

chance and launch Dessein Furniture.

Michele grew up in Malaysia and was

surrounded by makers, with an architect as

a father and a dressmaker for a mother. “My

passion for design stemmed from an early

age,” she says. “When I was a young girl I

knew I wanted to work in a creative fi eld.”

Inspired by the sketches and scaled models

at her father’s studio and the dress patterns

and fabrics in her family home, Michele

went on to study interior architecture at the

Curtin University in Western Australia.

After completing her studies, Michele

decided to hone her design skills abroad. “I

took the opportunity to develop my passion

in various practices in the UK, where my

interest in furniture design fl ourished

thanks to its easy access to Europe’s design

hubs,” she says.

After travelling back and forth across the

globe between Malaysia, Australia and the

UK, Michele put down roots in Melbourne

and established Dessein Furniture in

2013, with the goal to design and produce

original pieces. Dessein’s collections are

all about aff ordability, accessibility and

sustainability with a contemporary core.

Michele takes her design cues from the

local scene as well as her travels. “I take

inspiration and guidance from the values

that are instilled in Scandinavian design

as well as my own life experiences,” she

says. “Functionalism, innovation, the

simplifi cation of forms and the use of

natural materials are all important to me.

The sole purpose of this approach is to

improve our daily lives.”

Already kicking goals, Dessein has

collaborated with a range of designers and

produced collections that have gone off

with a bang. Of note is the Parawood range

and the newly released Pieman Collection,

which represent a transition in Dessein’s

voice as a brand.

It’s clear that Michele is just getting

started, but if the past is anything to go by,

Dessein is defi nitely a winner.

desseinfurniture.com

INTERIOR DESIGNER

IN PROFILE