Our commitment to sustainability

One of the many things that makes live-edge furniture so appealing is its unique way of connecting us with nature. A beautifully crafted table created using a carefully chosen slab of high-quality wood, for example, brings elements of the outside world into the home and adds a tangibly tactile link to the forest from which it originated. No mass-manufactured furniture can replicate the look, feel and authenticity of a piece like this.

Promoting this connection to nature is one of the key principles on which Tabula Rasa Design was founded. Owner Derek has had a lifelong appreciation of the great outdoors – spending his spare time climbing, mountaineering, camping, hiking, and immersing himself in the stunning forests of Scotland. It is his love of these scenic settings that inspires his passion for preserving them for future generations and drives his commitment to sustainability.

From an environmental perspective, a well-designed wooden table that has been specifically made to last a lifetime is a much better alternative to cheaply constructed plastic furniture which generally has a much shorter lifespan in use and can take hundreds of years to decompose after use.

Furthermore, wood is a natural, renewable resource. In fact, for every fallen tree reborn into a piece of Tabula Rasa Design furniture, we plant another here in Scotland. And we’re proud to support Trees For Life in their mission to rewild the Scottish Highlands. Their vision is of a revitalised wild forest in the Highlands of Scotland, providing space for wildlife to flourish and communities to thrive. Native trees such as Scots Pines and woodland plants – stretching from the Atlantic fringe of the West Coast to the Great Glen and beyond – would not only aid our quest to reduce our carbon footprint, but they would also reduce flood risk, improve soil quality, nurture biodiversity, and create an incredible landscape for people to explore and enjoy.

For these reasons, we go to great lengths to source native timbers from responsible, well-managed forests, where the trees have been ethically felled. Every piece of furniture is painstakingly planned and designed to minimise waste, even down to the wood shavings which we donate to the local stables here at Carbeth Guthrie Estate. In everything we do, we respect the wood. And we think that shows in each of our pieces.