Timber furniture connects us with nature, fostering our wellbeing in the workplace. Forest & Maker explains…
A racing heart, lack of energy and struggling to sleep – these are just some of the common signs that we’re under pressure. And the chances are, we’ve all experienced one or more of these symptoms from time to time. After all, our collective stress levels are steadily rising, to the point that the World Health Organisation has dubbed it the “health epidemic of the 21st Century.”
Alarmingly, stats tell us that 70-90% of what a GP sees is in some way linked to stress. Alongside anxiety and depression, it was responsible for 12.8million working days lost in 2018/19, and it seems that for many of us, our jobs are a trigger. Largely thanks to technology, the division between office and home life is increasingly being eroded, and the consequences can be far-reaching.
But what if there was a way to create workspaces that support our mental health, and even reduce stress? What if the very desks we work at and the chairs we sit on could help create a sense of calm and bolster our creativity?
Cue biophilic design, the practice of bringing direct or indirect elements of nature into our physical environment. This may involve living plants, water features, daylight and natural materials, such as timber furnishings or stone flooring. It can even include fabrics inspired by the natural world, birdsong or the sound of a burbling brook. Take Amazon’s new Seattle HQ, for example, which contains some 40,000 plants, water features and timber decking, all encased in gigantic glass orbs.
The reason? It’s increasingly being shown that being surrounded by elements of nature reduces our stress levels, blood pressure and heart rates, as well as increasing productivity and creativity. Of course, natural materials like timber form a huge part of this, and research increasingly suggests that being surrounded by wood has a positive impact on both our brains and bodies.
Indeed, the benefits are brilliantly illustrated by a recent study by the University of British Columbia and FPI Innovations, a Canadian not-for-profit organisation. In the study, which involved 119 university students, office environments were created using identical furniture and blinds in both birch veneer and a white, non-wood finish. Their stress levels were markedly lower in the wood treatment room, suggesting that timber is one way to create a healthier built environment.
Of course, for us at Forest & Maker this news comes as no surprise. We know only too well that humans have a strong, innate preference for natural materials. From desks to chairs and boardroom tables, all our furniture is hand-crafted in the verdant Wiltshire countryside, using certified, sustainably-sourced and grown British timbers such as ash, walnut and oak.
Whether it’s a statement meeting table with live edges or an oak and walnut desk, each of our pieces has its own distinctive patterns and formations, enabling you to incorporate stunning slices of nature into your workplace design. Put simply, we enable you to create happier, healthier, more sustainable spaces that foster our collective wellbeing.
Visit our projects pages to discover how we’re working with architects, designers and end-users to foster wellbeing in the workplace through the specification of our solid, timber furniture.
About the Photo: The beautiful Forest & Maker coffee table in the photo above was made for The Trade Desk’s new office. The top is made from solid oak and the base is made from solid ash. Photo credit – Peldon Rose.
