An artist has developed a unique method of creating wooden furniture.

Based in Derbyshire, Full Grown is run by artist and furniture designer Gavin Munro. Following a period of creating furniture from driftwood in San Francisco, Gavin was inspired to try growing trees directly into the shapes of chairs and tables.

Rather than the traditional, wasteful method of cutting trees down into pieces with which to construct furniture, Gavin realised that if he could carefully grow trees into the desired shape, he could cut down wasted wood and create beautiful, unique items.

The growing process requires a great deal of patience over a number of years. When the trees are planted, the shoots are carefully guided to grow around plastic frames. When the desired shape is achieved, the tree is left to thicken out for a few years before being harvested and seasoned, to create the distinctive furniture.

The first prototype chair took 5 years to grow, but with around 3000 trees planted and items due to be ready for sale in 2015, Gavin’s patience seems to have paid off.

As well as creating an individual piece of art, the Full Grown project also provides an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional methods of creating wooden furniture, with significantly less wastage of wood.

Full Grown are currently taking orders for items such as chairs and lampshades, as well as bespoke pieces in ash, sycamore, crab-apple, sessile oak and royal oak. Customers can request a completely original item designed to their specifications – as long as they don’t mind the wait.

If you are thinking about buying some new, bespoke furniture, make sure that your old furniture doesn’t just get sent off to landfill. If your furniture is still in great condition and has the original fire labels, you can donate it, to benefit charities and low-income families across the UK. Furniture Donation Network source local collection partners anywhere in the UK, who will collect good quality furniture for free. We encourage charities as collection partners, so a local charity may sell your furniture on to generate funds, or it could be sold at an affordable price to a family who cannot afford to buy new. Go to www.furnituredonationnetwork.org to donate your furniture and read about the charities who can benefit, such as www.recyclinglives.org.