Netherlands trip inspires furniture making students

Coleg Ceredigion students have been exploring furniture design in the Netherlands experiencing how different materials and making techniques differ to their own studies in the craft.

The college partnered with ROC Ter AA, a college in Helmond in the south of the Netherlands which specialises in furniture making, construction and engineering.

Students had the opportunity of getting hands-on and taking part in practical activities in the college’s furniture making workshops as well as going on industry and cultural visits.

They learned by experimenting using new materials and tools in the host college’s workshops.

Industry visits and workshop tours included a visit to renowned furniture designer Piet Hein Eek and the Gielissen factory, seeing high-tech and high-end furniture manufacturing first hand.

Culturally, students also visited the contemporary art space of Eindhoven Van Abbemuseum and also the Phillips Museum and had a quick stop in Amsterdam, walking around the canals and looking at design and architecture in the city.

They also cycled to a rural Dutch pancake house and visited the Dutch skills competition final in ‘s-Hertogenbosch and tried the local sweet delicacy of Bossche Ball, which is likened to a giant profiterole.

Chloe Reynolds, lecturer in furniture design and making at Coleg Ceredigion said: “We gained so much from this trip and seeing so much of its industry and it being so different to what we have in west Wales.

“The way they make things and materials they use is very different and it was interesting to see and try these tools and techniques.

“It was also nice to see the contrast between old and new, such as the windmill and the high-tech factory of Gielissen.

“There was lots of design inspiration, especially in Eindhoven as Piet Hein Eek is a master of recycling and has developed a much sought-after product range with a reclaimed aesthetic.”

The team is hoping to arrange another student visit in 2025 or 2026.