The peacock garden seat

Our Studies series revives pieces by known makers and designers we believe deserve a wider audience, so they can continue to bring inspiration and joy.

Study series one – a garden seat, after the original 'peacock' design by JP White, 1896.

John Parish White, referred to now as JP White, was a titan of top-end garden furniture at the turn of the last century. His Pyghytle Works in Bedford, England produced hundreds of designs by M H B Scott, C F A Voysey and many others, while his showroom at 134 New Bond Street in London sold to Heal's, Liberty & Co. and many great estates.

But it is one of his designs – his very first design, that is most loved and best known. Myth has it the design was inspired by a seat that he removed from a rectory, but myth also has it he was once a carpenter at Chatsworth House! Either way, in spite of all the wonderful things he made and is associated with, it is his peacock seat we've been inspired to celebrate.

Though some methods have changed since JP White’s time, we’ve used traditional joinery such as pegged mortises and tenons for the legs and stretchers, and spokeshaves to hand-carve the sweeping arms. The curved, slatted seat is fixed with screws to make any future maintenance straightforward. While CNC tools could achieve a similar result, we see this as an opportunity to pass on fine woodworking skills and leave our ‘fingerprint' on the work, thereby connecting the seat to the nature around it. The solid oak or chestnut JP White also chose to use, will silver over the first few seasons and settle into the landscape.

The peacock seat is made to order in our Stamford workshop. If you'd like to come to meet the makers and see your seat being made, we'd love to meet you.

The dimensions of the seat in the first image are 2000mm long x 1040mm high x 670mm deep. We make each seat to your preferred length.

The current lead time for a peacock seat is 14 weeks from receipt of full payment and finish sample/drawing approval.

The peacock garden bench is available in our raw oak finish. Please enquire for oiled or painted options.

Images of the peacock garden seat are available as a zip file below.

Please see a starting price for the peacock garden seat below. The price excludes VAT.

Most UK deliveries are made by our team. Where specialist shipping is required, we source responsible partners to meet your brief.

Example delivery costs for peacock garden seat.

UK

Two-man | white-glove:

£480

US

£2,500+

EU

£2,500+

REST OF THE WORLD

£3,000+

For detailed pricing, request a shipping quote.

For more information visit how we ship.

Our furniture is made to become more beautiful over time. Love and care will enhance the appearance and value of your cupboard. The care guide covers the basics. For more information, visit our finish library.

We are often inspired by centuries-old antique pieces and we do our best to ensure our furniture will in turn last 100 years. Yes, they may need sympathetic repairs or restoration but as a company, we intend to support that repair, restoration, re-purposing and resale of our products for generations to come.