Creative Parents: Jeremy Lee (furniture designer and father of four)
"I just have to do what I feel called to do. If they like it great, if they don’t, fuck ‘em…"
I’m so excited to share this incredible interview with furniture designer Jeremy Lee, the mastermind behind the refined and timeless designs of JD.Lee Furniture. Spanning seating (omg, the chairs!!), beds, storage, and tables, each piece is handcrafted in Mullumbimby using sustainable timber.
Jeremy is also the father to his two boys and twin girls – the business and parenting go hand-in-hand. I’ve written about Jeremy and his family a couple of times, including covering his home for Domain (filled with his designs!) and a profile for Hunter & Folk. He’s always been at the top of my list for parents to interview for this series.
Jeremy’s designs offer an elevation to those cherished everyday moments. They are pieces to last a lifetime and be handed down to the next generation. The role of sustainable timber is so important. I live near a lot of logging on Gumbaynggirr land, which was meant to be for the Great Koala National Park. If you have time after this interview, you can read more here, here, here, here, or watch here. Plus, follow here. It’s heartbreaking. I always hoped that these interviews would inspire us to connect as parents, but also think about the future we are leaving for our children. And of course, the beloved chairs and tables that play host to sharing meals with your own children, and then also hopefully, your grandchildren.
I really loved reading Jeremy’s interview, as I’m currently in the parenting trenches. But with his kids that little bit older, Jeremy has revealed the light at the end of the tunnel (and he has twins!!). He emailed me back after taking a trip to the snow with his eldest, plus sharing he’s finally making time for himself after years of juggling. I also appreciated his honesty, revealing the pressures of working creatively and being the sole provider for his family.
It’s a good one! (And one I’ll keep returning to). Here’s the Q&A of Jeremy Lee, furniture designer and father of four:
Can you tell us about your art & design practice — what do you create, with what, and why?
I suppose most people would call me a woodworker or furniture maker, as that is mostly what I do. The majority of my time is spent crafting timber over tools to fabricate furniture, and I really enjoy this aspect of my work. The other side of my studio is the design work and management that goes into running a small brand and retail store.
What inspires your work? Any particular art/ design periods or philosophies?
I generally just get the urge to design something new and follow that intuition until I like what I see. In the beginning, I was heavily inspired by the mid-century style of furniture and the intricate detail of most Japanese joinery. My own work has evolved over the years, and my design ‘voice’ refined to the simple yet detailed pieces I focus on producing today.
When did you know you wanted to become a creative? Was there an influential figure growing up?
I spent a lot of my youth (poorly) crafting odd bits of timber into skateboards, and I did think at one point that maybe I would be a skateboard designer… Many years later, I found my way into studying Industrial Design. I really liked this course, but it was mostly theory and designing for others to manufacture. By the end of my studies, I had become completely enamoured by furniture design and sought out an apprenticeship as a furniture maker.
What have been some of the highlights of your career, and what do you have coming up? Do you have a favourite project?
I’m still really just so stoked that people like the work I produce, and I am able to support my family by doing what I love. I have been nominated for some awards, which is gratifying, but mostly I’m just so pumped that I get to do what I want! Being a full-time creative is no easy feat; there is a lot of work, and a lot of luck involved. I don’t take that for granted.
Coming up, I have one of my recent chair designs, ‘The Mia Chair’, nominated for the Clarence Design Award, and it will be exhibited in Tasmania with the 10 other finalists from September to October. I have also recently had another design, ‘The Bobby Chair’, nominated for the German Design Awards, which is pretty exciting too.
I am always thinking of new creations and am slowly filling my sketch book during slow weekend mornings. Once I have a big enough body of work, I will start crafting my next collection.
Who is in your family and their ages?
So there is myself, my wife Hana, who, after nearly 15 years together, I still completely adore and honestly remains an enigma to me (in the best way) haha. We had our first boy, Zephyr, when I was 26, and he turns 10 in a couple of weeks. Two years later, his brother Dali arrived and just under two years after that, their beautiful sisters arrived, Bobby and Mika. It’s wild to think back to how completely our lives changed so quickly. Now, with a bit of time between and a lot of sleep catching up, we are pretty balanced (most of the time) these days…
Where are you based, and why did you choose this area? It would also be great to reflect on your own home + art / design choices with your family in mind.
We live in Byron Bay, and I have been in my Mullumbimby workshop for nearly nine years. We fell in love with the North Coast (like so many do) in our youth and finally made the decision to move up a year after Zephyr was born. Living in Sydney was great, but swapping an apartment for a house in the hinterland was the best thing we could have done for our family. My wife’s sister and her family were settled up here, and not long later, my in-laws also moved up. We honestly see those guys every second day, and I’m not sure how we would have made it through the chaotic years without them.
Has becoming a parent changed your practice?
I got the keys to my first workshop the day Zephyr was born, so I’m not sure I ever had a time when a flexible work schedule wasn’t necessary. That first year was truly a roller coaster ride. Following my dreams of opening my studio, hustling hard to make money and navigating a newborn and all the complexities of becoming a young parent. I feel like the first year was a sort of rite of passage for me. Once I finally found my feet, I was a completely different human, and a few years later, there were six of us!
There has been so much personal transformation on my journey as a parent that it is impossible not to be reflected in my work practice. Throughout those first 4 – 6 years, I was honestly only able to continue to work as a creative with the support of my incredible wife. Hana seemed to take to motherhood like it was what she was born to do. She has been the rock for our family, and I am incredibly grateful for her unyielding support and belief in me and my work.
There are definitely so many pros and cons to being a creative with kids, haha. I think the pressure of being a provider for my family has really forced me to sharpen my practice and to not waste my energy. Some months it really feels like do or die, which can be super exhausting, pushing myself to get done what I need to get across the line. I’m not sure it really matches up to the carefree creative who works on a whim and goes where the energy flows, but having the pressure has really made me front up and put the energy in in ways I probably wouldn’t have if I didn’t have the financial pressures…
The other side is the giant learning curve of navigating how to balance my time and energy. Burnout can be real and draining, overthinking projects at 2am, then up with the kids at first light to let mumma sleep in… I have been through the highs and lows of small business enough now to not let it overwhelm me so much. My biggest tool has been learning how to clock off when I get home, it took a while to get on top of, but geeze it makes a difference.
What does your day-to-day look like, and how has this changed from previously?
When the kids were young, I was generally out of the house before the kids were awake so that I could be home in the afternoons. I used to hustle 5.30-4.00 four days a week and had a three-day weekend for years. As my kids have grown and the dynamic at home has changed, so has my routine. I’m back to a five-day work week, but generally have two late mornings where I hang with the fam a few hours before heading in and am generally home a bit later. It’s really always been fluid and changes as it needs to. The flexibility of being self-employed has probably been the main benefit which has helped me continue on this path.
Now that the kids are a bit older, Hana and I have been able to put aside more time for ourselves. On the mornings I stay home, she gets a few hours to herself, and on the other mornings, I generally spend an hour or two training, surfing or doing some sort of exercise before heading to work. Being able to bring more self-care into our lives really makes everything so much easier. There were a few years where this was mostly non-existent, and to be on the other side of that feels like a bit of a rebirth for Hana and I. It really reminds me that this is a moving journey we are on; nothing stays the same for long. Mix this in with four legendary kids, and the gratitude these days is endless.
Do you have any advice for creative parents?
Geeze, I don’t know. Just hold on!! I feel like every creative I know has their own practice, and most of theirs are completely different to mine, so I’m aware that there is no real ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to do anything. What I think has been invaluable for me is a ferociously supportive partner, and making sure I’m doing what I’m doing first and foremost for myself. If I get paid at the end of the day, then that’s a bonus. Maybe throw in some sort of gratitude practice for the harder days too.
What are your thoughts on the approach of the industry to parents? Have you found support or lack of?
Yeah, industry is a funny thing. I’m sure there are many benefits available if you are tapped in – I used to think that there were certain roads that you could take that would lead you to success and industry acknowledgement. But honestly, these days I kinda think there are no rules! Just do what you want. My mantra is ‘you do you’, as in I just have to do what I feel called to do. If they like it great, if they don’t, fuck ‘em…
I haven’t experienced much government-backed industry support (though I have reached out regularly), and I was lucky early on to have some great editorials in magazines, but these days most publications tend to only write editorials if you are paying for ads. I get that the media landscape has changed, and they are likely changing their model to survive. And in truth, there are so many amazing creatives out there, so hopefully someone is scoring that support.
Do you have a mantra/ quote that keeps you going?
Haha, I think the ‘you do you’ mantra has really evolved over the years. I definitely do want to seek approval for my work, but the bottom line always has to be that I am doing what I’m doing for myself. I truly love (most days) my time in the workshop, and I work hard not to lose sight of what an absolute privilege it is to be able to make a living doing what I love.
Website: jdleefurniture.com
Instagram: @JDLeeFurniture
Thanks so much for featuring my work Emma-Kate. So lovely to read through other creatives journeys, really appreciate your own creative endeavour in being an ambassador for other, keep it up legend 🙌🙌🙌