Nick Poufard, Furniture and Lighting Designer

Spent a day with Nick Poufard and Ally from Canyon coffee for a studio visit and story on his morning rituals.

Photographs and more about Nick below:

Do you have a morning or daily ritual? Has it changed over time? Every morning I wake up and go into the yard to check on all of my trees. It's pretty amazing what can show growth in just a day. After I explore the property, my partner Kelsey and I walk our dogs at the park for a half hour before coming back and making breakfast and coffee.

I feel like my daily ritual has always been about the same since I was a kid because I grew up around farmland. My dad has four acres of fruit trees that I used to eat from and I am so excited to see these trees that I planted become stronger like his.

Details at home with Nick Poufard

Where did you grow up, and how did you come to live where you do now? I grew up ten minutes from where I live now. It was all strawberry fields and horses around us. I remember going to college and coming back home and just being shocked every time at how developed and unrecognizable it was becoming.

I lived in San Francisco for around 8 years with a brief stay in NYC. I actually got into a bad woodworking accident that mangled my entire right hand and cut off two of my fingers. That sort of forced me to come back home because I couldn't work for so long. Even when I went back to work I was so limited in range of motion, that I had to build my strength back up.

You’ve been creating things with your hands for a while. How did you get started? I started building skateboard ramps. I didn't really know what I was doing, but I learned as I went on.

I eventually started building anything I could, which turned into me building electric guitars. One day I posted a video building my guitars on YouTube and a week later it had millions of views and I realized I had a business.

Nowadays you’ve been creating furniture, lighting and ceramic pieces. What was your path into designing and building the things you are today?

I was very deep into building guitars and the guitar world in general, but every weekend I designed lamps and chairs etc. I realized quickly that I had to share some of these pieces with everyone as well, because I always resonated with spaces and design.

I think cutting my fingers off was the catalyst to really pushing myself harder and starting my own design practice. I had all the tools and resources already, so that is what I did.

Canyon Coffee Nick Poufard

Nick Poufard, Furniture and Lighting Designer

San Diego, CA

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