History

Design by Manor House’s showroom is located in picturesque Castlewellan, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, nestled in the foothills of the Mourne Mountains and  only minutes away from the world renowned Royal County Down Golf Course. It is also within a short walk to Castlewellan Forest Park which boasts one of the world’s largest permanent hedge mazes in addition to the Annesley Castle and arboretum.

Design by Manor House owes its creative nous to Senior Designer, Edward Ward, who was among the earliest pioneers of in-frame furniture in Ireland, and has spent over 30 years perfecting the art. Although established as designers of period furniture, Design by Manor House are also purveyors of contemporary interior finishes- many of which are bespoke in design and colour.Edward Ward was first introduced to the field of joinery at 14, gaining experience on evenings and weekends at his father’s firm, ‘E H Ward Building Contractors’. At 16, he left school in order to work for his father (a Master Craftsman) full time and thus his formal apprenticeship began.

Edward served his time as a Cabinet Maker, Wood Machinist and Joiner, gaining a plethora of invaluable skills and knowledge.Before his apprenticeship had come to completion, Edward designed a system for the manufacture of framed furniture; this same system is used to this day and is now accepted by many as the industry standard.Edward’s particular speciality is authentic period design;

He gained exposure to works in many period homes where it was necessary to repair and replace period features such as sash windows, complex shutters, open string stairs, spandrel panelling and wooden conservatories. It was this early and intense induction in period moulding and joinery techniques that inspired Edward’s designs in the years to come.In his career to date, Edward has completed hundreds of handmade, bespoke projects. On top of traditional kitchens, thoroughly modernistic kitchens and period renovations, Edward has been commissioned to design some more eccentric projects.

For example, Edward designed and built- from the chassis up- a mobile home with specification that would rival that of a luxury boat. Vaulted ceilings, an inglenook fireplace and stove are among some of the features that made this a truly custom-made build unparalleled by competitors in terms of the design vision, ergonomics and practicality involved in constructing a mobile home that is on par with any beautiful home in situ. He has also worked on castles, cottages and even log cabins.

Whilst Design by Manor House are known in the market place as designers of bespoke handmade kitchens, the array of unconventional projects they have been involved in to date is testament to the fact that- as a company-their ability to produce superlative design results are to an extent, boundless.