Blurring the lines between design and fabrication

What started out as a necessity for a local architectural steel fabrication business has quickly turned into a space where design and craftsmanship come together.

Based in Geelong and the Surf Coast and owned by Matthew Leach and Amelda Wilde, Von Steel started when the pair were completing their first Newtown project, and looked to their own resources when money was tight.

With Wilde an experienced designer and Leach as the fabricator, the duo work to create objects, furniture and architectural items with steel, completing custom pieces and working on their own collections.

 

Wilde believes it is the combination of design and fabrication that makes them stand out in the industry.

“There’s a lot of fabricators out there and there’s a lot of designers, but I think what’s really different is when you get a unity of the two disciplines,” she said.

“They complement each other so well and then you can dig a little deeper into creating something that’s more unified.”

Another point of difference for Von Steel is its offerings, steering away from bigger pieces and focusing on smaller, bespoke designs.

“Other steel fabricators are able to do the most amazing spiral staircases and really cool big architectural elements. That’s not something we do, but we can focus on those micro human experiences and the smaller moments and the enjoyment and beauty in smaller moments.”

 

Wilde said steel had a preconceived notion of being cold and clinical, but through design she had found it a material they could use for unexpected things.

“I just feel steel gives so much flexibility in form and durability that it’s such a great material to keep falling back into and then we create these pieces.

“It’s that surprise element of how it actually can come together and how you soften it and how it makes it become more domesticated.”

For Wilde, it’s the aspect of creating something unique and bringing her ideas to life that she enjoys the most.

 

“When it comes together, it’s just so rewarding to see – look at this, I created this new idea, I took this material that’s not really meant to be used for dining furniture and I’ve softened it – and I find that really rewarding just seeing it all come together,” she said.

Steering away from trends and what’s popular, a lot of Wilde’s design inspiration comes from the world of film, with Thunderbirds and its aesthetic a recent inspiration.

“When we’re making pieces for ourselves, I can literally just go off on a tangent and get excited by so many different things.

“Movies is a big source of inspiration, but when you’re producing architectural elements, they’re definitely more prescribed.”

Originally, Wilde – who also owns Amelda Wilde Interior Design – envisaged working on larger scale architecture, but has found creating little pieces to be rewarding.

“There’s something I really like about these smaller pieces, and I think it’s about that ability to explore ideas internally in the melting pot and then test them externally and see what works for other people.”

Since starting three years ago, Von Steel has continued to grow and develop, particularly with the amount of people looking for custom pieces.

“We’ve made pieces that are ready to buy as is, but it’s the custom stuff that has changed the way we’re doing things as well,” Wilde said.

The types of pieces they are excited to work on also continues to change, switching from tables about 12 months ago to storage and functionality designs now.

 

“It’s always evolving because it’s creative and I think we thrive on doing something that’s different and experimenting with something that was a real head-scratcher at the start.

“It’s more rewarding for us to experiment on something and see it come together and be actually something you may not have thought about.”

Last year, Von Steel received wider recognition by being shortlisted in the 2024 Interior Design Excellence Awards.

Wilde said Von Steel just being nominated alongside the calibre of other businesses in the category was a rewarding experience.

“It’s just nice to be celebrated. You put in so much work, some things can look so simplistic and the simplicity is generally something that’s earned from an extreme amount of work that goes into it by pairing things back, making connections cleaner, neater, more refined.”

Von Steel has a strong focus on doing the things it sees potential in and wants to get to a point where it releases furniture collections more frequently.

The duo also hopes to get more into kitchens as they move forward, exploring the idea of being able to select a kitchen as if it is another furniture piece.

For more information, head to vonsteel.com.au or follow them on Instagram @von.steel