OFF TO BED: Savile Row tailor and king of color Ozwald Boateng’s creative approach does not waver, whether he’s designing for the boardroom, or the bedroom.
Boateng, who has just unveiled a collaboration with the high-end British maker Savoir Beds, said, “I always need to understand the construction. Once I understand how it’s made, then I know what the limitations are.”
During a launch breakfast in London on Wednesday, Boateng added that his affinity for interior spaces grew directly from his tailoring career, and that shifting from fashion to furnishings felt like a natural transition.
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His bed, the Authenticity, fuses the designer’s West African heritage with British craftsmanship. The bespoke bed has a hand-carved wooden headboard with a shape inspired by the Nsaa, an Adinkra symbol originating with the Asante people of Ghana. It represents excellence and authenticity.
Woven into the headboard are colorful red, gold and green leather strips based on Kente cloth from Boateng’s studio. “As a creator, having a distinct language is everything. You want your creativity to speak,” he said of the colorful design.
As a bespoke craftsman himself, Boateng is particular about his collaborations. “I try and work with some of the few remaining interior craftsmen in the U.K.,” he said.
Savoir’s manufacturing processes have been kept alive since 1905. Their beds are handcrafted in the heart of London, where artisans use horse tail, wool and cotton as the basis of every mattress. Boateng said he was able to watch each step of the 200-hour process that it takes to complete his design.
While Boateng may have designed the bed, he was not the one who chose the mattress. Asked who took charge of that decision, the designer laughed and said, “I have a wife. I just do what I’m told.”
The designer said he will continue to work with other artisans in home interiors, and plans to launch rug and wallpaper projects in the future.