What items in your home mean more to you than monetary value suggests they’re worth?

for us, It’s a grandfather’s chair, a perfectly broken in and upkept pair of leather boots, a mother’s cast iron pan, paintings & woodcut prints made by dear friends.

Objects have the ability to hold memories and tell stories - of a passed loved one, a happy moment - and remind us through artistry of the beauty that is possible in our world.

We believe that handmade items in particular speak to some of the most admirable qualities of human nature and connect us with elements of culture that our species has pursued and valued for time eternal. To feel the imprints of fingertips in a piece of pottery is to sense the years of life a human has spent honing a skill, all for the simple purpose of creating beauty.

We revel in the meaning that can be translated through a moment of focus applied to a bit of raw material - in a kind of cultural alchemy, something is brought into reality directly from mind and spirit.

sustainability through design

we design with lasting beauty in mind. our style is inspired by old world building techniques, Scandinavian and Japanese design, as well as the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and the Shakers.

We look to the ideas, lines, shapes, and proportions that have Appeared throughout history and across cultures. We aim to honor those truths while trying - like all artists - to spin something new from the fundamentals.

It’s through this approach that we infuse our work with the spirit of sustainability. While we no longer make upcycled furniture like we did in our earliest days, we believe that by mindfully sourcing local lumber, constructing with sound techniques, and designing intentionally to resist throw away culture, we are making items to be treasured, cared for, and passed down into the future.

anvil Design & Build is a team of three. William Campbell, founder and driving creative force, his wife and collaborator Meg, and their valued teammate Joshua. The shop is located on Meg and Will’s homestead north of Grand Rapids, Michigan. The three love working together, sharing lunches in the house, and taking breaks with the pets who brighten their days.