Friday June 13th 2025
The Scottish Furniture Makers Exhibition at Dalkeith Palace
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
Dalkeith Palace has opened its doors to the public as the Scottish Furniture Makers Exhibition fills the palace’s room, displaying over 60 pieces of be-spoke furniture.
The Scottish Furniture Makers Exhibition is back for its second year running, previewing items of bespoke furniture from 31 makers, displaying the items throughout the rooms of Dalkeith Palace. The free exhibition is running from Friday 13th June to Sunday 15th June, 10am to 4pm, allowing both a look at the rarely open Palace and beautiful well-crafted pieces of unique furniture.
The exhibition is organised by the Scottish Furniture Makers Association, a membership body which promotes and supports independent furniture designers and makers. Celebrating the craft, art and creativity of furniture design, the association organises exhibitions across the country with their largest being at the Dalkeith Palace.
With the majority of craftsmen previewing items at the exhibition being Scottish and mainly using locally sourced wood, it allows for members of the association to preview their best craftsmanship and creativity, alongside selling some items, with the styles of furniture on display varying from room to room.
The Chairman of the Scottish Furniture Association, Stephen Finch, explained, “The members have come from all over Scotland. Some come from Inverness, a few from the border but most of them are Edinburgh and Glasgow based.”
“It is a chance for us to come together and display works we’ve done this year such as our favourite commissions. It’s a social event as much as it is a selling event for us. A lot of the time, furniture makers work on their own in their workshops so it is a great chance to meet up with other colleagues and put names to faces. It’s wonderful because everyone is so supportive and people show such an interest in how things are made.”
Furniture on display at the exhibition
Midlothian View was invited to a private viewing of the exhibition, the palace is the perfect venue to hold the unique bespoke furniture. The combination of the palace’s craftsmanship paired with the craftsmanship of the furniture allows for the item’s beauty to really shine.
Stephen highlighted the palace’s ability to display the furniture, saying, “It’s a blank canvas in terms of room layout. We’ve got plenty of space, and it’s just a fantastic venue with really nice light. So it presents the furniture really well and you’ve got space to display things without impinging on other pieces.”
With the majority of the furniture on display being made with Scottish wood, the palace’s grand wooden craftsmanship paired with the craftsmanship in the furniture also adds to the overall experience.
Charlotte Rostek, the development lead for Dalkeith Palace, explained, “I think it’s a good fit, not just because of the light in the venue but the common denominator is the craftsmanship of the palace.”
Stephen agreed, saying, “That’s the thing, when you go round the rooms in the exhibition, there’s beautiful parketry floors and you can see the amount of hours that have gone into some of the palace’s features, just wow.”
Despite last year’s exhibition being organised with less time due to another proposed project falling through, Dalkeith Palace has welcomed the association back for the second year running.
Charlotte, explained her excitement surrounding Stephen and his association coming back for the second year, “It’s becoming an established annual event, it is good for both parties. We are delighted to have them and Stephen, being the new chairman, now living in Midlothian, it is all coming together.”
Stephen has established his workshop in Midlothian, now being local to the area. Being very familiar with the grounds, his first time inside the palace was during last year’s exhibition.
Stephen Finch's furniture on display at the exhibition
“Myself and my colleague, Tom Cooper (another member of the association) knew Charlotte through another project that didn’t take off.”, Stephen explained, “It was a talking shop as much as anything and one day we basically showed up in our work clothes and Charlotte very diplomatically heard us out and gave us a chance.”
Going from 27 makers last year to 31 this year with around 2 pieces each in average, last year’s exhibition saw around 600 visitors, roughly 200 over the three days. Hoping for more this year due to being more organised and established, Stephen and Charlotte are hoping for a bigger turnout.
Stephen said, “We are hoping for more this year. The more the word gets out there, the bigger the exhibition will build. The more the makers get involved, the more our clients get involved, so on and so forth.”
“This year we’ve got the weather on our side, the sun looks beautiful coming through the palace. So you can come in, have a look around and have a coffee in the cafe”.
Spending hours last year talking to visitors about the furniture, he highlighted that despite people being interested in purchasing some items on display, he enjoys talking with the public about the craftsmanship behind the art.
With the palace being next to Restoration Yard cafe within the Dalkeith Country Park grounds, it allows for a great day out visiting both the exhibition and the country park
The Scottish Furniture Makers Exhibition offers a free look at beautiful be-spoke furniture alongside a wander through Dalkeith Palace which is rarely open to the public, allowing for a unique day out.
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