Crafting Limited-Edition Audio Cabinets for Ruark Audio.

Bespoke Marquetry and Fine Finishes for Ruark MiE

At Storm Furniture, our trade manufacturing work often brings together traditional cabinetmaking, marquetry and specialist finishing with contemporary product design. One particularly rewarding example has been our work with Ruark Audio, producing specially crafted cabinetry for a number of limited-edition and collaborative audio projects.

Through Ruark’s MiE – Made in England – collection, we have worked on distinctive versions of products including the R810 MiE and R5 MiE, applying decorative marquetry, carefully selected veneers and fine finishes to transform the cabinetry into something particularly special.

These projects are a good example of how traditional furniture-making skills can be incorporated into a modern manufactured product.

Marquetry Meets Modern Audio Design

Creating decorative cabinetry for high-end audio equipment requires a different approach from conventional furniture making.

The cabinet already has a very specific purpose. Dimensions, openings and component positions need to remain precise, while the decorative work has to complement the original product rather than overpower it.

For these limited-edition Ruark projects, the marquetry and finishing were developed to work with the proportions and detailing of the existing cabinets.

Individual veneers are carefully selected, cut and assembled before being applied to the cabinetry. Considerable attention is given to grain direction, colour and the relationship between the individual pieces of veneer.

The result is a surface that has the character and individuality associated with handmade furniture while remaining completely at home on a contemporary audio product.

Ruark R5 MiE

The R5 MiE project provided an opportunity to introduce detailed decorative veneer work to one of Ruark’s established audio designs.

Working across the curved cabinet required accuracy throughout the veneering and finishing process. The marquetry needed to flow naturally around the form while maintaining the clean appearance expected of the finished product.

Once the decorative work was completed, the cabinets were carefully finished to enhance the colour, depth and figuring of the timber.

Ruark R810 MiE

Our work has also included cabinetry for the larger R810 MiE.

At this scale, the decorative treatment becomes an important part of the overall appearance of the product. Veneer selection, pattern placement and finishing all need to be considered across a much larger surface while maintaining consistency from one cabinet to another.

Although these are limited-production pieces, each cabinet receives the same attention to detail that we would give to an individual piece of bespoke furniture.

Collaborative Limited-Edition Radios

Alongside the MiE projects, we have also produced specialist cabinetry and decorative work for smaller Ruark radios created as part of collaborations involving other luxury British brands, including LINLEY.

For these projects, we acted as the maker responsible for translating the design into the finished physical cabinetry.

Projects of this kind can involve working from drawings, renders and supplied design concepts, selecting suitable veneers and materials, developing the marquetry and resolving the practical details required to manufacture the finished product.

Manufacturing for Designers and Established Brands

Projects such as these demonstrate the type of specialist manufacturing we can provide for designers, manufacturers and established brands.

Storm Furniture can work from an initial concept, drawing, CAD information or visual render and help develop it into something that can actually be manufactured. Where necessary, we can also adapt construction details while preserving the appearance and intent of the original design.

Our capabilities include fine veneering, marquetry, specialist cabinetry, detailed woodworking and high-quality spray finishing, allowing several stages of a project to be handled within one workshop.

We can undertake one-off prototypes and presentation pieces as well as small and medium production runs where consistency between pieces is essential.

Combining Traditional Craftsmanship with Modern Manufacturing

What makes projects such as the Ruark MiE collection particularly interesting is the combination of two very different disciplines.

Precision-manufactured modern audio equipment sits alongside techniques such as veneer selection, marquetry and hand finishing that have been used by cabinetmakers for generations.

For us, that combination is exactly what specialist trade manufacturing should offer: the ability to take an established product or a designer’s idea and add something genuinely distinctive through materials, craftsmanship and attention to detail.