Silverlining Furniture and Winch Design Transform Humble Cork into a Marine-Grade Coffee Table
The piece celebrates three decades of collaboration between the two design studios.
Photo: Winch Design, Cork Coffee Table in the Bridge Room at Winch.
Designed in collaboration with Winch Design and crafted by Silverlining for Winch Design’s London studio, the table is a masterclass in sustainable, marine-grade design. It brings together Portuguese cork with FSC-certified English olive ash—grown and sourced locally—and FSC-certified American black walnut. Both woods are finished with natural, plant-based oil, enhancing their natural aesthetic.
“Cork, though often overlooked, is a high-performance natural material with exceptional durability, capable of withstanding the demanding conditions of a yacht,” says Mark Boddington, founder and chairman at Silverlining Furniture. “Its inherent qualities—water resistance, hypoallergenic, and antimicrobial properties—make it an invaluable resource for marine design.”
Photo: Cork Coffee Table
Michael Noah, Associate, Architecture and Yachts at Winch Design, shares the story behind the piece: “A simple pebble Andrew Winch placed on my desk at the start of my journey here at Winch Design was more than a keepsake, it was a spark of inspiration. I’ve always dreamed of creating something meaningful from it. As we moved into our new studio, the time felt right to bring this vision to life. This coffee table is more than just a piece of furniture, it’s a legacy of Andrew's inspiration and a reflection of how small moments can spark ideas and creativity.”
The cork oak - from which the material originates - is native to the western Mediterranean, primarily in the Iberian Peninsula and offers profound ecological benefits. Each harvest stimulates the tree’s regeneration, enabling it to absorb three to five times more CO2 than unharvested trees. In Portugal alone, cork oak forests offset an estimated 10 million tons of carbon annually.
Photo: Winch Design, Cork Coffee Table in the Bridge Room at Winch.
Photo: Winch Design, Cork Coffee Table in the Bridge Room at Winch.
The table’s cork base is precision-milled using CNC technology, assembled into layered segments that graduate in texture and density and hand-sanded for a refined finish. This progression invites a tactile experience, from base to top.
The tabletop, crafted from quarter-cut solid olive ash, features a subtle oiled finish that highlights its natural grain. Accents of quarter-cut solid American black walnut provide gentle contrasts, adding depth and sophistication to the design.
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