A studio built around quiet proportion and warm material character.
Aurel House creates contemporary pieces for homes that prefer softness over spectacle, and permanence over the pull of trend cycles. Every decision we make returns to the same question: does this feel like it belongs?
FOUNDER'S NOTE
"We didn't set out to build a furniture brand. We set out to find furniture we actually wanted to live with — and couldn't."
— Clara Aurel, Founder
DIRECTION
Where we are going, and how we intend to get there.
VISION
A world where the objects we live with are made to last, not to be replaced.
We believe the furniture industry moves too fast, produces too cheaply, and discards too readily. Our vision is a quieter alternative: homes filled with considered objects that grow more meaningful over time, not less. Not a collection that needs refreshing every season, but a foundation of pieces that feel better the longer they stay.
MISSION
To design & build contemporary furniture with quality of a bygone era.
We accomplish this by working in small production runs, selecting materials that age well, and refusing to add a piece to the collection until it has been refined to the point where there is nothing left to remove. Every piece must earn its place — in the collection, and in the homes that receive it. That discipline is the mission.
HISTORY
Eight years of considered work.
Slow growth by design. Each step taken only when the craft was ready.
2018
The workshop opens.
Clara Aurel rents a 900 sq ft workshop in Chicago's Wicker Park and begins work on the first three prototypes — a sofa, a dining table, and a side table in oiled oak.
2019
First eight pieces.
The foundational collection launches quietly with eight pieces. A small editorial feature in Kinfolk magazine introduces the studio to a wider audience.
2021
The showroom opens on Mercer Row.
A permanent appointment-based showroom opens on Chicago's near north side. The space is designed as an extension of the collection — every surface and finish chosen from the same palette.
2023
The Solace Sofa.
The studio's defining piece is released after two years of development. Deep seat, walnut plinth, softened edges. It becomes the centre piece of the current collection and the piece most often requested by new clients.
2025
Forty-two pieces, one showroom, no compromises.
The collection reaches its current depth. The studio employs seven people. The workshop and showroom remain a single location in Chicago, and all production decisions remain in-house.