About

Sands Made is a product design workshop based in Victoria, Australia, founded in 2011 by Robbie Sands. All our products are designed in Melbourne, Australia and carefully handmade by a team of skilled local and international craftspeople. We produce the highest quality, environmentally friendly and easy-to-use products for the home and kitchen.

Our product range is available in retail stores in all major Australian cities and towns or via our online store. In addition to our homewares range we work with cafés, restaurants, catering companies, design studios and promotions companies to design and produce custom made and custom branded products. Head over to our wholesale page or contact us to find out more.

Product Development

When developing new products under our own label or for a client, each product follows a careful development process focussing on several key goals. The two most important outcomes are:

• Highest quality end product (durable, aesthetically pleasing, useful)
• Lowest environmental impact (sourcing raw materials, production, transport, use, disposal)

Quality is achieved by working with only the most skilled manufacturers, using the highest grade materials and implementing a strict quality control system. Most importantly, we ensure that each aspect of the product is well designed from the ground up.
Reducing a products environmental impact is achieved in several ways.
1: We ensure all timber and packaging is certified by one of the following organisations:

• The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)
• The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
• Timber Legality Assurance System (TLAS)

2: In addition to timber certification we research and discuss each available timber species with local environmental groups to ensure the selected timber is the best choice available to us.
3: Where possible we recycle timber and materials which would otherwise be discarded, a good example of this is our Cheese Paddle range which uses thin (24mm) strips of timber rather than large slabs. We laminate these thin strips together to produce structurally superior wooden boards and save timber which would otherwise be discarded.
4: Use biodegradable materials and avoid toxic glues, plastics, coatings and treatments.
5: Lastly, each product is designed to last. A well made wooden cutting board or serving platter will outlast generations of plastic alternatives saving huge amounts of unnecessary waste over the years. If you'd like your product renewed after a few years of heavy use, just get in touch!

Robbie Sands in the workshop
Photo credit: Sean Fennessy of The Design Files

Faceplate turning Space Plates from white ash

Custom branded packaging for Murray River Salt