Byebyelove’s upcycled furniture is both beautiful and useful

23 Sep 2020

From a garage in Torbay, Heike Rzehulek-Schmitt and Jeanine Oxenius bring new life to unloved furniture. Known for their artistic hand-drawn designs, their bold use of Resene colours and their dedication to the principles of reduce, re-use, recycle, the pair are doing their bit to show how rewarding and beautiful upcycling can be.

Originally from Germany, Heike and Jeanine work mostly with mid-century furniture made in an era when furniture was made with loving care, precision and solid bones. That loving care underpins how Heike and Jeanine approach each of their refurb projects. “These pieces deserve the opportunity to shine again. Often they’ve survived a century with barely any wear and will do it again with a little bit of care and know-how,” they explain.

To transform this side table Heike and Jeanine used Resene Hippie Blue, Resene Surfie Green, Resene Guru and Resene Aquarius with trims in Resene St Kilda.

The pair say they’ve used over 100 different Resene colours in their upcycling projects. The shades they reach for time and time again include Resene Deep Teal, Resene Hippie Blue, Resene Surfie Green, Resene St Kilda and Resene Guru because “They reflect the beautiful colours of our ocean.”

Heike and Jeanine describe the delightfully distinctive designs that adorn their pieces as “artistic free form designs” and love working with their clients to collaborate on the colour palettes used to create their nature inspired motifs. Typically the designs feature tonal schemes using shades from the same colour family. The result, bold eye-catching patterns that masterfully straddle the line between retro and modern.

For this piece, named ‘True Blue’, Heike and Jeanine used a colour palette consisting of Resene Aviator, Resene Deep Teal, Resene Bingo, Resene Surfs Up and Resene St Kilda.

To source their ‘diamonds in the rough’, Heike and Jeanine draw on the connections they’ve cultivated across the country, but also trawl TradeMe and Facebook Marketplace for potential treasures. An extra special treat is when they get the opportunity to work on a heritage piece from a client’s family collection.  

To create these sleek nest tables Heike and Jeanine used Resene Rice Cake, Resene Atomic, Resene Gunmetal and Resene Raven.

Like with all good paint jobs, Heike and Jeanine know the secret to getting the perfect finish on their stunning creations is recognising that the prep work is the most important. They take time to find furniture that is in good condition and prep it properly so it’ll last a lifetime. Resene Wood Primer is their best friend!

For more on Byebyelove’s work see their website.

Published: 23 Sep 2020