Meet the Makers
Our pieces begin in the workshop. Each maker brings a deep respect for timber, proportion and comfort; creating swing seats, benches, rope swings, day beds and pergolas that feel calm, considered and made to last outdoors.
Alex De Bono
Maker
Alex specialises in bespoke pergolas and on-site installations, often bringing together pergolas with swing seats and day beds for a complete garden setting. He’s highly experienced in shaping projects to suit both the space and the way you want to live in it.
James Amato
Maker
James makes swing seats and several of our best-loved bench designs, including the Knole bench and the RHS Four Seasons bench, alongside Rockabyes. His work is defined by clean joinery, comfort, and a quiet sense of presence in the garden.
Scott McCarthy
Maker
Scott crafts swing seats and rope swings, with a particular focus on the details that make a piece feel effortless in use — from the way it hangs to the finishing touches. He also produces the curved oak elements used for the Kyokusen designs, and is the maker behind our Affinity painted range.
Greg Shannon
Maker
Greg leads refurbishments and restoration, helping well-loved pieces return to their best. It’s careful, practical craft: preserving character, renewing surfaces, and extending the life of a seat that’s already been part of someone’s garden story.
Maisie Shannon
Seamstress
Maisie makes our soft furnishings — sewing cushions, covers and mattresses so everything feels as comfortable as it looks. She works with our core outdoor fabrics (including Agora and Sunbrella) and the specialist materials used for day bed mattresses.
Tom Oughton
Maker
Having graduated from Lyme Regis boat building academy, Tom has been working alongside Woodscott since 2016. Taking inspiration from the beautiful Dorset countryside, he has a passion for all things traditionally handcrafted.
Steve Wood
Maker
Steve is our specialist carver, known especially for the intricate work on the RHS Four Seasons bench. From delicate motifs to more bespoke requests, his carvings add a personal, lasting signature to the piece.
Meet the Sitting Spiritually team
Behind every commission is a small, attentive team — here to make the process feel unhurried and clear, from first enquiry to delivery and aftercare. We believe you’re choosing a feeling as much as a product: sanctuary, calm, and time well spent outdoors.
Rob Fellingham
Managing Director
Rob oversees the business with a focus on quiet standards: the way we communicate, the way we build, and the way we look after customers. His priority is keeping the experience as considered as the craftsmanship; calm, responsive and consistent from start to finish.
Nick Hunter
Sales & Operations Manager
Nick keeps everything moving smoothly between enquiry, specification and production. He’s your steady hand through the details; making sure choices are clear, timings are well-managed, and each commission is coordinated with care.
Alex Rowe
Chief Business Development Officer
Alex develops relationships and opportunities that protect what makes Sitting Spiritually distinctive: British craft, enduring materials, and a sense of sanctuary in the garden. He works across partnerships and growth, always with the brand’s long-term feel in mind.
Lillie Filtness
Marketing & Social
Lillie shares the Sitting Spiritually world as it’s meant to be experienced — the light, the timber, the gentle movement, and the slower moments our pieces invite. Her focus is on telling the story with restraint and warmth, keeping the mood calm and editorial.
Chris Rumsby
Workshop Manager
Chris prepares the practical essentials that make every installation seamless. For each commission, he puts together the correct fixings and hardware and sizes chains where needed — ensuring everything arrives complete, consistent and ready for assembly.
Meet the Founders
Sitting Spiritually began with a simple belief: that the garden can be a sanctuary, and that beautifully made seating can invite people to slow down and savour life outdoors. This is the spirit Martin and Celia brought to the brand — and the foundation that still guides how we design, make and care for every piece today.
Martin Young
Founder
Martin’s vision was simple and quietly radical: a garden seat shouldn’t just fill a space, it should change the pace of it. He shaped Sitting Spiritually around enduring materials, refined proportion and the gentle comfort that invites you to linger. Now retired from day-to-day life in the business, his influence remains in the things that matter most — the calmness of the design, the integrity of the build, and the belief that a piece should live outdoors for years, mellowing beautifully with time.
Celia Young
Co-Founder
Celia helped define the feeling of Sitting Spiritually as much as the furniture itself. With an instinct for atmosphere, she shaped the way the brand speaks and the way customers are looked after: measured, thoughtful, never rushed. Her eye for detail — from how a piece is presented to how it fits into real garden life — still runs through everything we do. Though now retired, her influence endures in our quiet standards of care, clarity and considered elegance.
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