We organized a workshop on leftover materials and furniture making. Our goal was to show that leftover materials are not simply waste, but often become classified as “waste” in the first place as a result of standardized production processes and specific notions of quality.

The central questions were: Why do leftover materials arise in the first place? How can we efficiently process and repurpose these structurally generated material streams so that they can become high-quality materials again? And how do design and planning processes change when we consistently work with materials that are already available?

After a brief introduction to the topic, participants got hands-on and, with guidance, explored the different steps involved in processing and reusing leftover materials.