About
SYML makes practical, beautifully finished homewares built to last... and then to be passed down, with each piece gathering stories and meaning as it goes. We see SYML's role as an antidote to the era of disposable consumption: everything we make is intended to be with you for life, and then some.
We live in a world that defaults to L. Large, fast, immediate, disposable. More before you've finished the last one. SYML is a quiet pushback against that, the idea that before you buy something, it's worth asking which size you actually need. Sometimes it might be large. Often it's not. Either way, choosing deliberately is the point.
All our materials are non-toxic and recyclable, and we source sustainably from across Aotearoa — whether recycled brass or stainless steel, timber that ranges from pohutukawa prunings and totara windfall, to river-salvaged kahikatea or 10,000 year-old kauri, even the material in each piece brings its own unique provenance.
We work with local partners and manufacturers, tapping into historic craft skills that in our view deserve to survive.
Our aesthetic is simple and honest. We don't hide what something's made of or how it was formed, as we consider the lifepath of the material to be integral to the beauty of the object.
Nothing leaves the workshop wasted. Offcuts become prototypes. Interesting planks, blocks, and stumps wait their turn.
We think carefully about what we make, and we'd gently invite you to think carefully about what you buy - ideally fewer, better things.
About Mark Lever:
Mark is the maker and the creative force behind SYML. Born in Auckland, raised in Tauranga, he's been based in Matakana since 2012, where his workshop adjoins six acres of native bush.
His path here was anything but direct: sous-chef in a Michelin-starred kitchen, award-winning photographer, advertising and documentary director. What connects it all is an inquisitive mind, a passion for collaboration, and a deep impatience with things made badly.
Mark is self-taught, endlessly curious, and genuinely angry about disposable design - making is his way of taking a stand.
In recent years he's expanded his focus to creating innovative lighting and architectural hardware with Daedalic Lightworks, creating pieces that are a joy to use, look exactly right, and will outlast him. That's not a boast. It's the whole point of all his work.
Mark is also a co-founder of Naked & Curious — the ecosystem within which SYML makes its home.