Who Is SL Design ?

Sven Langer is the man behind SL Design. Born in Germany where he trained in metal design, he worked for more than a decade as a ‘spengler’, restoring church towers throughout Germany and parts of Eastern Europe, before moving to Australia.

It was here, in the relaxed beachside suburb of Manly on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, that he was inspired fuse his experience using metals to restore gothic architecture with Australian timber to create his unique collection of home and office furnishings.

Each piece is crafted entirely by hand, using zinc, copper and aluminium metals imported from Europe and timbers that are sourced locally. Using a technique he learned in his ‘spengler’ days restoring church steeples, Sven’s creations are both elegant and durable.

Sven the Spengler

In English, the word ‘spengler’ roughly translates to ‘roof plumber’. The spengler trade has been around for about 1000 years, and in Germany it’s only the most highly-skilled metal designers who become spenglers.

Spenglers work to mould, shape, and crew metals for the rooftops of some of Germany’s most famous skylines: the gothic steeples of its churches and cathedrals.

Sven worked on cathedrals and churches in Germany for more than a decade before moving to Australia where he restored St James Church in Sydney.

Sven draws on this experience of crafting beautiful, ornate creations from metal that must also be durable and long-lasting, for this work as the man behind SL Design.

How SL Design Works

As SL Design, Sven is the proud creator of bespoke furnishings, and each of his designs are tailor-made to complement the environment in which they’ll eventually inhabit.

Sven tries to meet with all of his customers to gauge which piece would be most suitable for the customer and the space. A typical designer at heart, he sometimes even sketches up an idea for a customer right on the spot.

He’s also happy to nut out the details for a piece with customers over the phone or by email, so if you would like to make one of Sven’s creations the centrepiece of your home or office – or even someplace else – contact him to discuss all of your requirements.