The headrest cushion is filled with duck down, the upholstery is in leather and the frame is made from oak.

As comfortable chairs go, they don't come much better that the creation in Charlie Caffyn's workshop in Bristol.

"I'm a massive reader," explains Charlie. "I love sitting reading a good book with a cup of Earl Grey tea beside me.

"I started thinking about the sort of chair that I'd like to sit in to read a book in, and this is what I came up with. I've called it the Biblio Chair."

At a time when many manufacturers are trying to make things as cheaply as possible , or are producing flat-pack furniture that customers have to put together themselves, Charlie has decided to go the other way.

"I've decided to go for the high end of the market," he says of the chair, which is made to order.

"The idea was not to scrimp on anything. You need a big wallet, and a big house for this chair.

"There are five choices of colour for the leather – vanilla, marble, malt, chocolate and espresso – and I've gone through six or seven prototypes to get the right ergonomic design so you're in a comfortable reading position with support for the muscles at the back of the neck."

As Charlie, 35, shows me the Biblio Chair – which costs £1,905, plus VAT – his dog Jack wanders into the workshop and then goes out again to his kennel.

Charlie built a kennel for Jack that is reminiscent of the one in the Snoopy cartoons, and it is even painted.

The wood that Charlie uses in his Biblio Chair, and his other products, is sourced from sustainable sources wherever possible.

His description for his company, Charlie Caffyn Designs, which he set up in 2006, is "innovative design that doesn't cost the earth".

Charlie – who took a BA Hons in furniture design at Ravensbourne College of Design in London – says: "There are two meanings to this.

"Firstly, the products are reasonably-priced for what they are, but also they are environmentally friendly.

"I use wood from managed forests wherever possible, instead of metal and plastic. I think people have a natural affinity with wood."

It was partly because of Charlie's belief in craftsmanship – and partly because of his desire to have a better quality of life – that he gave up a successful but demanding career in the Far East to return to the UK and set up his own business.

He had been living in Hong Kong, representing a leading nursery furniture manufacturer and visiting their factories in China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Vietnam.

"I be travelling around visiting factories during the week, then I'd get back to my flat at the weekend, sort out my laundry and emails, and then go off again on Monday," he says.

"Then I met Emily, who is now my wife, who was working in marketing at the BBC in London. We decided we needed a better quality of life and both handed in our notice.

"Some friends of ours had moved to Bristol; another was moving near to Bristol. I came to help them move, and had a look around and decided I didn't want to stay in London.

"We came to Bristol in 2004, with the intention of starting up my own design company. I started off doing consultancy work, and then began doing my own designs."

The couple now live in St Werburghs, and Charlie has a workshop in Montpelier.

Before moving to Hong Kong, Charlie worked as a furniture and product designer in London, designing nursery products for leading brands such as Mothercare and John Lewis.

Charlie has gathered a team of local craftsman to make his Biblio Chair, including an upholsterer, a seamstress and a cabinet-maker.

"I've found some fantastic local talent," he enthuses.

Charlie is also doing bespoke cabinet making, and is presently working on a buggy design.

"It was a big decision to give up my job in Hong Kong, but I've no regrets about making the move to Bristol," he says.