A woman views an Italian style tire-shaped ceiling lamp at a recent tailor-made interiors exhibition in Beijing.[Provided to China Daily]

The price appeared steep, but the couple agreed. They shared exacting specifications on size, shape, material, color and paint type. They even drew a sketch to explain their ideas.

The custom furniture firm's designer then used software to visualize the shelf which the couple found quite satisfying. Two weeks later, the three-month shelf-hunting mission reached a happy ending.

More and more consumers such as Yang prefer to install custom cabinets, furniture, wardrobes and fittings. Such products' market size may reach 160 billion yuan by the end of 2020, according to a report in March by the China National Furniture Association.

Given the current high property prices, consumers feel an acute need for optimizing residential interiors to improve quality and comfort of living. Tailor-made interiors also help make homes unique and personalized. Interior design has become "a fast-growing sector in recent years", the CNFA report said.