Needless to say, the types of furniture you place in your home is a crucial aspect of the interior design. With luxury designs, furniture generally is wooden unless you are going for a more post-modern look and feel which you can then integrate metals.
The type of wood you use can say a lot about the furniture and generally dictates the tone and color of the room. Let’s take a look at the different types of woods typically available in furniture making, and the benefits of each one.
Oak – The oak tree is sort of the industry standard of furniture making. It’s strong and a very dense wood, which makes for sturdy furniture. Oak also has a natural resistance to rot and insects, which adds the value of creating furniture of oak.
Pine – Aside from that nice scent, pine grows really fast comparatively to other woods, which makes it a sought after soft wood. Pine furniture is generally cheaper due to the abundance and ease of replacement.
Walnut – Popular for furniture creation, this wood is hard and dense, making for sturdy furniture designs. There’s a lot of variations in color as well.
Maple – Certain varieties of maple have interesting grain patterns, making them very popular for tables and shelves and other types of furniture that can show them off. Not all maple’s are like this and you can’t tell until the tree has been cut in half, making it more rare and sought after when creating unique wood furniture.
Cherry – Cherry trees are deep in American furniture traditions (the old George Washington adage may have something to with or be the result of this). Generally dark in color, this wood is sought after when wanting a dark reddish tone to their furniture.
Mahogany – Dark wood, this is best known for its reddish shine when sanded. Mahogany wood is also good about resisting wood rot so it is a sought after wood for both its beauty and resistance to decay.
Poplar – A hardwood used for cabinet doors and other items that do not require a lot of weight. These trees are typically tall; among the tallest in the Americas.
Teak – Teak is a tall hardwood having origins in South and Southeast Asia. Quality antique furniture made out of teak (anteak?) are among the most sought after by collectors and luxury homes. Teak is also very resistant to termites, making it even more valuable.
Spruce – A softwood tree, Spruce trees are very tall in stature. Spruce are generally used for paper but also for items that do not require a lot of weight placed on them.
Redwood – Redwoods are abundant in the northwestern part of the U.S., and generally are light-weight yet brittle. The Giant Sequoia is the most popular of the redwoods and is resistant to decay.
These are the more common woods found in furniture making. Other exotic woods are available as well, but choose them carefully. As they are exotic, they could come with a host of problems that the more conventional woods do not have. Wise choices in the types of wood for your indoor decor can keep your luxury home beautiful yet practical simultaneously.
