| ody"> | | | | rich golden brown color and it is not uncommon to |
| Oak, mahogany, walnut, pine, rosewood, maple, elm; | | | | find walnut stained to look like mahogany. |
| you may have some or all of these woods in your | | | | Sometimes, disease leads to the unexpected. Burl |
| home. But, do you know how to tell the difference | | | | walnut, the most prized form of walnut, results from |
| among them? In this month's column, we'll talk about | | | | a disease that attacks the tree causing a beautiful |
| the different kinds of wood that are regularly seen in | | | | scrolled, close-grain. These days you see the look of |
| antique furniture and some common decorative | | | | burl walnut replicated in the plastic interiors of some |
| treatments. | | | | higher end cars. |
| The Basics | | | | Pine |
| Wood is hard or soft. When I say hard, I mean that | | | | Pine is a pale, knotted soft wood with a wide, |
| the wood is dense, whereas, a soft wood is supple. | | | | straight grain. It grows in Europe and North America. |
| A good trick to tell the difference between hard and | | | | Pine was often used in furniture intended to be |
| soft wood is that if you press your fingernail into a | | | | painted. Everyday furniture - kitchen tables and chairs |
| soft wood such as pine, it leaves an indentation. But, | | | | -were often made from pine. |
| this does not happen with a hard wood such as oak. | | | | Maple & Elm |
| Wood is coarse-grain or close-grain. In coarse-grain | | | | Maple and elm are coarse-grain hard woods found in |
| wood, the age rings in the wood are far a part, | | | | North America and Europe. They were frequently |
| giving it an uneven appearance. In close-grain woods, | | | | used in utilitarian furniture. Often a veneer of a finer |
| the age rings in the wood are very close together, | | | | wood was applied to these woods. |
| giving it a smooth, delicate appearance. | | | | Veneers |
| Sometimes, wood is stained. Lighter woods such as | | | | Veneering is a technique where a very thin sheet of |
| oak, elm and maple can be stained to resemble a | | | | a more expensive wood is glued to a less expensive |
| darker mahogany or rosewood. | | | | wood. Using less expensive woods such as elm and |
| Some woods (mahogany, rosewood, burl walnut) are | | | | maple and adding a more expensive mahogany or |
| perceived to be more valuable than other woods | | | | walnut veneer allowed furniture makers to provide |
| (elm, maple, spruce). The reason for this is availability. | | | | furniture that was affordable for a larger clientele. |
| Woods that need to be imported are more | | | | You may hear an antique dealer say; "This table is |
| expensive than home-grown woods. Woods that are | | | | walnut on maple." The dealer means that the item |
| abundant are not as expensive as woods that are | | | | has a walnut veneer and underneath the actual item |
| scarce. | | | | is maple. A walnut on maple table is less valuable than |
| Oak | | | | a solid walnut table. |
| Oak is a coarse-grain hard wood found in Europe and | | | | How do you tell if your furniture is veneered? Look |
| North America. Starting in 17th century Europe, oak | | | | at the edges of the piece. If you see what appears |
| was used to make furniture found throughout the | | | | to be a seam, it is veneered. On the other hand, if |
| home. There are several varieties including red oak | | | | the edges of the piece are seamless, it is solid. |
| and white oak. Young oak is pale in color. But, over | | | | Early veneers from the 17th century were hand-cut, |
| time and with polishing, oak darkens into a rich brown | | | | so they could be uneven. But, in the 19th century |
| color. | | | | veneers started to be cut by machine. This allowed |
| Mahogany | | | | the veneers to be cut very thin and even. Depending |
| Mahogany is a close-grain hard wood native to | | | | on the way the wood is cut, veneering produces |
| northern and central South America and the West | | | | different effects. Butterfly veneering occurs when |
| Indies. Mahogany was a popular choice in England | | | | two opposing end grain veneers are diagonally cut |
| during the mid-18th century for fine furniture making. | | | | from a branch. They are applied to mirror each other. |
| It is a dark red color sometimes, however, it is dark | | | | Marquetry/Parquetry/Inlay |
| brown. Red mahogany is found in the West Indies | | | | Marquetry is a technique where various kinds of |
| and brown mahogany is native to South America. | | | | wood are applied to a surface to produce a picture. |
| Mahogany furniture continues to be desirable today. | | | | Flowers and birds were often the subjects. Exotic |
| Rosewood | | | | woods such as ebony, satinwood and tulipwood |
| Rosewood is a close-grain hard wood indigenous to | | | | were frequently employed. |
| India, South America and the West Indies. Rosewood | | | | The difference between marquetry and parquetry is |
| is named for the rose scent that releases when it is | | | | the subject matter. Parquetry is a veneer that uses |
| cut. Occasionally, I find that people confuse | | | | geometric patterns. Nowadays, you see it in parquet |
| rosewood and mahogany. Both woods can be red in | | | | hardwood floors and ornate chess and backgammon |
| color. However, when you look closely at rosewood, | | | | boards. |
| you'll see fine black (and sometimes white) rings that | | | | Inlay is a decorative treatment where materials other |
| are not present in mahogany. Another trick to tell if | | | | than wood are cut into a design. Inlays were often |
| an item is rosewood is to pick it up. Rosewood is a | | | | made of bone, ivory, mother of pearl, brass, tortoise |
| very heavy wood, heavier than mahogany. In the | | | | shell. Marquetry, parquetry and inlay first appeared |
| 17th century China, rosewood was a popular choice | | | | during the Italian Renaissance. |
| for fine furniture makers. As well, in 19th century | | | | Gilding |
| Europe, it was used to construct better-quality | | | | Gilding is a technique wherein gold leaf is applied with |
| furniture for fine homes. | | | | gesso (a plaster-like substance) to wood. It is highly |
| Walnut | | | | decorative and was popular during the Italian |
| Walnut is close-grain hard wood found in Europe and | | | | Renaissance and the Louis period in France. |
| North America. The color varies from light to a very | | | | |