What is solid wood?

"Solid wood” furniture means that all exposed parts of a piece of furniture are comprised of wood. The frame and inner parts may be made of other materials. Because timber cut from trees is not the size or shape required for wood furniture, bonding is used to join pieces together. The bonding process is used to prevent warping, splitting and other issues that plank wood will experience throughout the years.

In many cases a plywood sheet will be surfaced with a high-grade veneer. The use of plywood (as opposed to solid wood) in furniture construction can be quite beneficial. Construction of 5-ply or 7-ply boards can offer great strength, stability and durability. Most plywoods are stronger and lighter than solid wood. For these reasons, manufacturers sometimes use plywood in non-visible areas of solid wood furniture construction where strength is paramount. This mostly applies to higher end furniture, as lower cost products tend to use paper veneer over particleboard.

Plywood, MDF, and Particleboard:

The use of non-solid wood products is probably the most maligned and misunderstood aspect of furniture construction. As wood is porous by nature, solid wood used for construction of wooden furniture has a tendency to expand and contract as humidity changes. In constructing the large flat panels that make up the tops of tables or the sides of cabinets, solid wood may not offer the necessary stability. Plywood and products manufactured of ground up wood are significantly stronger and less apt to warp or split. Large flat panels will often be framed in solid wood and covered by veneers to recreate the look of one large piece of wood. MDF is often compared to Particleboard, where in reality they have very little in common. MDF is superior to Particleboard in every way, except its price. MDF is a very dense type of wood material made from very small, fiber-like particles, particleboard has very large particles and it tends to be looser than MDF.

Solid wood veneering

The beautiful grain you see on the top of a wooden dining table or dresser is usually a wood veneer - a slice of wood selected for its outstanding character. Dating back to ancient Egypt and Rome, veneering became commonly used in the 17th Century. Today the use of veneers is found at every price level of wood furniture. There are many advantages to veneering. More expensive woods, which would be impractical or fragile to use as structural parts, are frequently used as veneers. For example, Crotch Mahogany, often utilized in eighteen century designs to give that fiery look to the front of a Chippendale armoire could not be utilized structurally due to its gnarled character. The use of "veneering" is a time-honored technique in furniture construction. It involves using layers of decorative woods "bonded" on the top and bottom of "ply" construction. Veneering allows manufacturers to match fine grain wood sections and to use inlays of various woods to create beautiful designs that cannot be found in solid woods. Ply construction increases the strength and resistance to warping, and is found in all price ranges including the most expensive wooden furniture on the market today.

Paper veneering

Some surfaces that look like wood on a piece of furniture may not be. Due to the high cost of veneering, a method has been developed that reproduces the grain of wood photographically. This wood image is then applied over the flat panels to simulate a wood surface. There are two ways to tell if what you are looking at is an engraved or printed surface. The grain will be perfect, with none of the flaws of nature, and the grain will have no variation in texture as one would expect from a piece of real wood. This process is being used primarily on the inside backs of cabinets where the manufacturers feel they can save a little without being obvious. However, on less expensive furniture, you might find engraved surfaces almost anywhere.

The drawbacks of engraved surfaces are that they are not repairable. The grain may come off when they come in contact with a solvent. If you are not sure, ask your furniture salesperson, which if any parts of the piece you are considering are engraved. This process is in most cases used on lower end furniture and it does have some drawbacks to solid wood veneering.

Solid Plank Wood

This type of surface is mostly used on country, mission, and farmhouse furniture. Solid plank wood works well for these styles because of their simplicity and lack of detailed carvings or pattern surfaces. Above all, imperfections and scratches only add character to the already distressed and casual look. Because of a tendency to "flex," solid plank wood is not used or recommended on more formal types of furniture.

Finish

Furniture finish is one of the most overlooked features during a furniture purchase. Proper staining is essential. With this your furniture will yield years of shine and color depth rather than quickly peel and crack. It has been said that a piece of furniture looks only as good as its finish.

Most of the fine wooden furniture sold today goes through a finishing process involving many steps. After the piece is thoroughly sanded, a stain is either sprayed or wiped on. Sometimes the grain is "highlighted" using steel wool. If the furniture piece is traditional in design the wood is given an aged look through distressing or fly specking. Distressing and fly specking can be achieved using anything from a chain with bolts to a paintbrush dipped in black paint. Hand rubbed, also known as a wiped finish is by far the preferred way of staining furniture. Sprayed finish will usually hide the natural grain and usually does not penetrate as well.

*Information has been provided from various sources and does not necessarily represent Breuners.com views or opinions.