Antiques – Wood Basic principles

Oak, mahogany, walnut, pine, rosewood, maple, elm you might have some or all of these woods in your household. But, do you know how to notify the distinction between them? In this month’s column, we are going to talk about the unique sorts of wood that are frequently found in antique home furniture and some typical decorative treatment options.

The Fundamentals
Wooden is tough or comfortable. When I say really hard, I signify that the wooden is dense, while, a soft wooden is supple. A good trick to notify the difference in between difficult and gentle wood is that if you press your fingernail into a gentle wood these types of as pine, it leaves an indentation. But, this does not come about with a difficult wood these kinds of as oak.

Wood is coarse-grain or close-grain. In coarse-grain wood, the age rings in the wood are much a section, providing it an uneven appearance. In shut-grain woods, the age rings in the wood are really close collectively, supplying it a sleek, delicate look.

In some cases, wooden is stained. Lighter woods these as oak, elm and maple can be stained to resemble a darker mahogany or rosewood.

Some woods (mahogany, rosewood, burl walnut) are perceived to be much more precious than other woods (elm, maple, spruce). The cause for this is availability. Woods that need to have to be imported are far more high-priced than property-developed woods. Woods that are considerable are not as high-priced as woods that are scarce.

Oak
Oak is a coarse-grain really hard wood observed in Europe and North The united states. Setting up in 17th century Europe, oak was applied to make home furnishings observed throughout the dwelling. There are numerous types like crimson oak and white oak. Younger oak is pale in shade. But, over time and with sharpening, oak darkens into a abundant brown colour.

Mahogany
Mahogany is a close-grain difficult wood native to northern and central South The united states and the West Indies. Mahogany was a well known choice in England for the duration of the mid-18th century for fantastic home furniture producing. It is a darkish pink shade at times, even so, it is darkish brown. Pink mahogany is observed in the West Indies and brown mahogany is indigenous to South The united states. Mahogany furniture continues to be fascinating these days.

Rosewood
Rosewood is a shut-grain tough wood indigenous to India, South America and the West Indies. Rosewood is named for the rose scent that releases when it is slash. From time to time, I come across that individuals confuse rosewood and mahogany. Each woods can be purple in colour. Having said that, when you glimpse intently at rosewood, you will see fantastic black (and at times white) rings that are not existing in mahogany. A different trick to inform if an merchandise is rosewood is to pick it up. Rosewood is a very weighty wooden, heavier than mahogany. In the 17th century China, rosewood was a preferred alternative for great furniture makers. As effectively, in 19th century Europe, it was made use of to construct improved-top quality furnishings for fantastic houses.

Walnut
Walnut is shut-grain tough wood observed in Europe and North The us. The coloration may differ from light-weight to a really prosperous golden brown colour and it is not unusual to locate walnut stained to seem like mahogany. In some cases, disorder leads to the sudden. Burl walnut, the most prized variety of walnut, effects from a sickness that attacks the tree resulting in a attractive scrolled, shut-grain. These times you see the seem of burl walnut replicated in the plastic interiors of some better conclude cars.

Pine
Pine is a pale, knotted smooth wooden with a huge, straight grain. It grows in Europe and North The us. Pine was often employed in furniture meant to be painted. Day to day household furniture – kitchen tables and chairs -were being usually designed from pine.

Maple & Elm
Maple and elm are coarse-grain challenging woods identified in North The us and Europe. They have been usually used in utilitarian furniture. Generally a veneer of a finer wood was utilized to these woods.

Veneers
Veneering is a method in which a very thin sheet of a additional highly-priced wooden is glued to a fewer high-priced wooden. Applying considerably less high priced woods such as elm and maple and incorporating a a lot more highly-priced mahogany or walnut veneer permitted furniture makers to deliver home furniture that was affordable for a bigger clientele. You may hear an antique dealer say “This table is walnut on maple.” The vendor implies that the product has a walnut veneer and beneath the genuine item is maple. A walnut on maple desk is less worthwhile than a stable walnut desk.

How do you tell if your household furniture is veneered? Glance at the edges of the piece. If you see what appears to be a seam, it is veneered. On the other hand, if the edges of the piece are seamless, it is sound.

Early veneers from the 17th century were being hand-lower, so they could be uneven. But, in the 19th century veneers started to be cut by device. This authorized the veneers to be reduce extremely slender and even. Based on the way the wood is slash, veneering produces diverse results. Butterfly veneering takes place when two opposing end grain veneers are diagonally slash from a branch. They are utilized to mirror just about every other.

Marquetry/Parquetry/Inlay
Marquetry is a procedure where a variety of varieties of wood are utilized to a surface to create a photo. Flowers and birds were being generally the subjects. Exotic woods this kind of as ebony, satinwood and tulipwood had been frequently employed.

The difference concerning marquetry and parquetry is the subject matter make any difference. Parquetry is a veneer that takes advantage of geometric styles. Currently, you see it in parquet hardwood floors and ornate chess and backgammon boards.

Inlay is a ornamental cure where by supplies other than wooden are slash into a layout. Inlays have been frequently built of bone, ivory, mother of pearl, brass, tortoise shell. Marquetry, parquetry and inlay 1st appeared throughout the Italian Renaissance.

Gilding
Gilding is a procedure whereby gold leaf is utilized with gesso (a plaster-like substance) to wood. It is hugely decorative and was common all through the Italian Renaissance and the Louis period in France.