Wood Design Home Improvement

Ready-to-finish furniture gives you a wide range of options that can meet all your furniture needs. Wood material is a choice that not only long life but also unique. Solid Wood means that all exposed parts of the furniture are made of solid board, either softwood or hardwood lumber. No veneers or particle boards are used. When solid boards are used in furniture construction, they are glued together side by side along the edges. Remember, “all-wood furniture” is not necessarily solid wood. A veneer can help you achieve the look you desire at a cost lower than solid lumber. Artificial veneers can be overlaid on plywood or particleboard. A plywood core is lighter, less expensive and more forgiving if damaged, but it can swell if it gets wet. If damaged, particleboard will often fracture because the material is so hard it cannot absorb a shock.

When you are ready to buy or already the shop, look at the drawer construction because it is generally a good indication of overall furniture quality. Some drawers have no guides. The lack of guides allows more “play” and can cause the drawer to bind when it is opened and closed. Others have wood-to-wood centre guides, nylon-to-wood centre guides, side-mounted roller guides or centre-mounted metal guides. Many drawers have glue-blocks to strengthen the bottom. Most ready-to-finish chests have wood drawer bottoms not always the case with refinished furniture. Now, as in the past, doweled and dovetailed drawer joints indicate a high degree of craftsmanship. However, modern machine technology, good bonding glue and pneumatically driven staples coated with resin have afforded savings in construction while providing durability.