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What Makes Wood Interesting? Part II: Figuring

5/23/2016

3 Comments

 
PictureWood with figure.
   Here at Stable Tables, we pride ourselves on our ability to produce table designs that our clients love. We thoughtfully design dining room, coffee, cocktail, console and side tables based on your custom needs. We strive to do our best in order to create and to build you the table of your dreams. But, we cannot create beautiful tables without beautiful wood.

    One option for our clients is to order a table with wood that has “figuring”. Think of figure as grain with spunk. Wood figure can result in a myriad of stunning patterns that can resemble tiger stripes, ripples and swirls, just to name a few. Wood
figure can appear curly or tiger striped when grain direction varies, thus reflecting light differently. This flame-like pattern can commonly be seen in maple.  If you cut across the grain of wood where several sections of the tree split, the figure of the wood can look as if it was fused together. This pattern is most commonly seen in cherry, mahogany and walnut. Another type of wood figure can result in a swirly pattern. This happens when the grain swirls around and begins to fold in on itself. 

    Wood figuring can take its natural course under several circumstances. For instance, the tree could suffer injury or disease. When the trunk of a tree begins to twist,  figure can form. Ambrosia maple often receives its figure from invading ambrosia beetles. The beetles create holes through the tree and as they journey through the wood, they leave behind dark, streaky lines. These streaks leave behind marks and character that can make for a stunning table. Finally, sometimes growths develop on trees. When this happens, the growths may begin to pile and crowd on top of each other. This process can result in a three-dimensional, quilted and swirling pattern. 
   Every variation of wood figuring creates differences in color that allow for the patterns to really pop. Tables with wood figuring are an excellent addition to any home!



3 Comments
Mom
6/11/2016 10:27:15 am

John has the Chiodo genes. His great-grandfather owed a lumber mill in Calabria. Chestnut wood is plentiful so many cabinets and various other pieces were made from this easily accessible wood. before the trousseau came the armoire made of chestnut wood. He was the only cabinet maker in the Italian province of Catanzaro.

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Luna Foster link
2/10/2017 04:31:56 am

Thank you for posting. Wood must be one of humanity’s oldest natural resources. It has helped keep us safe, comfortable and warm for millions of years. But trees graced our beautiful blue planet long before our ancestors were a twinkle in the universe’s eye.

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Ashlee Moody link
11/24/2020 09:21:29 pm

Great blog post.

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