Wood Furniture—The Many Types and Definitions

May 22nd, 2008

Ah technology. We live in an age where people carry around their entire CD collections in a device the size of a deck of cards, digitally record TV shows to be viewed at their convenience, and conduct business globally with a few keystrokes and mouse clicks. “What does this have to do with furniture?” you may be asking. Well, technology has changed the construction of furniture greatly over the last 20-30 years. Wood furniture used to be easily defined. If a piece of furniture was made of wood, there was no question it was solid wood or pieces of solid wood fashioned together to form a table or chair or chest of drawers.

Today, solid wood furniture is becoming increasingly hard to find and can be very expensive. Veneers and engineered woods have become the material of choice for most furniture manufacturers, with terms like ‘medium density fiberboard’ and ‘hardboard’ replacing oak, maple, and birch. The following will hopefully clear everything up and tell you just how your next furniture purchase was made.

A piece said to be made of solid wood generally means that all exposed parts are made of solid board. No veneers or particleboards are used. Solid board can always be identified by following a seam to the end, where you find the “end” grain. A lot of veneers are glued over the edges to look like solid wood, but they are usually faced on the end and show no end grain.

All-wood furniture is not necessarily solid wood. In most cases, this means that veneers are used to achieve the look of solid wood. A veneer is a very thin layer of wood often overlaid on plywood or particleboard. The best quality veneers use solid wood cores for added strength and shock absorption.

Particleboard is made from grinding wood into very small chips and particles that are bonded with synthetic resins under heat and pressure to form hard panels. The most common type of particleboard used in furniture manufacturing is medium density fiberboard, or MDF. Another type of particleboard you may encounter is hardboard, which has a greater density than MDF.

It’s Time To Look At Outdoor Furniture For The Summer

May 22nd, 2008

If there is one thing that everyone wants to have for summertime, it is outdoor furniture, and so of course you are going to have to know where the best places are that you can go to where you will be able to find high quality outdoor furniture at great prices. You are certainly lucky in this regards because there are many different options that you have in regards to where you can go to find outdoor furniture, and so you can certainly at least rest assured in the knowing of this.The Best Places That you can go to for Outdoor Furniture
If you are trying to find outdoor furniture then you surely already know about the multitude of options that are out there, and so no doubt you are weary and unsure of which one to choose. It is quite obvious as to how this can be so overwhelming, and so thus it is also very understandable as to why so many people get so frustrated simply trying to choose the company that they want to put their business in.

One of the best things that you can do in order to help yourself out here is to read reviews on the companies that you are deciding between, and so what you want to do here then is figure out what the best couple of furniture stores are that sell items for the outdoors, and then read reviews on these particular companies so that you can see what customers’ opinions are on the stores, and thus so that you can get an idea as to what one you think would be the best of all for you to go to.

Some people think that this is a waste of time or that it is unnecessary effort but really in the end you will be saving both time and money, as rather than going around from store to store you will be able to just go to the one store, and because you have already done your research on it, you will thus already know that it has the item(s) that you are looking for.
Once you realize that this effort will be well worth it in the end, it greatly eases the entire process overall, and so you can really relax and enjoy the shopping process rather than dreading it and being frustrated over it.

How To Clean Wood Furniture

May 22nd, 2008

A room full of beautiful wood furniture brings warmth and elegance to any room, however, it’s inevitable that stains and mishaps will cause damage to your furniture. Maybe you wish to restore wood or wicker furniture to it’s former glory.Below are tips on cleaning and caring for your wood furniture to keep it looking beautiful for a long time.

Removing water stains on wood furniture – There are two way to remove a water stain from wood furniture. 1) lay a blotter cloth over the spot and run a warm iron over it until the stain is gone. 2) rub lemon oil into the spot, let set overnight, wipe the excess oil off.

Removing alcohol stains on wood furniture – any substance containing alcohol (drinks, medicines, cosmetics) can eat through wood finish quickly. When a spill occurs, grab a cloth and moisten it with lemon oil. Rub the spot with the cloth (if the spot is dry, remove with the same method as you wood a burn on wood).

Hide scratches on dark cherry or mahogany wood furniture – rub spot with a cotton swab dipped in iodine.

Hide scratches on unshellacked maple or light cherry wood furniture – rub spot with a cotton swab dipped in iodine diluted 50% with denatured alcohol.

Darken a scratch on wood furniture – scoop out the meat of a walnut and rub it gently on the scratch. Make sure you rub it directly on top of the scratch.

Remove scratches from oiled finishes on wood furniture – take fine steel wool and dip it into light mineral oil or boiled linseed oil. Rub in the direction of the grain. Let oil soak into wood, then wipe scratch area dry with a clean cloth.

Remove burns on wood furniture – obtain finely powdered pumice stone (check woodworking suppliers) and mix with linseed oil. Take a soft cloth and rub the burn, in the direction of the grain, with the paste. Keep repeating until burn spot disappears. This works best on light burns.

Remove glass rings from wood furniture – rub the rings with a mixture made of mayonnaise and white toothpaste. Wipe dry, then polish entire tabletop.

Remove spilled milk stains on wood furniture – dip a damp cloth in ammonia or silver polish and rub stain area. Wipe dry with clean cloth.

Cleaning leather furniture – wash furniture with a solution of 1/4 cup vinegar and a half cup of water. Next, wash furniture with saddle soap (available at shoe and hardware stores). Lastly, rub furniture briskly with a soft cloth.

Caring for wicker furniture – wicker tends to be dry and can get brittle or split. Place brittle wicker furniture inside a bathtub and drench with water to restore moisture. Keep wicker away from heated areas such as stove, radiator, and fireplace.

Furniture polish tips – 1) polish furniture often with a lint-free cloth moistened lightly with furniture polish. 2) use furniture polish sparingly. It’s the rubbing motion (or elbow grease) that is the real secret to maintaining a great shine. 3) stick with either an oil or wax based furniture polish. Using both on the same piece can cause smudges and blotches. 4) remove wax build up by moistening a soft cloth with synthetic turpentine, mineral spirits or liquid polish, and cleaning entire surface.

Adding Style to Your Patio and Garden

January 17th, 2008

While almost maintenance-free, outdoor wood furniture does need nominal attention primarily a yearly cleaning in order to remove any accumulation of dust. Wood outdoor furniture’s charm is in its durability and warmth and its utilization of natural materials. Flexible wood outdoor furniture is available in a variety of types, from very adorned to austere and modern. Garden benches are counted as the more standard pieces of outdoor wood furniture and can be found on many decks around the world. Well-made wood outdoor furniture is always a valuable element of to your porch or yard, regardless of style. Outdoor wood furniture comes in in various designs from rustic to elegant, making it simple to find items to match your own tastes. More shapeable than marble, wood outdoor furniture can upgrade a porch or terrace while providing more stylistic options. The benefits of wood outdoor furniture far outweigh the limitations, which may include a higher price and the bulkiness of the pieces. Inviting wood outdoor furniture, by many considered more stylish than resin garden accessories, can be found in hardware stores, online, and at antique shops. Properly treated wood outdoor furniture can be as good as maintenance-free, a definite blessing to the bustling homeowner. While essentially maintenance-free, outdoor wood furniture does have to have some consideration including a yearly cleaning in order to eliminate any accumulation of dust. A high-end garden pergola can be a valuable component to a family’s deck or yard, whatever the style. Obtainable in myriad woods, wood outdoor furniture can be sought for hue, heaviness, or the exciting designs varying types of wood can be wrought into. The advantages of wood outdoor furniture far outweigh the limitations, which can involve a higher initial expense and the weight of the items. Rocking chairs are among the more standard items of outdoor wood furniture and may be seen on verandas around the country. The personality of wood outdoor furniture makes the illusion of adding an extra dining room to your condo, pulling the benefits of indoors into the open air. An outdoor Adirondack chair is available in various styles from country to fashionable, making it easy to purchase pieces to suit one’s personal style. Wood outdoor furniture, a standard of backyards for years, is always an attractive option when deciding on patio furnishings. Versatile wood outdoor furniture is obtainable in a mishmash of cuts, from very adorned to clean and modern. Those searching for select outdoor wood furniture often pick wood workers renowned for the quality of their construction and the beauty of the hardwoods they use.