Solid Wood Furniture

If you like basic, unadorned quality when you furnish your home, try solid wood furniture that has durability and style. Cherry wood with a light tint is a good choice for your living room and dining room. Your kitchen counters and tables can be made of pine, which is insect resistant and gives a subtle, refreshing aroma. Make sure that you are purchasing quality pine furniture, since the knots tend to show in less expensive pine furniture. However, some prefer these dark knots, since they give solid wood furniture a more rustic look. Pine also has the advantage of being a very light wood, both in weight and in shade, and is great for a unit that can be rolled from room to room.

Many associate solid wood furniture with oak, since it is the sturdiest of all woods and is prized in antique solid wood furniture for its tendency to take on a dark, rich color with edge. Investing in an old-fashioned oak roll-top desk with small compartments in the front, drawers on the side, a sturdy-backed chair with wheels and a matching file cabinet is a good choice if you want to acquire an heirloom as well as a functional piece solid wood furniture.

Mahogany is a much sought after material for solid wood furniture. The highest quality mahogany is from Spain, and it can be stained in a variety of shades. Mahogany in a dark, garnet shade is the type of wood most often used in Asian solid wood furniture; look for a classic Chinese chest of drawers with scenes painted on the outside or designs on the edges.

Pennsylvania is known for its hard woods and for its Amish population which means that solid wood furniture is a major industry in Pennsylvania, particularly around Lancaster County. The Amish are master furniture craftsmen, but if you are paying top dollar for your solid wood furniture, ensure that you are purchasing items made by actual Amish craftsman and not pieces that are merely “Amish style”.



 
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