Many people have questions about the correct choices they should make , in order to choose wood for their wooden furniture and for them , money isn’t a problem .

Many people who are “inside” the woodworking activity , want to have high certainty that their furniture will last for many decades and have the same beautifulness , as they were in the first days .

The best wood in the ranking for furniture creations if you don’t have any money issue , are the “hard” types of solid wood and then they follow the “soft” types of wood and after that , a variety of wood type mixtures .

The mahogany , ebony , oak ( and the Japanese one ) , teak(super strong) , walnut , hickory , maple , beech , birch , cherry tree , zebrano , pear wood , chestnut and tropical wood are some of the most beautiful and popular , “hard” types of wood , you can choose for your projects .

Have you ever see well made expensive luxury wooden furniture , made from veneer , plywood and other industrial wood , only ?

Many times the cabinet makers “dress” the more “common” and cheaper wood to veneer layers , in order to give them expensive looks and prestige .

A kitchen made by solid walnut – cherry – mahogany wood gives enormous warmth and prestige , than a creation from MDF , dressed with walnut – cherry – mahogany veneer layers .

Of course it isn’t a bad thing to use industrial wood “dressed” with hard wood ( cheaper for sure ) , but the hard solid wood will always be the winner .

They have higher prices to buy than the “soft” types of wood , or the engineered types( MDF , HDF , particle boards ,et.c ) .

I’ve written a post for the types of wood , you can read it in , HERE .

What wood have the biggest Durability for furniture ?

This depends from many factors( weather , soil , sun , moisture , et.c ) , but usually the “hard” types are agina the winners . They are more durable during time because of their higher densities and their molecules structure .

Especially if they have inner fluids , smell , resins which are making them very resistant to bugs and fungi .

The cypress tree is one of them and especially the Greek cypress tree of Crete has a very good reputation against the bugs . The Parthenon roof is made from cypress wood and has no problem till nowdays .

See in HERE what 2 types of wood you should avoid for your outdoor furniture . They bring out color in wet conditions .

Can any wood be used for furniture ?

Yes , for sure any kind of wood can be a very nice wooden furniture piece , depending on your needs , desires , money , use ( indoor – outdoor ) , joint techniques you want to apply , finishing results you like to give to your woodworking project .

There is no “law” that tell you to do specific “things” . You can use whatever wood type you like to create your wood projects – furniture .

Of course you should have in mind that , if you use more cheaper and “common” wood , you won’t be able to compete the wooden furniture made from solid expensive wood parts , having elite joinery , et.c.

If you want to remember the criteria and the “secrets” to identify the quality of your furniture , read in HERE .

What are the Advantages of the “hard” Wood types ?

1) The “hard” types need more time to grow in order to be in the correct time for cutting and use , that’s why they are more rare than the other types .

2) The “hard” types also have bigger densities than the “soft” ones and they prefered from the cabinet makers and the wood carvers , exclusively . You can carve and sculpture with your chisels and the rest of your carving carpentry tools , very precise and “surgical” .

3) The “hard” types of wood have better acoustical properties than the other ones and if you’re creating musical instruments , this factor is a major one .

4) The bigger density the “hard” types” have in general , makes them more flexible to the big variety of the finishing and protecting products , you can use above their surface . Of course if they contain oils , the finishing is more complex .

I have some top product suggestions for natural finishing with less chemicals as oils & waxes go , HERE .

5) The bigger density also , gives them also better “behavior” to drill , shape and carve them , in order to create the designs you want , no matter how artistic and difficult , using CNC machinery or whatever .

6) A “hard”type of wooden furniture , will last more years , having the same stability.

7) The furniture from “hard” types of wood are way more heavy than the other ones(bigger density) and this is a woodworking “law” . Heaviness gives big prestige to the furniture and this a major factor to identify your furniture’s origin .

8) The connections – joints and their “behavior” to fasteners , are more stable and in general has serious advantages . A strong surface with massive density and strong molecule bonds , can “handle” more easily your methods and techniques , to connect it with another one .

The “hard” types wood pieces , makes better and more stable connections , between their surfaces .

As you can imagine , a stronger wood surface gives you the ability to make your drills , cuttings , mortises and connections between 2 surfaces , more easily .

In a soft wood piece , you cannot make holes very closely to its edges , because the danger to destroy these edges is big .

If you like to see more factors , concerning the identification for wooden furniture , read it in HERE .

The Combination of Industrial wood and “soft” types , can create acceptable quality’s Furniture ?

Yes , certainly you can have very nice furniture if you combine the industrial wood and some of the “soft” types of wood . This approach is very popular among the cabinet makers .

They combine either more cheaper wood dressed with expensive veneer , or industrial wood parts with more expensive veneer , to control the price of their wooden furniture .

Furniture from industrial( plywood , MDF , HDF , OSB , chipboards ) and the “soft” types( pine , spruce , fir , et.c ) of wood exist , but they cannot reach the advantages of the “hard” types of wood made furniture , of course .

If the plywood has at least 10 layers of veneer it has the proper quality , to be a good’s quality wood furniture .

**remember : many layers of veneer glued together makes the plywood , marine plywood , et.c .

Keep woodworking .