Wood Types: A Guide to Types of Wood for Furniture
All of us have at least one piece of wood furniture in our homes, and it’s easy to see why. This durable material is both stylish and versatile, so whether you prefer subtle minimalist décor or bold and bright interior design, it’ll fit in perfectly with your taste. But while we often think of wood as a category in itself, there are actually a variety of different types of wood to choose from.
Whether you’re planning on buying a new piece of wood furniture sometime soon or you just want to know the wood types you already have, this guide is perfect for you. Here we’ll help you find out all about the different types of wood for furniture, how they compare, and which ones come out on top. Read on to find out all about the following:
Hardwood
If you’re looking for a wood that is both incredibly beautiful and durable, you can’t go wrong with a type of hardwood. Also known as solid wood, this type of wood is found in broadleaved trees which lose their leaves every year. As the material is so dense and durable, hardwood is used for high-quality and long-lasting furniture.
Properties of hardwood
One of the main properties of hardwood is the density of the material. In fact, some types of the wood are so dense that they can sink in water. This density can make them difficult to work with when crafting, although there are a number of types of hardwood which are easier to work with, such as mango wood.
As well as being a dense material, it’s incredibly durable which is why it’s such a popular choice for furniture. Although you may find hardwood pricier than other types of wood, it is a long-lasting material so you know that you’ll get your money’s worth from it through the years. Not only is the durability of hardwood great in a practical sense, but it will stay looking good for longer too. The density makes it resistant to chipping, scratching, and splitting.
It isn’t just the durability and density that help hardwood look great. The beautiful material comes in a variety of warm and rich shades that work with a wide range of interior styles, from contemporary to rustic. Hardwood tends to come in darker shades, but lighter hues are also available so you should be able to find something which suits your style.
Another aesthetic factor of hardwood which many people love is the distinct look of the material. Hardwoods come with unique grain patterns which can add a lot of character to a piece of furniture, and can help you distinguish different types of hardwood.
What is hardwood used for
The material is a popular choice for a variety of different types of wood furniture thanks to the durability of the material. However, there are a wide range of other hardwood uses too, with it being commonly found in construction, fencing, and musical instruments. It’s also a popular choice of flooring as it is hard-wearing and resistant to scratches in comparison to other types of flooring, such as softwood floorboards and vinyl.
Types of hardwood
When it comes to choosing a solid wood for your next furniture purchase, the good news is that there are plenty of types to choose from. The following are some of the best and most popular options on the market:
- Mango: Derived from a mango tree, this is a particularly dense hardwood in a beautiful golden brown colour and comes with a distinct pattern and dense grain to make it a popular choice for furniture.
- Sheesham: Also known as Indian rosewood, sheesham oak is low maintenance, durable, and comes in beautiful shades of golden and deep red brown.
- Oak: This is one of the most common types of hardwood used in furniture. There are a variety of types available, including red oak, cherrybark oak, and English oak.
- Mahogany: Known for its distinctive deep red-brown hue, mahogany is an attractive wood which can be buffed to create a beautiful shine.
- Ash: This type of hardwood comes in a lighter shade to many others with a beige hue. It also tends to be lighter in weight.
Softwood
While hardwood comes from broadleaved trees, softwood can be found in conifer trees which have cones, such as pine, spruce, and fir. These trees also keep their leaves year-round, unlike the broadleaved trees used for hardwood.
Properties of softwood
Despite the many benefits of hardwood, it’s actually softwood that you’ll find most often when shopping for furniture, with it making up an impressive 80% of timber products on the market[i]. This is down to a number of reasons, such as the wood being easier to manipulate and craft with, it being easier to source, and it being lighter weight. While softwood furniture does tend to be cheaper than the hardwood variety, this doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a more cost-effective option. As it is much less durable than hardwood, it tends to not last as long. The less dense wood is much easier to chip and scratch so you may end up replacing it far earlier than you first thought. When it comes to appearance, softwood tends to be lighter in colour than hardwood and can come with a pale yellow hue. While this has its own charm, it can be difficult to replicate the warmth and richness of hardwood. If you want to have a darker shade of softwood you can use a wood stain, but be careful to do so evenly as blotchy staining can look a lot worse than no staining at all. You will also notice a difference in the appearance of the grain between these two wood types. Softwoods tend to have less prominent and distinct grains as they don’t have pores like hardwood.What is softwood used for
There are a number of uses for softwood. As well as being used in furniture, you can also find it in cladding, window and door frames, and flooring. It’s also commonly used in smaller household items and decorations, such as picture frames.
Types of softwood
Just like with hardwood, there are a variety of different types of softwood to choose from, each with their own look and characteristics. Here are a few of the most popular types used in furniture:
- Pine: You’ll have likely come across pine before as it’s one of the most commonly used woods in inexpensive furniture. There are a variety of different types, including yellow pine, white pine, and ponderosa pine.
- Cedar: This distinct light softwood with red-pink hues is a popular choice for outdoor furniture as it’s resistant to rot.
- Redwood: Redwood is naturally resistant to moisture, making it another popular choice for outdoor settings.
- Fir: The red-brown Douglas Fir is one of the stronger types of softwood. This wood is commonly used in construction.
How hardwood compares
After learning about the properties of softwood and hardwood, you’ll likely already see the many benefits of using the harder, denser, and more durable material for indoor furniture. But to get the full picture, read on to discover how the material compares to a variety of different types of wood when used in furniture.
Hardwood vs softwood
In a contest of softwood vs hardwood, it’s safe to say that hardwood will usually come out on top. Many believe that softwood will give you the best value for money, but that actually isn’t true a lot of the time. Although it will be a cheaper option to start with, over time softwood easily succumbs to wear and tear. A solid wood desk or chest of drawers can withstand much more use than softwood alternatives, with them being more resistant to the scratching, scuffs, and chips which can occur with everyday use. If you’re looking for an investment piece that you won’t have to replace for years and years, hardwood is definitely the right option for you.
That being said, softwood does have a number of benefits. For example, softwood can be a fantastic option for outdoor pieces. Many types of softwood are anti-rot and resistant to moisture, so they can do a good job at withstanding the elements. And while it often doesn’t come with the beautiful variety of rich colours that hardwood comes in, the material is great for decorating as it’s naturally very porous and can absorb a lot of stain.
Solid wood vs engineered wood
Engineered wood is a man-made material comprising of a variety of things bound together, such as sawdust, wood fibres, and scrap lumber. To make the wood more attractive, a layer of wood veneer is often used to give it a more polished look. Wood veneer can be made from both hardwood and softwood, with the most common types being beech, ash, fir, and oak veneer. You’ll most often find veneer used on furniture such as dining tables, coffee tables, and desks, as well as in flooring and cabinets. There are a number of different types of engineered wood, including plywood and particle board.
Just like any material there are a variety of pros and cons of engineered wood furniture. Some of the attractive benefits include the material being more affordable in the short term, being lighter which makes it easier to transport, and being a sustainable option as it uses up scraps which would otherwise go to waste. Plus, the wood veneer layer means that it can look a lot like the real deal too.
However in a contest of engineered wood vs solid wood, the latter comes out top for most when it comes to furniture. While the light weight of engineered wood makes it easier to move around, it also makes it much more susceptible to damage if moved a lot as it isn’t anywhere near as sturdy as solid wood. This means engineered pieces also tend to be weaker than hardwood, so they do not deal as well with heavy loads. And if you’re looking for an easy to care for piece of furniture, solid wood is again the best option as engineered wood requires more maintenance for it to last a long time.
As well as being less durable and dense in comparison to hardwood, most wood veneer isn’t coated with surface polish. This means that spilt liquids can be absorbed through the thin layer of wood and damage the board underneath, which can be difficult and expensive to fix.
Plywood vs hardwood
Plywood is a type of engineered wood. It comprises of at least three (but often more) thin layers of wood, known as veneers, which are glued together. Plywood can be made of both hardwood and softwood, as well as a mixture of both.
Like most types of engineered wood, plywood furniture tends to be cheaper than true hardwood alternatives. But you’ll get what you pay for as hardwood is denser and much more durable — even plywood which is made up of a lot of thin sheets is often less dense. Another issue you may find with plywood is that over time the layers can come apart, especially if exposed to heat and humidity.
Hardwood is a better choice for many types of furniture, but particularly for bookcases, shelving, or any kind of storage solution which will be home to heavy objects. This is because over time plywood can bend in the middle when cut into long pieces. On top of this, it will be much more difficult to fix this damage as solid wood is generally easier to repair. So, while plywood is a great inexpensive material to use for construction, solid wood comes out on top here.
The best types of wood for furniture
When it comes to different wood types, the properties of hardwood clearly make it one of the best materials when it comes to crafting sturdy and stable furniture. But there are a variety of types of hardwood available, so how can you narrow it down? While most hardwood types will make great materials for furniture, the following three are some of the best options.
Mango wood
Mango wood is a hardwood from mango trees, evergreen trees which grow in a number of countries, including India, Myanmar, and the Caribbean. There are a number of benefits to mango wood, one of which being the sustainability of the natural material. Many types of hardwood trees take a long time to regenerate, which can be bad news from a sustainability standpoint. Mango trees however only take 15 years. As farmers plant new mango trees every 7 to 15 years, a sustainable plantation and harvest cycle is created.
As well as having the typical durability and density of a hardwood, mango wood also has the beauty. You can identify the distinct material by the natural grain which enhances the wood with beautiful and unique patterns. The wood is usually light to golden brown, but it can also be discoloured by
spalting, which is caused by fungi growing in the wood and taking nutrients from it. This can create dark dotted patterns, make the existing patterns even stand out even more, and leave colourful streaks of yellow and pink to create a truly distinctive piece of wood.
We stock a fantastic variety of mango wood furniture at Casa Bella, such as our Dakota Mango, Oslo Light, Oslo Honey, Shimla, Farmhouse, and Imari Industrial Mango collections. And if you want to find out more about this beautiful hardwood, make sure to give our mango wood FAQs a read.
Sheesham wood
Sheesham wood comes from a tree known as Dalbergia sisso, Indian rosewood, and is grown in India, Iran, and Pakistan. Sheesham is one of the most sought-after types of wood as it can last a lifetime if cared for well. It is also one of the easier types of hardwood to carve, meaning that you can find beautifully crafted pieces of furniture made from this durable material.
If you’re trying to identify Sheesham wood, one of the best ways to do so is by the material’s appearance, which is part of the reason it is such a popular wood type. The wood ranges from rich golden brown to a deep, dark red-brown, often with dark streaks, pronounced grains, and knots which give the piece character. You’ll find a varied and beautiful collection of Sheesham wood furniture at Casa Bella, such as in our Cuba Sheesham and Mandir Sheesham ranges.
Acacia wood
This strong and reliable wood is found on acacia trees, which are native to Australia but now also grow in other tropical areas, including in parts of Africa, Asia, and South America. Just like mango wood, one of the many benefits of this type of wood is that it’s more flexible and easier to work with than many other hardwood varieties. On top of this, the wood is highly resistant to fungus growth. It’s also considered to be one of the most durable types of wood around, and is heavier than sturdy oak, making it a popular durable choice for furniture.
You can identify a piece of acacia wood by the distinct marking of the material. Most of the time the wood can be found in a medium to deep dark brown, and it often comes with the curl grain which creates a wavy pattern. You can find this beautiful and distinct wood in our Malmo Stonewashed Acacia range.
After reading this guide, you should feel confident in choosing the type of wood that’s right for you next time you go furniture shopping. Here at Casa Bella, we have an excellent collection of top-quality and durable hardwood furniture for you to explore. Our pieces cater to a wide variety of interior styles, so whether you prefer a dark contemporary style like our Dakota Dark Mango collection, or a light Scandi style like our Oslo Light Mango range, we’ve got you covered.
At Casa Bella you can find durable and stylish new furniture for your living room, dining room, bedroom, or even your office. Shop our fantastic array of bookcases, dining sets, side tables, cabinets, chest of drawers, and much more today.