Advantages to Having Wooden Furniture in Your Space

Wooden furniture is timeless. Although the advent and acceleration of the industrial revolution brought about quite a large magnitude of change within the norms, the introduction of elements such as Aluminum, Steel, and Glass, however, didn't much affect the usage and importance of wood as an extremely vital component of furniture. Listed below are five major advantages of choosing wooden furniture over any other for your home/office décor.

Never use all-purpose sprays unless your solid wood furniture has a plastic or protective coatings, such as the kind on children's furniture and kitchen tables. 

Wooden Furniture is Eco-Friendly

Not only does wooden furniture contribute toward making your space look alive and beautiful, it is also hugely eco-friendly which should be a big plus point considering that any more damage to the environment at this point would only mean sabotage! There are absolutely no side-effects of wooden furniture so one can rest assured.

Low Maintenance

Aside from being eco-friendly, wooden furniture requires very less maintenance in terms of appearance and quality compared to steel, glass, plastic or aluminum, another advantage to being considered. Dusting your wooden furniture now and again, probably get a wax/polish every two years and you're good to go. Since wooden furniture is always easy on your budget, half your problems are solved right there!

High-Flexibility

Wouldn't it be great if you could keep experimenting with the look of your office, living room or bedroom every now and then without having to invest too much time, energy or well, 'moola'? 'Course it would be! So, one of the most exciting advantages to wooden furniture is that it can be modified with great ease. It's in your bedroom today, tomorrow you could want to put it out on the deck, in the lobby or outside in the garden: wooden furniture would still look as amazing as it did where you first put it. All this: without having to waste too much time or having to spend a buck.

Durability

Another advantage to having wooden furniture in your space is the fact that it is easy to keep. There is never an opportunity for termites or fungus to attack the wood and rot it because of its high durability. Wherever you keep it (indoors or outdoors) you're never going to have to worry about your wooden furniture getting damaged. Also, note that wooden furniture is tolerant of all weather conditions: meaning it will be just fine irrespective of the season and if you have it set outside, you don't have to bring it indoors or even keep it in storage.

Natural and Gorgeous
Aside from all the other advantages that are associated with wooden furniture, the one that is obvious is that wooden furniture can do to your space what nothing else can. It is natural and looks classy and sophisticated in whichever part of your space it is set. Wooden furniture draws attention to the key attributes of the décor of your space and will always reflect authenticity through its naturally antique form.

Why Solidwood is better than Plywood for Furniture?

Never use all-purpose sprays unless your solid wood furniture has a plastic or protective coatings, such as the kind on children's furniture and kitchen tables.
With the advent of newer options every day, furniture buying has turned into a real chore. There are many factors to keep in mind while buying furniture like- the types of material, qualities and strength, durability, flexibility, different styles, finishes and colors and much more.

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SOLIDWOOD VS PLYWOOD

Plywood is an engineered wood made by gluing several layers of veneers in different directions. These veneers are obtained from logs of wood which are peeled into thin layers of sheets.

However, Solid wood is natural wood obtained from trees. The trees are firstly decked after which the timber logs are cut in saw mills to smaller sizes. These blocks of wood are directly used for making furniture and other wood products.

STRENGTH

Solid wood definitely is considered to be stronger as compared to plywood as it is a homogeneous material. Whereas plywood is made up of sheets that are glued together. If at all the Glue shear strength is low, the veneer sheets will soon come apart.

APPEARANCE

Appearance wise too, no wood can beat the look and feel that solid wood delivers. Like Sheesham wood, the most popular solid wood is not only known for its strength and durability but also for its appearance- the straight wood grain patterns and brown color.

Plywood by itself is not a decorative product like solid wood. It needs to be covered by other decorative material to enhance the product which involves additional cost and efforts too.

DURABILITY

Plywood and solid wood, both are quite durable products. But durability mainly depends on the type of the wood used for plywood and solid wood.

Better the plywood is, the longer its life will be. For solid wood, hardwood like Sheesham wood or teak wood is stronger and durable than softwoods like Mango wood.

PROBLEMS WITH PLYWOOD

The problem with these types of wood is that they are much easier to damage. Scratches and water stains cannot be repaired. There is an added risk of cracking and warping occurring within modern centrally heated homes as engineered wood does not expand and contract like natural wood does. Furniture made from engineered wood does not last as long as solid wood furniture and has to be replaced much more frequently.

HOW TO IDENTIFY PLYWOOD

Apart from reading labels carefully, you can also identify engineered wood by the weight of the furniture. It will be much lighter than solid wood furniture. The exterior and interior of the furniture will not match. Lifting the furniture and looking at the base of the legs is another good indicator.

WHY SOLIDWOOD IS BEST

Solid wood is by far a much better choice for homeowners. It may cost more than furniture made out of engineered wood but will last much longer making it much better value for money. Engineered wood furniture, no matter how well made, can never possess that patina of age, and luxurious elegance that solid wood furniture achieves. It will simply never look as good. If you want to want a chic, upmarket home style that says quality and elegance to everyone who enters your home – then solid wood furniture is essential.

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Many owners of wooden furnishings these days have very little or no knowledge as per the correct means to caring for their pieces of furniture. The dilemma is all pervasive: should you dust, clean or wax….? While all the experts around will have varying opinions on how to tend to you wooden furniture, it basically depends on the finish of the piece of furniture. One way to clarify how to go about the care of your product is to ask for specific care and cleaning guidelines when you purchase a piece of furniture.
The general methods to cleaning and caring for your pieces of wooden furniture both old and new and how as to effectively go about them are all discussed in detail below.

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1. DUSTING :

Do not ever avoid dusting a piece of wooden furniture. Frequent dusting helps eliminate airborne deposits that may build up a filmy layer and scratch the surface of your furniture.
Use clean, dry, soft cloths or feather dusters to effectively remove dust; however, to avoid scattering the dust into the air, which results in it floating back down onto the surface of the furniture, dampen the cloth very slightly.
For dusting purposes, you may use tools such as classic feather duster for delicate objects like silk lampshades and pieces of art. The use of treated clothes is advised rather than silicon-based sprays, which can be very damaging over time to finer pieces of furniture. Use cloth pieces containing lanolin as they attract dust and dust cling on well to them.

2. CLEANING : 

Never use all-purpose sprays unless your solid wood furniture has a plastic or protective coatings, such as the kind on children's furniture and kitchen tables. 
Always avoid cleaning wooden furniture pieces with water. Sticky spots may need to be treated with soap and water. In such cases dip the cloth in a mild soap or detergent dissolved in water. Make sure the cloth is nearly dry by wringing it dry before wiping the affected area. Once done, immediately wipe the area affected on the furniture, dry it with a soft, clean, dry cloth.
You may carry out the cleaning of your wooden furniture with the use of oil polishes, cleaner and furniture oils, which protect the wood by making the surface slippery. Most sprays and polishes available commercially contain silicone oil, which offers some protection, as far as possible avoid using them, especially on fine pieces of woodwork. While many experts will advise you to use homemade recipes, avoid making them yourselves unless you are well versed in the art.

3. DEEP CLEANING: 
From time to time deep cleaning of your furniture will be required to remove layers of grime. In such an instance use an oil based soap and water. Rinse and dry well. Products with a milky appearance are formulated and available commercially. They dissolve both solvent-based and oil-based residues. Do not ever use mixtures that contain boiled linseed oil, turpentine or white vinegar. They darken the wood and attract dust and lint. Instead, apply paste wax.

4. SCRATCHING THE SURFACE: 

Scratches are something everyone experiences with wooden furniture. It annoys most wooden furniture owners. If it is the top of the furniture that is slightly scratched you may apply paste wax or use a felt-tip touch-up pen.

For the treatment of deeper scratches that gouge into the wood, use wood filler or a colored filler wax stick available at hardware stores or home improvement stores. Sadly difficult to get in India one may try ordering them online. Match them as closely as possible to the color of your furniture piece, applying several thin layers rather than one thick layer.