Hardwood Classics for Your Home

Oak is native to the northern hemisphere and includes more than 400 species. It is a light colored timber, although there are exotic types of oak, some of them as stunningly different as vivid red. Oak is highly valued for its “mild breathing pattern”, meaning the average rate of dimensional expansion and contraction as humidity and temperature change is moderate, similarly to teak and the more expensive Merbau, both among the most mechanically stable hardwood materials.

Not uncommon in Europe and North America, Maple is native to Asia and there are about 125 species known to man. Typically, teak timber is white with a yellowish tinge, although sunlight and air can rapidly turn it to creamy white.

Believe it or not, Ash belongs to the olive family, along with olives and lilacs. It is interesting to know that its seeds, popularly known as “helicopter seeds”, are a type of fruit known as “samara”. The Ash tree family includes 60-70 species and their timber is harder than oak and beech-tree and its tranquil creamy color makes it really sought for.

Bamboo is an evergreen plant that is, actually, the largest member of the grass family and the fastest growing wood species on Earth (up to 48 inches per day) that, among the other things, flowers once per 60 -120 years. Its timber has a light, creamy yellow color and boasts exceptional hardness and wear resistance. Its proper sanding requires almost virtuoso skills, but eventually, you will be rewarded by having an astonishingly beautiful floor that will last.

Chestnut belongs to the same family as oak and beech and has a yellow to pale brown color that is often referred to as “scrumptious”. Chestnut is one of the timber types that require increased humidity to “breathe” properly.

Olive is a short, evergreen tree, native to the eastern Mediterranean with a beautiful creamy-amber timber, very often with tinges of red that is thick, yet easy to sand and produces a lovely, uniform surface. 

Teak is a tropical, hardwood tree of the mint family, native to Southeast Asia that is primarily used for boat decks or articles where weather resistance is vital. The high content on natural oils in its grains makes it exceptionally suitable for use in exposed locations, where pest-proof qualities are desirable and teak is virtually “immune” to decay. Its mild yellow-brown color makes it a great choice virtually anywhere.

Pear and sour cherry trees belong to the group of pink timber types, along with alder and beech trees. Pear is a member of the same family as apple and is native to the mildly temperate areas of the Old World, although amazingly, there are evergreen pear species that originate in present day Western China. 

Cherry is a close relative to plum, peach, apricot and almond trees that due to its lovely, pearly-pink color is one of the timber materials that internal designers simply love.

Beech is a genus of a dozen species native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America. Timber is easy to process and sand and dedicated heat treatment alters its color to a uniform, brown-pink, also known as “smoked beech”. 

Pine is resistant to mechanical deformations after being properly dried, which makes pine flooring dimensionally stable to rapid changes in humidity, although timber is not considered hardwood and can be easily damaged by insects and fungi. Pine is the longest living organism in the world and there are Bristlecone Pine trees that are 5,000 years old.