Woods and Finishes Glossary
 

 
Alder: A hard strong wood resembling maple easily stained to imitate darker woods.

Antiquing: A process to make wood furniture look aged by applying a glaze of color, then rubbing it down to revel the original color underneath. The process can be enhanced with crackle varnishes creating the texture of cracked and aged paint.

Apple wood: A fine fruitwood used in colonial furniture.

Ash: A native hardwood, used widely for furniture frames because of its strength and durability. Ash has a prominent oak-like grain and also resembles hickory or pecan.

Aspen: Light-colored white poplar with a lustrous surface.

Beech: A hard, strong wood, similar in appearance to maple. This relatively inexpensive wood is often used for frames, bent or turned parts, and veneers.

Birch: One of the toughest American woods, with fine grain and pleasing light tone similar to maple. Birch can offer a variety of grain patterns and can be stained to resemble walnut or mahogany.

Book Matching: The process of placing sheets of veneer side-by-side, like the pages of a book, to create a symmetrical pattern or mirror image.

Brazilian Rosewood: Reddish-brown wood with distinctive dark markings varying from deep purple to black.

Burl: Highly figured veneers from trees with knots.

Cedar: Fragrant, knotty softwood used mainly to line chests and drawers.

Checking: The appearance of wide cracks or splits in wood caused by expansion and contraction due to humidity changes.

Cherry: A hard and sturdy wood with a reddish-brown tone and tight, straight grain. Cherry resists warping and checking and is easily worked. It is used in 18th century American and French styles, both as a solid and veneer.

Conifers: A category of trees, mostly cone-bearing evergreens, including pine, spruce, and fir.

Crotch Veneer: A highly-prized veneer cut from just below the crotch of a tree.

Distressed: Furniture that is marred to create the appearance of age and use.

Douglas fir: Light, strong wood used primarily for drawer linings and bottoms.

Dust panels: Linings between drawers to keep clothing cleaner by eliminating the migration of dust and other materials.

Ebony: Dark black wood, hard and fine grained. Used primarily for veneers and inlays.

Elm: Tough wood with an ash-like grain, used mainly for furniture frames.

End matching: The process of placing sheets of veneer end-to-end to produce a continuous pattern.

Engraving: The process of printing a pattern or wood grain design on a panel.

Face Veneer: The top layer of veneer, as seen in the finished product.

Fiddle back: A wavy-grained wood pattern.

Figure: The characteristic markings found in wood solids or veneers.

Finishing: A multiple-step process of applying coats of materials like stain, paint, lacquer, and oils with frequent sanding in between. This protects wood from the effects of humidity changes and makes it more beautiful.

Four way matching: The combination of using book and end matching to create a large pattern of veneers.

Frames: Woods used for the frames of upholstered pieces like sofas and chairs. Frame woods must be strong, able to resist shocks, and not twist, warp, swell or shrink. Ash, birch, oak, gumwood and poplar are among the most popular.

Fruitwood: A generic name for woods like apple, cherry and pear.

Hackberry: An elm-like wood with a light blonde color.

Hardwoods: This is more a category of woods cut from deciduous trees than an actual designation of hardness.

Hickory: Hard, tough and heavy wood used as a veneer and in structural elements requiring strength and thinness. Pecan is a species of hickory.

Inlay: A design set into the surface of furniture by inserting contrasting woods or other materials into tiny grooves or channels.

Kiln-drying: The process of slowly drying cut lumber in a kiln to gradually eliminate moisture from the center to the outer surfaces. Kiln drying prevents future cracking and checking.

Lacquer: Varnish that takes on a very high polish. It is applied in a series of thin layers, each of which must be dried and sanded before moving on to the next layer.

Linseed Oil: Oil extracted from flax seed, an ingredient in paints and varnishes.

Mahogany: Close-grained with excellent woodworking and finishing qualities, mahogany is a red-brown wood closely associated with formal 18th century and Victorian furniture. It's used both as a solid and for veneers. Crotch mahogany is a veneer cut from beneath the fork of the tree, is known for its handsome markings.

Maple: An extremely hard, fine-textured wood used extensively for American colonial furniture and contemporary furnishings. Color is basically light although some maple has a reddish cast; it can also be stained to simulate cherry wood which has similar grain. Birdseye and wavy maple grain patterns have provided highly prized veneers since the 18th century.

Marquetry: The process of covering an entire surface with a pattern of inlays set into veneer. Materials include contrasting wood veneers, metal and mother of pearl.

Myrtle: A light to rich brown burl with intricate and curly grain.

Oak: A strong, hard-wearing wood with a pronounced texture and grain that's emphasized when quarter sawn. It is the most popular wood for country, casual and Mission furniture.

Oiling: Applying several applications of linseed oil to finish woods with good natural color.

Parquet: Geometrically patterned inlays usually made from woods of different colors or tones.

Patina: The warm glow which age, use and care impart to wood surfaces.

Pecan: A type of hickory with a strong grain pattern usually stained a medium dark color.

Pickling: The process of rubbing white paint into previously finished wood.

Pine: Soft, knotty wood used as a solid wood on country or rustic furniture.

Prima Vera: A light colored wood also known as white mahogany.

Quarter Sawn: A method of sawing a log into quarters lengthways to obtain strong, distinctive grain patterns. Especially associated with Mission furniture.

Rattan: A thick vine used in manufacturing casual furniture. Rattan is bent into larger shapes or cut into the core material for wicker.

Redwood: A highly durable wood valued for its strength and wood working qualities. Redwood is also popular for outdoor furniture because it weathers well and is highly resistant to decay.

Rosewood: Dark red brown wood with prominent black graining.

Rubbed finish: A finish polished with both abrasives and lubricants for a superior surface and reduced sheen.

Satinwood: Light colored wood with handsome feathered features. Used as cabinet wood and for veneer inlay work.

Seasoning: Removing moisture from wood through the drying process.

Slip matching: The process of placing sheets of veneer in side-by-side patterns to produce herringbone, diamond and checkered patterns.

Spruce: A light, strong wood that's easy to dry and glue, used as a core material under veneers.

Teak: A yellow to dark brown hardwood, so heavy, strong and durable that it's used for shipbuilding as well as furniture. Teak may show straight or figured grains and is used as both a solid and a veneer. It's popular in designs with simple clean lines such as Scandinavian modern.

Tulipwood: A species of rosewood, yellow toned with deep purple or red stripes.

Varnish: A hard, clear wood finish.

Veneers: Thin, decorative slices of wood cut or sliced from a log, then applied to a core material of solid wood or particle board. The technique allows the application of especially attractive grains to furniture surfaces, even when the wood from which the veneer is taken is too rare, expensive or hard-to-work to be used structurally.

Walnut: A highly desirable wood used for both cabinet woods and veneers. Walnut carves and holds its shape well; veneers have distinctive and handsome grains. Like mahogany and cherry, walnut is found in some of the most impressive English and American antiques.

Willow: A soft wood used only as a solid wood. Willow withes are used in weaving wicker furniture.

Yew: Hard, durable wood with a warm, light reddish-brown tone. Used for veneers and, less often, cabinet work.

Zebrawood: An African wood that, when quarter sawn, shows brown and black stripes on a lighter background.