Furniture

1. How toCheckWoodFurnitureforQuality
Do youknow how togoaboutcheckingwoodfurnitureforquality? It is not that hard, andyou can
learntojudgeforqualitybylooking at thekind of woodthat’sbeenused, thefinish, and how thepiece is constructed.
Wood Source
Thekind of woodthat is used has a lot of bearing on how longyourfurniturewilllast. It can be made of hardwood,
softwood, orengineeredwood.
Generallyspeakingqualityfurniture is madeout of hardwoodcomingfromdeciduoustreessuch as oak, maple,
mahogany, teak, walnut, cherryandbirch. Thewoodwill be airdriedandthenkilndriedtoremoveallthemoisture.
Coniferoustreessuch as pine, fir, redwoodandcedarproducesoftwood. It is possibletofindgoodqualityfurniture in
thesewoodsalso, but thesewoodsaremorepronetoscratchesanddents.
Modern furniture is veryrarelyconstructed of allwood. Plywood, orengineeredwood is usedextensivelybecause it
providesstrength, andhelpspreventsplittingorwarping. It can makeforsturdy,
longlastingandhighlyattractivefurniturewhenusedwithhighqualityveneers.
Construction
Theway a piece is constructed can contributetoitsbeauty, functionalityandalso how long it willlast.
Thejoineryandsturdiness of a piecewilltellyou a lotaboutitsquality.
Mortiseandtenon, anddovetailsaretwo of theoldestways of puttingtogetherfurniture,
andalsomakeforthestrongestandbestlookingjoints. Goodjoints can alsohavedowelsorscrews, but willnever be
stapled. Anyglueusedwill not showoutsidethejoint.
Cornerblocksaddtothestrengthandstability of a piece. Theyare not visiblefromtheoutsie, but bolttobothsides of
interiorcorners.
A goodqualitydeskorchest of drawerswillhavedustpanelsorthinsheets of woodbetweendrawers in the body of a
chestordesk. This not onlymakesthemstrongerstructurally, but keepsdustawayfromclothingorpapers.
Backpanelsthatfacethewallarethegenerallyattachedwithscrewstohelpensurethelateralstability.
Backsandunexposedpartsshould be sandedsmoothandwellfitted. This is an importantfeature as
onlywellconstructedfurniture has thesedetails.
Drawers fit wellandhaveglidestoallowyoutoeffortlesslymove a drawer in andout of itsstation.
Theywillalsohavestopstoprevent a drawerfrombeingpulledoutorfalling. Glides in officefurnituresuch as desks, file
cabinetsandcomputerarmoiresareimportanttothefunctionality of thepiece.
Doorswillcloseneatly be flushwiththecabinetfront, andgoodqualityhardwarewill be used.

2. Test forsturdiness, bytryingtorockorjostlethepiece. Itshould not squeak, twistorwobble. Checkif it is
levelwiththefloor.
Finish
A qualityfinishinvolvessanding, staining, andfinishing. Neglect at any of thestages can affecttheoverallquality of a
piece.
Sanding is thefirst step in thefinishingprocess, and a goodpiecewill be smoothsothatwhenyourunyourhandover it
therewill be noroughpatches. Sandingacrossthewoodgrainwillalsoproduceunattractiveresultssuch as
darklinesorscratchesacrossthesurface. Improperlysandedwoodwill not takethestainevenly.
Inspectthefinishfromdifferentanglestocheckforblotchinessorscratches.
A goodstainenhancesthenaturalbeauty of woodandaddscolorandcharactertothewood. It can
makeonewoodtypelooklikeanotherone, ormakedifferentwoodslooksimilar. High qualitystainingwill be even,
withoutanydarkspots. Allsidesandtheendsshould be thesametone.
Finishesrangefromhigh-glosstomatte. A highqualityfinish is satinysmoothandfree of roughspots, dustspecks,
orbubbles. Lookfordepthandrichness in thefinish, whichcomesfromseverallightcoats of
finishwithsandingbetweenthecoats. A highqualitypiece is finished on thebackand on theunderside as
welltoreducethechances of swellingorshrinking.
Somesigns of poorlyfinishedwoodare:
A roughsurface.
A veryglossyorcloudysurfacethathidesthewoodgrain.
Splinterededges.
Scratches, dents, ordustspecks.
Dullspotsindicatingmissedareasor not enoughcoats.
“Teardrops” aroundtheedgesand on verticalsurfaces.
A distressedsurface, howeverusesmany of theseeffectstoagenewfurnitureandtoheightenitsrusticappeal. Thewood
is beaten, batteredandnickedbeforeapplyingthefinish. However, goodqualitydistressedfurniturewill be
wellconstructedandsturdy.