“Is that a crack?” About once a week, I am asked this question. Some of the times, its about furniture which has been purchased elsewhere. Other times its about our own furniture. It might have been custom made or simply the customer purchased it from from a moving sale. Some pieces might have traveled the […]
woods & other materials
Buying exotic hardwoods in Beijing: A visit to the Dong Ba Timber Market
The Chinese have always prized hardwoods for their dense grain, durability and rich color. But with Beijing being located in the north of China, one must wonder where all those tropical hardwoods being made into classical Chinese furniture today come from? Well, in most cases the answer is the Dong Ba Timber Market or “Dōngbà […]
Restoring a Chinese mahjong table with a bit of pyrotechnics!
I get so backed up with blog posts, because there is so many interesting and fascinating things to see and talk about. And being detailed oriented, I really want to spend the time to talk about each item in detail, the history behind it, where it comes from and all the other details that make […]
Exotic hardwoods used in Chinese furniture: visual examples
A quick visual guide to these hardwoods using physical samples. Burma hua li, Old rosewood, Red sour branch, Ebony, Small leaf tan, Vein Ebony, Thailand Hua li, Vietnam Huang hua li, Chicken Wing Wood, Black Sour Branch, Big leaf tan
Woods used in making chinese furniture: Teakwood (you mu)
Teakwood is an average hardness wood from the Verbenaceae family, found in various parts of southern China, Southeast Asia (Burma/Thailand) and India.
Trend Guide: Rustic furniture made from reclaimed elm and other salvaged woods
Reclaimed & salvaged materials are environmentally friendly in that there are no new trees cut down to make the piece. Sources of wood may be old railroad ties, beams from old houses that have been demolished or even old doors. Old elm tends to be a favorite as Elm in fairly common in China.