wooden bedroom furniture from akka » Furniture finishes

Oak Furniture

admin — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 13:43:46 +0000

Oak furniture, which is very popular in the british home is generally made from either European oak or American white oak.

European oak is found in Slovenia, France, Yugoslavia and many countries from the Baltic region. American white oak is found in the east of the USA and South Eastern Canada.

Britain as a nation have fallen in love with oak furniture, and many furnish several rooms in this wood, including dining rooms, living rooms and bedrooms.

Manufacturers usually use two main finishes on oak furniture, either an oil finish such as danish oil or lacquers which show the true wood. There are trends towards staining oak with a light white painted finish that allows the strong grain to show through. The same can be said of staining oak with a dark walnut stain, which will replicate American black walnut. This method reduces cost as this wood in its natural finish is very expensive. At AKKA furniture we only use solid American black walnut but are able to offer our products at very competitive prices.

A word of caution when buying painted furniture is to ask what type of wood is being used. Generally the wood used is hemlock or birch. These trees are then cut down before they have fully matured, thus meaning several small pieces of wood are glued together resulting in a wider piece of timber. The manufacturer then applies a base undercoat and then a top finishing coat. If a piece of furniture is only treated with oil, you can see the true quality and beauty of the wood.

Buying bedroom furniture that will last

admin — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:54:07 +0000

You have finally found the vision on how you want your bedroom to look after researching the internet for months. Now down to the hard work of stripping the walls, filling in the imperfections and finally painting or wallpapering.

Have you done enough research about the quality of your bedroom furniture? No, then let me lend a hand.

Oak or walnut wooden beds

Try to buy a bed that is solid wood. Key factors to look for are no small finger pointed laminations on the siderails, head and tail rails. Look for signs of white sapwood showing towards the outside of the bed. Whilst this is not crucial to the construction, it shows that the manufacturer has taken time to put the sap face to the inside of the bed with the pure oak tones showing.

Oak and walnut wooden chests

The main construction of the chests should feature solid wooden legs all round. The top should be solid wood also with no man made products. The drawers should be dovetailed all round and solid in construction and strength. Are the drawer fronts made out of one piece of wood? Many manufacturers joint their drawer fronts whereas quality manufacturers use one piece of timber. The backs of the drawer should be grooved into the back legs and no screws, nails or pins used to hold the back panel in place.

Oak and walnut wooden wardrobes

Wooden legs should be used in all wardrobes, the back panels again should be grooved into the back legs. The veneered back panel should be veneered both internally and externally. Whilst this is not compulsary, it shows the manufacturer puts high emphasis on a consistent finish. Internally, the hanging rail should not be of cheap metal, it is far better to have a solid turned rail and brackets. If the wardrobe has drawers, again the drawers should be dovetailed and made of one piece of solid wood.

Choosing the best bedroom furniture for you

admin — Fri, 07 May 2010 15:24:00 +0000

A bed room is the peaceful area of your dwelling to have your privacy and be totally relaxed. Everyone loves to sleep in a lovely and cozy bed room, just like they want to have quality in any other rooms in your home. Picking the correct furniture to go in the rooms should be critical. Developing a fine bed room gives a type of security and multiplies your comfort. When you are married then you will have better times together if you could have a comfortable double or king size bed and beautiful home furniture such as dressing tables, bed side tables, cabinets, chests and wardrobes. Bedroom furniture can come in numerous styles of designs. Here i will discuss various good tips on how to choose the most suitable bedroom furniture which will offer you the lovely sleeping experience.

1. Must haves and Desires. Get to know the things you would like and what you might need from the bedroom. It is really better if you talk about it with your husband or wife to get good designs ideas. You have to prioritize on things that you need as opposed to want, when you cater for your needs then is the time to start to think about what which you may desire.

2. Styles and Concepts. Study your bedroom’s structure and dimension and envisage what kind of pieces of furniture would suit it. Why not use our free planner that can be found on the homepage?

3. Decide on Appropriate bedroom furniture. Whenever you’re getting your furniture ensure that it’s hard-wearing, of high quality, and well engineered. You don’t want to waste your cash on poor quality pieces of furniture that can only survive for some months before it falls apart. AKKA furniture only produces timeless bedroom furniture in oak and walnut that will stand the test of time.

4. Deciding on your right website. There are numerous shops and warehouses that retail pieces of furniture but you will need to select the best one. Use the world-wide-web and locate one that supplies the types of furnishings you desire but after that be certain that they have got good credibility and good buyer satisfaction. Why not come down and visit our showroom in Colchester?

5. Enjoy your good quality bedroom furniture. The bedroom is required to be your sanctuary, finish it off with quality furnishings and insure that it is an area you may love sleeping in.

Quality products

admin — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 09:50:34 +0000

Now I know we’re a bedroom furniture company but I thought I’d share this with you anyway despite the fact that it is clearly kitchen related. As many of you will know, it’s now that time of year: the daffodils have just gone over, the trees have a light fuzz of green, birdsong fills the evening air and the wife has planned a series of DIY shock and awe campaigns for the each of the bank holiday weekends from Easter until August!
Our very own version of Desert Storm I shall rename Melamine Storm! We decided (and you know how I use the word ‘we’) that it was time to redecorate the kitchen. New tiles, new floor, and forty gallons of Farrow & Ball white paint. The final thing in the mix was a bit of extra storage for the kitchen. Now, our kitchen units were out of date and discontinued so we popped off to a certain well-known DIY store and bought the nearest thing we could to match in with our old stuff.
Now the tiles are down and the grout has gone off, it’s time to build the new cupboards. All in all reasonably good fun. It came in kit form, and after following instructions carefully to avoid accidentally building a kitchen shed, the first cupboard was up. I’m not that pleased. It made me realise just how unsatisfying it is to look at something synthetic. There was no natural beauty or craftsmanship. Each day when I look at the chests of drawers in our bedroom, I feel pleased with the way it all looks and feels, especially as we’ve had our furniture for years. The change in colour is about acquiring a beautiful natural patina rather than a yellowing with age that you get with tired kitchen cupboards. Even when our oak stuff does need a little perk-up, we just treat it with some danish oil, which is a pleasure in itself.
As far as I’m concerned, melamine, particle board and MDF belong in the same place as Divans!

The history of sandpaper and how it is made

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 10:43:34 +0000

History
The first recorded instance of sandpaper was in 13th century China when crushed shells, seeds, and sand were bonded to parchment using natural gum.
Shark skin was also used as a sandpaper. The rough scales of the living fossil Coelacanth are used by the natives of Comoros as sandpaper.[citation needed]
Sandpaper was originally known as glass paper, as it used particles of glass. Glass frit has sharp-edged particles and cuts well, sand grains are smoothed down and did not work as well as glass. Cheap counterfeit sandpaper has long been passed off as true glass paper; Stalker and Parker cautioned against it as far back as the 17th century.[1]
Glass paper was manufactured by John Oakey’s company in London by 1833, who had developed new adhesive techniques and processes that could be mass-produced. A process for making sandpaper was patented in the United States on June 14, 1834 by Isaac Fischer, Jr., of Springfield, Vermont.

In 1916, 3M invented a type of sandpaper with a waterproof backing, known as Wetordry. This allowed use with water as a lubricant, and to carry about particles that would otherwise clog the finest grades. Its first application was for automotive paint refinishing.
Sandpaper has occasionally been used as a surface for painting, as by Joan Miró. Sandpaper was even used as a musical instrument, in Leroy Anderson’s Sandpaper Ballet.
Boiled and dried, the rough horsetail is used in Japan as a traditional polishing material, finer than sandpaper.

Types of sandpaper.
There are countless varieties of sandpaper, with variations in the paper or backing, the material used for the grit, grit size, and the bond.

Backing
In addition to paper, backing for sandpaper includes cloth (cotton, polyester, rayon), PET film, and “fibre” ,or rubber. Cloth backing is used for sandpaper discs and belts, while mylar is used as backing with extremely fine grits. Fibre or vulcanized fibre is a strong backing material consisting of many layers of polymer impregnated paper. The weight of the backing is usually designated by a letter. For paper backings, the weight ratings range from “A” to “F,” with A designating the lightest and F the heaviest. Letter nomenclature follows a different system for cloth backings, with the weight of the backing rated J, X, Y , T, and M, from lightest to heaviest. A flexible backing allows sandpaper to follow irregular rounded contours of a given workpiece; relatively inflexible backing is optimal for regular rounded or plane surfaces. Sandpaper backings may be glued to the paper or form a separate support structure for moving sandpaper, such as used in sanding belts and discs. Stronger paper or backing increases the ease of sanding wood, so decent quality sand paper is much better than low cost and low quality sandpaper. The harder the backing material is behind the sandpaper, the faster the sanding, the faster the wear of the paper and the rougher the sanded surface.

Material
Materials used for the abrading particles are:

flint: no longer commonly used
garnet: commonly used in woodworking
emery: commonly used to abrade or polish metal
aluminium oxide: perhaps most common in widest variety of grits; can be used on metal (i.e. body shops) or wood
silicon carbide: available in very coarse grits all the way through to microgrits, common in wet applications
alumina-zirconia: (an aluminium oxide–zirconium oxide alloy), used for machine grinding applications
chromium oxide: used in extremely fine micron grit (micrometre level) papers
ceramic aluminum oxide: used in high pressure applications, used in both coated abrasives, as well as in bonded abrasives.

As well, sandpaper may be “stearated” where a dry lubricant is loaded to the abrasive. Stearated papers are useful in sanding coats of finish and paint as the stearate “soap” prevents clogging and increases the useful life of the sandpaper. Aluminium Oxide with stearate is also known as PS33, a Klingspor Abrasives product. The harder the grit material, the easier the sanding of surfaces like wood. The grit material for polishng granite slab has to be harder than granite.
Innovative abrading surfaces now include long-life stainless steel sanding discs.

Bonds
Different adhesives are used to bond the abrasive to the paper. Hide glue is still used, but this paper often cannot withstand the heat generated when machine sanding and is not waterproof. Waterproof or wet/dry sandpapers use a resin bond and a waterproof backing.
Sandpapers can also be open coat, where the particles are separated from each other and the sandpaper is more flexible. This helps prevent clogging of the sandpaper. The wet and dry sandpaper is best used when wet and when using material like acrylic where it leaves a nice smooth feel afterwards.

Shapes
Sandpaper comes in a number of different shapes and sizes.

sheet: usually 9 by 11 inches, but other sizes may be available
belt: usually cloth backed, comes in different sizes to fit different belt sanders.
disk: made to fit different models of disc and random orbit sanders. May be perforated for some models of sanders. Attachment includes Pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) and “hook-and-loop” (similar to velcro).
rolls: known as “Shag Rolls” by many contractors

Grit sizes
Grit size refers to the size of the particles of abrading materials embedded in the sandpaper. A number of different standards have been established for grit size. These standards establish not only the average grit size, but also the allowable variation from the average. The two most common are the United States CAMI (Coated Abrasive Manufacturers Institute, now part of the Unified Abrasives Manufacturers’ Association) and the European FEPA (Federation of European Producers of Abrasives) “P” grade. The FEPA system is the same as the ISO 6344 standard. Other systems used in sandpaper include the Japan Industrial Standards Committee (JIS), the micron grade (generally used for very fine grits). The “ought” system was used in the past in the United States. Also, cheaper sandpapers sometimes are sold with nomenclature such as “Coarse”, “Medium” and “Fine”, but it is not clear to what standards these names refer.

Grit size table
The following table, compiled from the references at the bottom, compares the CAMI and “P” designations with the average grit size in micrometres (µm).
Grit size table
ISO/FEPA Grit designation CAMI Grit designation Average particle diameter (µm)
MACROGRITS
Extra Coarse (Very fast removal of material, hardwood flooring initial sanding) P12 1815
P16 1324
P20 1000
P24 764
24 708
P30 642
30 632
36 530
P36 538
Coarse (Rapid removal of material) P40 40 425
50 348
P50 336
Medium (sanding bare wood in preparation for finishing, for gentle removal of varnish) 60 265
P60 269
P80 201
80 190
Fine (sanding bare wood in preparation for finishing, not suitable for removing varnish or paint from wood, use for cleaning plaster and water stain from wood) P100 162
100 140
P120 125
120 115
Very Fine (sanding of bare wood) P150 100
150 92
P180 180 82
P220 220 68
MICROGRITS
Very Fine (sanding finishes between coats) P240 58.5
240 53.0
P280 52.2
P320 46.2
P360 40.5
Extra fine, start polishing

Leather Types

admin — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 18:48:41 +0000

Leather types
In general, leather is sold in four forms:
• Full-grain leather refers to the upper section of a hide that previously contained the epidermis and hair, but were removed from the hide/skin. Full-grain refers to hides that have not been sanded, buffed, or snuffed (as opposed to top-grain or corrected leather) in order to remove imperfections (or natural marks) on the surface of the hide. The grain remains in its natural state allowing the best fiber strength and durability. The natural grain also has natural breathability, resulting in less moisture from prolonged contact. Rather than wearing out, it will develop a natural patina over time, with some cracking and splitting. The finest leather furniture and footwear are made from full-grain leather. For these reasons, only the best raw hide is used to create full-grain leather. One way to test if leather is full-grain is to lightly scratch its surface with your nail. If it leaves a lighter-colored streak, it’s full-grain. Full-grain leathers are typically available in two finish types: aniline and semi-aniline.
• Top-grain leather is a misnomer: it gives the false impression that it is “top” quality. In fact, full-grain is the highest quality. Top-grain leather is the second-highest quality. Its surface has been sanded and refinished. As a result, it has a colder, plastic feel, less breathability, and will not develop a natural patina. However, it does have 2 advantages over full-grain leather: it is typically less expensive, and has greater resistance to stains.
• Corrected-grain leather is any leather that has had an artificial grain applied to its surface. The hides used to create corrected leather are of inferior quality that do not meet the high standards for use in creating vegetable-tanned or aniline leather. The imperfections are corrected and an artificial grain applied. Most corrected-grain leather is used to make pigmented leather as the solid pigment helps hide the corrections or imperfections. Corrected grain leathers can mainly be bought as two finish types: semi-aniline and pigmented.
• Split leather is leather created from the fibrous part of the hide left once the top-grain of the rawhide has been separated from the hide. During the splitting operation, the grain and drop split are separated. The drop split can be further split (thickness allowing) into a middle split and a flesh split. In very thick hides, the middle split can be separated into multiple layers until the thickness prevents further splitting. Split leather then has an artificial layer applied to the surface of the split and is embossed with a leather grain (Bycast leather). Splits are also used to create suede. The strongest suedes are usually made from grain splits (that have the grain completely removed) or from the flesh split that has been shaved to the correct thickness. Suede is “fuzzy” on both sides. Manufacturers use a variety of techniques to make suede from full-grain. For example, in one operation, leather finish is applied to one side of the suede, which is then pressed through rollers; these flatten and even out one side of the material, giving it the smooth appearance of full-grain. Latigo is one of the trade names for this product. A reversed suede is a grained leather that has been designed into the leather article with the grain facing away from the visible surface. It is not a true form of suede.
The International Union of Leather Technologists and Chemist Societies has a glossary of leather terms that can be found at IULTCS.
Other less-common leathers include:
• Buckskin or brained leather is a tanning process that uses animal brains or other fatty materials to alter the leather. The resulting supple, suede-like hide is usually smoked heavily to prevent it from rotting.
• Patent leather is leather that has been given a high-gloss finish. The original process was developed in Newark, New Jersey, by inventor Seth Boyden in 1818. Patent leather usually has a plastic coating.
• Shagreen is also known as stingray skin/leather. Applications used in furniture production date as far back as the art deco period. The word “shagreen” originates from France and is commonly confused with a shark skin and stingray skin combination.
• Vachetta leather is used in the trimmings of luggage and handbags, popularized by Louis Vuitton. The leather is left untreated and is therefore susceptible to water and stains. Sunlight will cause the natural leather to darken in shade, called a patina.
• Slink is leather made from the skin of unborn calves. It is particularly soft, and is valued for use in making gloves.
• Deerskin is one of the toughest leathers, partially due to adaptations to their thorny and thicket filled habitats. Deerskin has been prized in many societies including indigenous Americans. Most modern deer skin is no longer procured from the wild, with deer farms breeding the animals specifically for the purpose of their skins. Large quantities are still tanned from wild deer hides in historic tanning towns such as Gloversville and Johnstown in upstate New York. Deerskin is used in jackets and overcoats, professional sporting equipment for martial arts such as kendo and bogu, as well as high-quality personal accessories like handbags and wallets. It commands a high price due to its relative rarity and proven durability.
• Nubuck is top-grain cattle hide leather that has been sanded or buffed on the grain side, or outside, to give a slight nap of short protein fibers, producing a velvet-like surface.
There are two other descriptions of leather commonly used in specialty products, such as briefcases, wallets, and luggage.
• Belting leather is a full-grain leather that was originally used in driving pulley belts and other machinery. It is often found on the surface of briefcases, portfolios, and wallets, and can be identified by its thick, firm feel and smooth finish. Belting leather is the only kind of leather used in luxury products that can retain its shape without the need for a separate frame; it is generally a heavy-weight of full-grain, vegetable-tanned leather.
• Nappa leather, or Napa leather, is chrome-tanned and is extremely soft and supple and is commonly found in higher quality wallets, toiletry kits, and other personal leather goods.
The following are not ‘true’ leathers, but contain leather material. Depending on jurisdiction, they may still be labeled as “Genuine Leather.”
• Bonded leather , or “reconstituted Leather”, is not really a true leather but a man-made material. Some types of bonded leather are composed of 90% to 100% leather fibers (often scrap from leather tanneries or leather workshops) bonded together with latex binders to create a look and feel similar to that of ‘true’ leather at a fraction of the cost. This bonded leather is not as durable as other leathers, and is recommended for use only if the product will be used infrequently. An example for the use of this type of bonded leather is in Bible covers. The term “bonded leather” when used to describe upholstered furniture is a different product and construction. Bonded leather upholstery is a vinyl upholstery that contains about 17% leather fiber in its backing material. Hence, there is no leather in the surface of this product. The vinyl is stamped to give it a leather-like texture.Bonded leather upholstery is durable and its manufacturing process is more environmentally-friendly than leather production.
• Bycast leather is a split leather with a layer of polyurethane applied to the surface and then embossed. Bycast was originally made for the shoe industry and recently was adopted by the furniture industry. The original formula created by Bayer was strong, but expensive. Most of the Bycast used today is very strong and durable product. The result is a slightly stiffer product that is cheaper than top grain leather but has a much more consistent texture and is easier to clean and maintain.
The vast majority of leather is sold according to its area. The leather is placed through pin-wheel or electronic measuring machines and its surface area is determined. The unit of measurement is square meter, square decimeter or square foot. The thickness is also important, and this is measured using a thickness gauge (the unit of measurement is millimeters, e.g., 1.8 mm is a standard thickness for a school shoe).
In some parts of the world, top-grain thicknesses are described using weight units of ounces. Although the statement is in ounces only, it is an abbreviation of ounces per square foot. The thickness value can be obtained by the conversion: 1 oz/ft² = 1/64 inch (0.4 mm).
Hence, leather described as 7 to 8 oz is 7/64 to 8/64 inches (2.8 to 3.2 mm) thick. The weight is usually given as a range because the inherent variability of the material makes ensuring a precise thickness very difficult. Other leather manufacturers state the thickness directly in millimeters

AKKA Paris Leather Headboard. How is leather made

admin — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 22:59:43 +0000

Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.
The leather and the fur industries are differentiated by the manufacturing importance of the raw materials used to make the wares. In the leather industry, the skin and rawhide are by-products of the meat industry, because the meat has greater commercial value than the rawhide and skin. In the fur industry, the meat is a by-product, because the skins and hides have greater commercial value. Moreover, in taxidermy, the raw materials usually are only the animal’s head and back; hide and skin also are the raw materials for manufacturing animal glue and gelatin.
Forms of leather
Several tanning processes transform hides and skins into leather:
• Vegetable-tanned leather is tanned using tannin and other ingredients found in vegetable matter, tree bark, and other such sources. It is supple and brown in color, with the exact shade depending on the mix of chemicals and the color of the skin. It is the only form of leather suitable for use in leather carving or stamping. Vegetable-tanned leather is not stable in water; it tends to discolor, and if left to soak and then dry it will shrink and become less supple and harder. In hot water, it will shrink drastically and partly gelatinize, becoming rigid and eventually brittle. Boiled leather is an example of this where the leather has been hardened by being immersed in hot water, or in boiled wax or similar substances. Historically, it was occasionally used as armor after hardening, and it has also been used for book binding.
• Chrome-tanned leather, invented in 1858, is tanned using chromium sulfate and other salts of chromium. It is more supple and pliable than vegetable-tanned leather, and does not discolor or lose shape as drastically in water as vegetable-tanned. It is also known as wet-blue for its color derived from the chromium. More esoteric colors are possible using chrome tanning.
• Aldehyde-tanned leather is tanned using glutaraldehyde or oxazolidine compounds. This is the leather that most tanners refer to as wet-white leather due to its pale cream or white color. It is the main type of “chrome-free” leather, often seen in shoes for infants, and automobiles. Formaldehyde tanning (being phased out due to its danger to workers and the sensitivity of many people to formaldehyde) is another method of aldehyde tanning. Brain-tanned leathers fall into this category and are exceptionally water absorbent. Brain tanned leathers are made by a labor-intensive process which uses emulsified oils, often those of animal brains. They are known for their exceptional softness and their ability to be washed. Chamois leather also falls into the category of aldehyde tanning and like brain tanning produces a highly water absorbent leather. Chamois leather is made by using oils (traditionally cod oil) that oxidize easily to produce the aldehydes that tan the leather to make the fabric the color it is.
• Synthetic-tanned leather is tanned using aromatic polymers such as the Novolac or Neradol types. This leather is white in color and was invented when vegetable tannins were in short supply during the Second World War. Melamine and other amino-functional resins fall into this category as well and they provide the filling that modern leathers often require. Urea-formaldehyde resins were also used in this tanning method until dissatisfaction about the formation of free formaldehyde was realized.
• Alum-tawed leather is transformed using aluminium salts mixed with a variety of binders and protein sources, such as flour and egg yolk. Purists argue that alum-tawed leather is technically not tanned, as the resulting material will rot in water. Very light shades of leather are possible using this process, but the resulting material is not as supple as vegetable-tanned leather.[1]
• Rawhide is made by scraping the skin thin, soaking it in lime, and then stretching it while it dries. Like alum-tawing, rawhide is not technically “leather”, but is usually lumped in with the other forms. Rawhide is stiffer and more brittle than other forms of leather, and is primarily found in uses such as drum heads where it does not need to flex significantly; it is also cut up into cords for use in lacing or stitching, or for making many varieties of dog chews.
Leather—usually vegetable-tanned leather—can be oiled to improve its water resistance. This supplements the natural oils remaining in the leather itself, which can be washed out through repeated exposure to water. Frequent oiling of leather, with mink oil, neatsfoot oil or a similar material, keeps it supple and improves its lifespan dramatically.
Leather with the hair still attached is called hair-on.

Wood Veneers

admin — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 16:18:58 +0000

Producing wood veneers
The finest and rarest logs are sent to companies that produce veneer. The advantage to this practice is two fold. First, it provides the most financial gain to the owner of the log.[citation needed] Secondly, and of more importance to the woodworker, is this practice greatly expands the amount of usable wood. While a log used for solid lumber is cut into thick pieces, usually no less than 1 1/8 inches, veneers are cut as thin as 1/40 of an inch. Depending on the cutting process used by the veneer manufacture, very little wood is wasted by the saw blade thickness, known as the saw kerf. Therefore, the yield of a rare grain pattern or wood type is greatly increased, which in turn places less stress on the resource. Some maunfacturers even use a very wide knife to basically “slice off” the thin veneer pieces. In this way, none of the wood is wasted. The slices of veneer are always kept in the order in which they are cut from the tree, and are known as flitches.
Types of veneers
There are a few types of veneers available and each serves a purpose.
• A: Raw veneer has no backing on it and can be used with either side facing up. It is important to note that the two sides will appear different when a finish has been applied, due to the cell structure of the wood.
• B: Paper Backed veneer is as the name suggests, veneers that are backed with a paper. The advantage to this is it is available in large sizes, or sheets, as smaller pieces are joined together prior to adding the backing. This is helpful for users that do not wish to join smaller pieces of raw veneers together. This is also helpful when veneering curves and columns as the veneer is less likely to crack.
• C: Phenolic Backed veneer is less common and is used for composite, or man made wood veneers. Due to concern for the natural resource, this is becoming more popular. It too has the advantage of being available in sheets, and is also less likely to crack when being used on curves.
• D: Laid Up veneer is raw veneer, which has been joined together to make larger pieces. The process is time consuming and requires great care, but is not difficult, and requires no expensive tools or machinery. Veneers can be ordered through some companies already laid up to any size, shape or design.
Patterns
There are a number of “patterns” common to veneered work. This refers to the way the veneers are laid up.
• A: Book Matched: where the veneers are opened from the flitch much like the pages of a book.
• B: Slip Matched: where the pieces are joined together in the order they come from the flitch, and have the same face kept up.
• C: Radial Matched: where the veneer is cut into wedge shaped pieces and joined together.
• D: Diamond Matched: where the pattern formed is diamond shaped.
Advantages of using veneers
In addition to the obvious savings of our natural resources, many projects built using wood veneer would not be possible to construct using solid lumber. Due to expansion and contraction common to all wood products and caused by changes in humidity, many of the patterns and designs possible with veneers would self destruct, if attempted with solid lumber. The limitless designs done with marquetry and parquetry would also be impossible.

AKKA Furniture uses Danish Oil to give a quality finish

admin — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 23:58:37 +0000

Danish oil is made with nothing but the finest ingredients. The main component is Linseed Oil. This is blended with other high quality resins and oils, such as Tung oil, and is then mixed with a small amount of solvent to improve the drying time, performance and qualities of the danish oil.

What can Danish Oil be used on?
Danish oil is a very versatile product that can be used on any number of wood types, such as oak, pine, mahogany or beech and can be applied to any surface requiring an oil finish including; doors, garden furniture, kitchen worktops, food surfaces, childrens toys and hard of soft wood flooring. For decking it is recommended to use decking oil.

Why use Danish Oil?
When you apply a Varnish, Lacquer or paint onto wood it forms a protective film on the surface, which, if damaged or applied incorrectly can peel and flake. Danish oil however, penetrates into the surface grain and thereby keeps the wood supple whilst adding to its natural strength.

For maximum performance danish wood oil should be applied as at least 3-5 initial coats to your wooden surface, these will further improve the look and will continue to feed the wood keeping the surface water repellent. The frequency of subsequent coats depends on the density of the timber but as a guideline, further coats of danish oil should be applied about once a year.

Please note that although the product is manufactured by Morrells (or some times we sell Barrettine) it may sometimes be re-packaged and supplied under the Manns label due to it being decanted from a bigger container.

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Application
There are many ways to apply danish oil and no skill required. The most popular method is by cloth so that you can key in and wipe off the excess oil at the same time. A good quality paint brush is particularly useful when working with turned and moulded areas or when you need to apply a straight edge as with skirting boards. Danish wood oil is also compatible with virtually any type of spray equipment.

For a smooth, silky finish, lightly sand the danish oil between coats with very fine sandpaper or wire wool.