Indonesian Wood Carvings for a Room With a Difference

by Susy Matthews

The realism of Indonesian wood carvings has to be seen to be believed. That a lump of wood could be made to come alive in such an inventive way is beyond belief, and these komodo dragons look too darn real. You can imagine them taking a lump out of you with these ferocious jaws. There is no doubt at all that Indonesian craftsmen are among the most talented in the world.

These beautiful and elegant carvings of people and animals will grace any home, and the wonderful deep colors of centuries old wood comprise an ideal medium for the portrayal of traditional patterns and carvings that have been passed down through the ages. They are crafted with loving care by people who have an affinity with the creatures they represent and the feelings and traditions they follow in doing so.

There could be no better conversation piece for you and your guests than these lovely pieces that have been carved with pride by fathers that have taught their sons their craft, and explained to them the history and traditions behind each individual piece and design. Each piece is individual and unique, and looks even more natural that the real thing.

The Indonesian wooden puppets are traditional flat carved pieces that have been passed down through centuries. Traditional patterns such as these have a deep history that only the carvers know, and is not revealed to their sons until they are ready to carry on the tradition. All of these are individually carved, and if you acquire them they are only for your home. No one else’s, just yours. It will be a unique piece that you can show your guests, and in order to deserve owning it you should learn the history of your piece so that you can relate it to your guests.

Much Indonesian wood carving depict Indonesian history. Throughout its history Indonesia has come under the influence of the Chinese, Japanese, Western Christians, Arab Muslims and Indian Hindus and Buddhists. All of this is portrayed in their wood carvings of deities such as Vishnu, prophets such as Buddha and art forms such as the Chinese and Japanese masks that Indonesia are famous for, and carvings of ferocious winged dragons. These indeed are worth having on your dining room table.

The komodo dragons are so lifelike that you draw back from them as you imaging them moving in the changing light. The colors are deep and rich and continually changing in the changing sunlight. The Indonesian rugs and textiles are colorful and would make a beautiful adornment to any sofa, or even as a unique wall covering.

There is not a doubt that Indonesian art and wood carving would be an adornment to any home of someone that wanted to be different, and to provide their guests with unique talking points. If that sounds like you, it would be a great idea for you to learn something about the background of each piece you own so that you can entertain your guest with tales of mythology and fabulous creatures, and of mysterious Orientals trading their goods and introducing their dragons to a country composed of thousands of islands, each with its own history, art and traditions.

Don’t just think about it: acquire a few pieces of Indonesian wood carving and you will find that you will never look back. Visitors will flock to your door demanding invitations to view these wonderful pieces of art.

Make Money From Wood Carvings, Without You Carving Anything… by Steve Carter

 by Steve Carter

Wood carvings have always been popular. Most people, who have ever been to countries such as Indonesia, or the Philippines, will have seen them being made by hand. The talented craftsmen sitting cross-legged on the floor, chipping away at a piece of wood, until they have created an animal, person’s head, or other wonderful piece of wood carving. These unique one-offs always seem far more special than anything we could make. Then, one day, you visit a craft shop back home, and see a shelf filled with identical wood carvings. How do they get them all to look the same? Surely, one craftsman cannot be that precise each time? Well, no, they can’t. The secret behind this mass-production is a wood-carving machine. This is where you can set up your own lucrative business, making woodcarvings, without having to lift a single carving tool yourself.

The wood carving machines take one wood carving, and make identical copies. The way they work is almost magical. The original carving is literally traced by the machine, and it carves a second copy as it goes. That original carving, that costs two hundred bucks, say, then becomes two. The opportunities are endless. You can make as many copies, of any wooden carving, as you want to. Each one is identical to the first, and can therefore be sold for the same amount of money. Wooden seats for stools, wooden book ends, wooden Christmas tree decorations, and anything else that you can find, can all be duplicated in the same amount of detail as the original.

The only outlay that you need to make is for the machine, and the wood. Some of these wood carving machines can be found, second-hand, on sale for as little as a couple of hundred bucks. So, if you made a copy of a carving that originally sold for $200, you could sell the second one for the same amount of money and have recovered the cost of buying the wood carving machine with only one carving! The wood that you use can also be any type that you can find. You can even find wood for free. A lot of people have trees in their gardens that they do not want anymore, and have them cut down. Quite often, the trunk is then chopped up for fire wood. However, if you get in touch with a person who you know has just had a tree taken down; you can probably get some of the wood before it has been chopped up into smaller pieces. They will be glad that you take it off their hands, and probably not want any money for it. It is worth getting in touch with your local tree surgeons, or other companies that actually cut down the trees, and see if they can get hold of the wood for you cheaply.

Before you know it, you will be creating wood carvings that are every bit as good as the original hand-carved ones, and building a nice little business out of it that you can expand hugely!

Beautiful Indonesian teak furniture + Quality Teak Dining Room Furniture

by Andrew Manifield

Looking for Indonesian teak furniture is quite exciting. Whether it is for indoors or outdoors, it is durable and long lasting. Teak furniture does not splinter and does not rot. That makes it perfect for outdoors. Add a little beauty in the garden with a teak bench. Put a teak table and chairs on the patio for pleasurable outdoor dining. You can even find wonderful pieces for your indoor living. Desks and tables, occasional tables and bars. So many exciting pieces of teak furniture to choose from.

Many pieces are available in Indonesian teak furniture. Chaise loungers, bars, Adirondack chairs, table and chair sets, and benches. Depending on the style you are looking for, the prices vary just as much. You can also purchase matching cushions to add to the comfort and beauty of your teak furniture.

Indonesian teak furniture turns a beautiful silvery gray patina over time. You can always add a little teak oil to it and bring back the honey glow that was once on it. In Indonesia the people make the furniture by hand. It is quite an art and has become a tourist attraction even . Crowds stop to watch the furniture makers at work. Detail is crafted into this beautiful furniture that will last for years to come. Hardy and long lasting, teak wood is the perfect wood for patio or outdoor use.

Shopping for Indonesian teak furniture is fun. You can find it at many pool and garden shops. Fine furniture stores also carry a wide variety of teak furniture. Shop online and compare prices. Don’t forget to ask about shipping and handling. Many items can be found on sale during the summer clearance time at the end of summer. Also, Memorial Day sales and Fourth of July sales are great times to keep an eye out. Teak furniture cost more, but it lasts forever which makes it very economical.

You will be the envy of all your friends with Indonesian teak furniture. Its natural beauty and quality of style will have your friends asking for your help decorating their own homes. So enjoy your furniture for years to come.

Are you searching for a teak dining room furniture set? Not sure where to start? First you need to decide what style you might like. There are many styles to choose from. From antique to contemporary, the choice is yours. Teak dining furniture is available in many styles and sizes. Do you have a large family? Maybe you need a teak dining furniture set that will seat 6 or 8. They can be found. Smaller ones are more readily available. If you are looking for something that you can use on the patio, teak is the perfect wood for this.

Teak dining room furniture is great for outdoors . Or maybe you want to bring the outdoors inside. Teak wood is a sturdy hardwood that does not splinter. It withstands water, does not rot and lasts a long long time.

Let me tell you where your teak dining room furniture comes from. Southeast Asia is the most common place for finding teak. It is harvested on teak farms and it takes 50 years to complete the cycle. The people of Indonesia craft this wood and it has even become a tourist attraction in the city. Watching them hard at work is a must see. Teak wood turns a silvery gray patina over time. The weather does not harm the wood only gives it a personality. You can use a little teak oil to restore the honey glow to the wood.

You can find teak dining room furniture in many fine furniture stores. The styles and prices will vary. Check online and compare prices before you shop. Research the company and the customer service policy. Also, read the feedback that other customers have left for you. You can also purchase teak online. The shipping and handling fees vary so be sure to ask.

You will be glad you purchased teak dining room furniture when you have your first dinner party and your friends and family will rave over your taste and selection in fine furniture. You will be the envy of the neighborhood. Teak wood lasts a lifetime so that makes it such an economic purchase in the long run.

Teak Wood Is Very Beautiful and Strong,Perfect For The Outdoors

by Patricia Woods

Teak is a genus of tropical hardwoods with a scientific tag of Tectona. It is a hardwood ingrained to South and Southeast Asia and is normally part of a monsoon jungle, maturing on low hills, far away from the shore line. Teak is a deciduous tree, releasing its leaves in the waterless season and is not included in a tropical rain forest. It is a large tree, and will easily grow 30 to 40 meters tall. Teak has a big concentration of oils and minerals, causing the wood to be waxy and flexible. This makes a wood that is water resistant and insect resistant, as well as a strong, straight grain to resist bending. Teak is usually honey to mocha brown, however it can have a reddish hue. If it remains raw and bare to the elements, it can dim to a silvery gray, though a yearly oil treatment can keep it’s natural complexion. Teak is ingrained to Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, The Philippines and India.

Teak has been utilized for over two thousand years and is noted in poetry from that century. Teak logs last forever as the main structural component in buildings centuries old in India, and also in thousand year old temples. This shows the amazing function of Teak to last when stressed is placed on it. Teak was a major 18th Century export for China, where flooring, cabinets, paneling and multiple other wood features were exported to Europe. Teak was frequently used for art objects, though the strong wood made this a difficult process, needing a lot of resharpening of tools. Later in the Victorian Era, this was greatly overcome and Teak art creations became more main stream.

The durability and salt water repellent characteristics made Teak especially valuable to the Royal Navy, and beyond World War I, when numerous old warships were being scrapped, the crew members were in awe by the great condition of the Teak decking and decided to keep the wood. A lot of it became lawn furniture, creating the tradition of teak patio furniture. The Royal Navy was not the only one using Teak; the unique qualities of this wood made it popular around the world among ship builders in the sailing age. There is an momentous whaling ship, the Charles W. Morgan, held in Mystic Seaport, Connecticut that was built in 1841 and had hard service with several around the world tours but still looks like new.

The continuous increasing ease of Teak building led to Teak becoming a enormous component of the Danish modern style of furniture, extremely excepted in the 50s and 60s. This furniture is now undergoing a renaissance in popularity and authentic Teak furniture from this time is very excepted with collectors and others.

It is also heavily manufactured in Indonesia, there Dutch traders created tree farms in 1816. Perum Perhutani, an organization of the Indonesian Government, operates the tree farms now. They strictly control trees taken and new plantings to only keep very high quality wood. Experiments have shown that Indonesia Teak can grow twenty meters in fifteen years. Today Indonesia and Burma, officially known as Myanmar, have become the world’s largest exporters of Teak.

Quality Teak Patio Furniture

by T. Houser

There has been a real surge in the interest of teak wood patio furniture. With the popularity of the internet and beautiful mail order catalogs consumers are much more aware of the beauty of teak furniture. Import Companies have also made teak wood easier to obtain. Teak is also more affordable now as well.

There are many suppliers of quality teak wood furniture. Quality teak wood patio furniture manufacturers make their furniture by hand and build it to last a long time. A good warranty 0f 10 years and a money back guarantee of 60 days is also a sign of quality. A sign of quality is that flush mortise and tenon joinery is used in every slat for quality. A quality manufacturer will use kiln dried teak between 10-12% moisture content to make sure it will last a very long time. Some manufacturers will first sand by machine then sand by hand after construction.

Teak wood has a high concentration of oil that allows it to last for decades. Teak is resistant to mold, mildew, splintering, rot and insects. It is extremely sturdy and heavy. Teak wood can be as maintenance-free as you would like; maintenance is not truly required. Teak wood is expensive because it is in high demand and it requires tedious processing. Teak trees are aged 30 to 50 years and then stripped of their bark for three years, as they die a lasting death. The trees are then, cut down. Then the wood is kiln dried for eight months until most of the moisture is gone. Once the wood is dry, the lumber is sliced.

A large amount of the world’s teak comes from Indonesia. The Indonesian government manages a majority of the teak supply. Plantations grow a majority of the teak trees. The Plantations operate under the Smart Wood program of the Rainforest Alliance, an organization that encourages ecologically sound practices of timber harvesting.

Lesser quality teak furniture that you get at a big-box store could start deteriorating in only two to three years as opposed to the quality teak that will last anywhere from 30-50 years. One way to determine if you have a quality piece of teak furniture is the price. Usually the higher the price tag, the better the product. However, some dealers get around the high price tags by selling in large volume.

Another way to determine the quality of your teak furniture is the weight of the product. A quality piece of teak furniture is not light! A quality teak chair will weigh in upwards of 35 to 40 pounds. An inexpensive chair from a discount shop will weigh much lighter. High-quality teak has a smooth grain and no knots or small pieces glued together. A lesser quality piece of teak furniture is likely to be lightweight, knotted and held together with metal screws and bolts.

If you are shopping for high quality teak, do your research. Make sure you are getting your moneys worth.

The Amazing Qualities of Teak

by Paul E. Dunn

Tectona Grandis, more commonly known as Teak, is native to India and Malay Archipelago and is cultivated in the Philippines and Java. Teak trees reach a height of about 100 feet and sprout white flowers arranged in clusters and a fruit called drupe. Teak is known throughout the world for its durability and strength and has been used for shipbuilding and the construction of furniture for hundreds of years. Other qualities include:

It’s Long-Lasting Teak is an extremely dense hardwood. It is both the longest lasting and most expensive of all woods species used in wood patio furniture construction. The reason Teak is so expensive is because of the cultivation process involved in producing Teak trees of harvestable size takes 60 to 100 years. With proper care, teak furniture can last 50 to 100 years making Teak an excellent choice in wood patio furniture.

It’s Durable The high level of natural Teak oil in the timber acts as an insect repellent making the wood extremely resistant to rot and decay caused by bacteria and fungus or attack by termites.

It Doesn’t Warp Teak’s density helps it resist warping, shrinking, and swelling in all weather conditions.

It’s Environmentally Friendly Indonesian Plantation Teak trees are regulated by the government which sets guidelines about the size and number of trees that may be harvested as well as ensuring that trees are replanted to maintain the productivity of Teak forests for future generations.

It Stays Cool Unlike plastic or metal furniture, Teak patio furniture naturally stays neutral in temperature.

It Beautifies With Age After time, Teak will develop a silver-grey patina which actually helps protect the wood and gives your furniture a rich and majestic look. Over time your Teak patio furniture will naturally blend into the environment in which it’s placed.

It Smells Great Teak has a faint, pleasant aroma.

It’s a Natural Alternative to Chemically Treated Wood Much of today’s outdoor furniture is soaked in toxic chemical preservatives such as copper, arsenic, and chromium.

Consider the Advantages of Using Teak Unlike plastic or resin furniture, Teak will not bow or sag over time and you won’t come out to find your new patio set blown across the yard. Your Teak furniture will not become dull, sun scorched, and faded, but rather will hold its handsome appearance year after year. Teak is an all around safer and healthier choice for patio furniture and outdoor dining sets compared to other wood materials that have been treated with preservatives.

Wood patio furniture made from Teak has all the qualities needed for surviving the sometimes harsh conditions outdoors, and besides that, it looks and smells great too. If you are interested in learning more about Teak or buying wood patio furniture please visit Indonesian Furniture.

Indonesian Teak Furniture Industry

by Akhter Rasool

Furniture industry in Indonesia has boomed since the 1998 Asian crisis. The main reason behind this boom was the weak rupiah, availability of abundant teak plantations and no or very little competition from outside. Furniture buyers from all over the world took advantage of this cheaper teakwood furniture prices including a lot of big global hypermarkets. The result was the availability of Indonesian teak furniture in almost every part of the world. Plenty of small furniture manufacturing firms start entering this furniture boom to provide cheap teak furniture to the global market, which benefited everybody at that time. There is no denial that the growth in number of enterprises and the number of jobs in furniture sector did rose dramatically but since then other internal and external factors had slowed this Indonesian teak furniture boom.

Indonesian teak furniture industry is suffering from the scarcity and cost of the raw materials. The illegally logged timber is not available the way it used to be few years back. This made the small furniture enterprises, which had benefited earlier with the abundant use of illegal logged wood very difficult to sustain and most of them have even stopped their operations. The prices of teak timber for viable source (PERHUTANI) has almost tripled in last 7- 8 years and the buyers from outside still want to pay the same or even less. They don’t want to increase the prices at which they used to buy as they are selling their goods cheaper in their markets compared to 7 years back. This has forced many small enterprises to lower down the quality of teak timber used in their furniture. This has resulted in the evolution of treated teak furniture in the market. Treated teak timber furniture is made of very low quality timber which is then chemically treated to make sure that furniture has the homogeneous color.

There has been no government initiative to support this industry. Furthermore, low investment in machinery and training from small manufacturers has rendered such companies very stagnant. Most of the local manufacturers neither have marketing knowledge nor top management will to present their products directly to offshore customers. The big foreign trading companies are exploiting this situation. They are using local manufacturers to produce goods for them and market them at premium prices into their markets. These foreign companies are exerting lot of pressure on local manufacturers and demanding the cheapest price possible. This resulted in local manufacturers paying lower wages to their workers, using lower quality raw materials and do everything they can to keep their businesses profitable. This vicious circle has a bad effect on all sectors of the industry: labor, investment, social responsibility, quality of products and so forth.

Another challenge to Indonesian teak furniture Industry is the competition from countries like Malaysia, Vietnam and China. Malaysia is one of the major exporter of wood furniture to the global market, though it does not have plantation resources like Indonesia, still very good amount of teak furniture to the global market is exported from Malaysia. It is because of the fact that illegal logged timber from Indonesia still goes to Malaysia. Malaysia, Vietnam, and China export the teak furniture from their countries at cheaper prices than Indonesian though those countries still lack experienced and skilled craftsmen.

In nutshell, the Indonesian teak furniture industry has benefited a lot of people in Indonesia and abroad but the competitive pressures now from inside and as well as from outside, are dragging the industry into the race to the bottom.

Ten Advanced Ways To Learn Woodworking

by Tony Scort

Learning a woodworking or any new hobby does not have to be an exasperating experience. With the availability of the Internet, you can learn much quicker and much faster than ever before. This article is going to give you some great tips on how to accelerate your learning quicker than you ever thought possible. The reason being is a great list of resources will be included to help you along. You should find these tips invaluable.

1. Learning by watching and learning by reading are the easiest ways to learn something new. If you can read and watch video you can pick up something quickly without much help and there is tons of material available today. There are a ton of books and some really good TV shows that can inspire you and show you how to make a special project for your home. I remember watching The New Yankee workshop and got inspired to build my first project. After that I was hooked because I was encouraged. Several great shows on TV include the New Yankee Workshop (PBS) The Router Workshop, Woodworks, and DIY to name a few.

2. Obviously if you have a friend that is into woodworking you can learn a ton from them. Basic shop set up and having someone help you through some of the basics is very valuable. If you don’t have a friend that shares this hobby you can always find some by going to your local woodworking store. A good one that has an active community is woodcraft. Some stores actually have a small shop in which you can take lessons and come in and build your own projects. Looking up woodworking clubs on the Internet for your town specific is also very helpful. Make sure you use the quotations effectively. For example you would put into Google: woodworking clubs “Florida” (substitute your town)

3. One of the newest methods to get some great ideas is to try you tube. They have tons of topics besides the ones that most people go there for. They also have woodworking videos and they are all for free. You can get a great feel for working in the shop and be inspired at the same time. Its free research and its free.

4. There are several websites in which you can get help once you start a project. There is nothing worse than feeling alone when you hit a roadblock. A lot of the forums are set up so that you can ask a question and get an answer. Some of the subject matters are very specific such as:

* I am new to woodworking * I need help * Power tools * Woodturning * Hand tools * Home Improvement * Project specifics * Jigs, tricks and good ideas * Furniture * Hardware * Fastening and joinery * Dust Collection * Etc

Good forums are easy to find, all you need to do is type in Woodworking forums into your favorite search engine and you will find as many as you have time for.

5. Plans

Using plans is a great way to get started. You do not have to any engineering to be successful. All you have to do is to follow the directions and cut the wood to a cut diagram that is included. They usually tell you all the materials you need, what kind of tools you need to have and where to get the additional hardware if needed. Plans can be found all over the Internet. Prices can be as low as $5.00 to around $20 for detailed advanced plans. Again search for woodworking plans using your favorite search engine.

6. Buying the basic tools. There are few tools you will need if you don’t want to stop dead in your tracks in the middle of a project when you find out you need something you do not have. I would suggest an entry level table saw, (bench top model) a cordless drill, (drill press if you can afford it) a router table and a miter saw. If you upgrade your table saw you can get away with not buying the miter saw. This may sound like a lot but you will have a ton of possibilities with this basic set. If you are not sure you want to sink the money into the purchase, you could by the tools used and if you do not want to stay in the hobby you can resell them. My favorite two places are Ebay and Craigslist. Craigslist is like an online classified ad site for your area specific. People buy and sell stuff everyday and its free. I find the deals a little better on Craigslist and I don’t have to bid over an item or remember to bid. You can find out what used items are going for using both services. This should help you save a ton of money. Used tools in good working order are always a good purchase. I continue to this day to buy items used that I want to save a little money.

7. Know where to shop

If you want to buy new tools, knowing where to shop is a key factor to not getting frustrated and to getting a great deal. You can always look up your item specifically online but there are sights out there that cater to specific items as well. Believe it or not Amazon has a huge variety of tools available online. One of the reasons they show so many tools is that vendors are allowed to upload their inventory into Amazons database and those items show up when you search their site. So if a site has a custom tool line, they can sell those tools through Amazon. Of course Amazon gets a piece of the pie. If you look up some tools specifically you will find sites like Router Table Depot that carry items specific to router tables. You can also buy some tools refurbished. Most of the time refurbished tools carry a limited warranty from the manufacturer and are a great bargain.

8. Start Easy

Pick some projects that are not too difficult. Picking easy joinery is another good tip to making a project simple. If you pick an Armoire with curved doors and dovetail joinery, you may be in for a surprised. These details require the experience of detailed and upscale joinery and woodworking techniques. On the other hand don’t pick the traditional lame projects you were forced to build in high school wood shop either. Picking something you can use in your house is always good and practical. Look at the plans, read through what you need to own and what type of joinery is needed. Simple shelves, cabinets or stands, boxes and small tables are good choices for first time projects. These are a lot more fun and practical than spice racks, sconces and paper towel holders.

9. Buying wood

Buying wood for projects is the other half of the equation of purchasing. First you have to buy the tools and then you have to buy the wood. Certain areas of the country lend themselves to better supplies than others. Of course there is always Lowes and Home Depot’s available in most towns. They are somewhat limited, usually offering pine, oak, cedar and poplar. They also carry mdf and plywood in various grades. If you want to save money, or find different grades of woods you can always look online. Other great ways to find good wood are to find local saw mills in your area. They carry wood in the rough, which means it’s not planed or jointed. But it is much cheaper than buying it finished in the box stores. You can also find species such as cherry and walnut. Another good way to find some good and inexpensive wood is to go to Craigslist and Ebay as well as your local classified section of the newspaper.

10. Advanced Learning

If you really want to kick start your learning and money is not much of an issue you can always enroll in a woodworking school. There are several ones that you can find online. These schools can be very basic teaching you everything you should know as well as very advanced. A lot of them require you to only bring yourself since they are a fully stocked shop. Some include the price of a finished project that you actually build while you are at the school or class. This is a sure fire way to get a quality education with plenty of help.

Teak

Teak (Tectona), is a genus of tropical hardwood trees in the family Verbenaceae, native to the south and southeast of Asia, and is commonly found as a component of monsoon forest vegetation. They are large trees, growing to 30-40 m tall, deciduous in the dry season.

The name teak comes from the Malayalam word Thekku, which has cognates in other Dravidian languages. There are three species of Tectona:

• Tectona grandis (Common Teak) is by far the most important, with a wide distribution in India and Indo-China.

• Tectona hamiltoniana (Dahat Teak) is a local endemic species confined to Myanmar, where it is endangered.
• Tectona philippinensis (Philippine Teak) is endemic to the Philippines, and is also endangered.

Cultivation and uses

The timber is used in the manufacture of outdoor furniture, boat decks, and other articles where weather resistance is desired. It is also used for indoor flooring and as a veneer for indoor furnishings.

Teak is easily worked and has natural oils that make it suitable for use in exposed locations, where it is durable even when not treated with oil or varnish. Teak cut from old trees grown slowly in natural forests is more durable and harder; teak from young trees grown in plantations is more prone to splitting and water damage, however kiln drying allows for sustainable, plantation-grown teak to perform nearly on par with old-growth teak.

Vimanmek Mansion Bangkok, Thailand. The largest golden teak building in the world.

Teak is used extensively in India to make doors and window frames, furniture and columns and beams in old type houses. It is very resistant to the attack of termites. The mature teak fetches a very good price. The age of the tree can be assessed from the annual rings formed every year inside the trunk. Teak is grown extensively by forest departments of different states in forest areas.

Teak consumption encompasses a different set of environmental concerns, such as the disappearance of rare old-growth teak. However, its popularity has led to growth in sustainable production throughout the seasonally dry tropics in forestry plantations. The Forest Stewardship Council offers certification of sustainably grown and harvested teak products. Experiments are on to arrive at vegetative propagation from one year old stem cuttings.

Popular in the 1950s and 1960s in a style often known as Danish modern, teak furniture has had a second boom in popularity. Teak is one of the most sought-after types of vintage furniture. Leaves of teak wood tree are used in making Pellakai gatti (Jackfruit dumpling) ,where batter is poured in a teak leaf and is steamed.This type of usage is found in coastal districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi in state of Karnataka in India. Teak is used as a food plant by the larvae of moths of the genus Endoclita including E. aroura, E. chalybeatus, E. damor, E. gmelina, E. malabaricus, E. sericeus and E. signifer and other Lepidoptera including Turnip Moth.

Much of the world’s teak is exported by Indonesia and Myanmar.

Mahogany

The name mahogany is used when referring to numerous varieties of dark-colored wood, originally the wood of the species Swietenia mahagoni, known as West Indian or Cuban Mahogany. It was later used also for the wood of Swietenia macrophylla, which is closely related, and known as Belize Mahogany. Today, all species of Swietenia are listed by CITES, and are therefore protected. Species of Swietenia cross readily when they grow in proximity, the hybrid between S. mahagoni and S. macrophylla is widely planted. Mahogany is also the national tree of Belize.

The name “mahogany” is also commonly used to refer to the African genus Khaya (closely related to Swietenia), hence the term African Mahogany.

“Mahoganies” may refer to the wider group of all the timbers yielded by the three related genera Swietenia, Khaya and Entandrophragma. The timbers of Entandrophragma are traded under their individual names, sometimes with “mahogany” attached as a suffix, for example “sipo” may be referred to as “sipo mahogany”.

In addition, the timber trade deals with various so-called “mahoganies”, under a variety of different names, most notably “Indonesian mahogany“. These woods are unrelated to the above referenced Mahogany.

Uses

Mahogany has a generally straight grain and is usually free of voids and pockets. It has a reddish brown color which darkens over time, and displays a beautiful reddish sheen when polished. It has excellent workability, and is very durable and slow to rot. These properties make it a favorable wood for boat making, as tradition has shown, as well as for making furniture and upholstery (see Chippendale), musical instruments, and other durable objects. Some of the gift shops in the Caribbean especially St. Croix offer Cuban Mahogany in the form of jewellery.

Mahogany is a very popular material for drum making, because of its great integrity and capability to produce a very dark, warm tone compared to other more common wood types like maple or birch. The famous Beatles sound of the 60s was made with Ludwig Drums in mahogany shells. Today, several drum manufacturers have rediscovered the features of mahogany shells, resulting in several high end series offering shells made in this wood.

A wide variety of electric guitars are also made from mahogany, like Gibson’s Les paul line and most of the PRS guitars among others. It is noted, again, for its dark properties, as well as its weight (Gibson Les Pauls may weigh as much as 15 pounds), the combination of which produces a warm, rounded tone with huge sustain, for which the guitar is famous.

It should also be noted that Mahogany is a very popular choice of material for luthiers constructing all grades of acoustic guitars. Mahogany is a Japanese analogue to the English “haymaker”.