Reclaimed Wood Furniture In the UK as a substitute to flatpacking!

Why buying reclaimed wood furniture is the next big thing!

Furniture made from reclaimed wood is the future. Sustainable living or ‘eco’ living is the forefront of people minds in this modern world, and for good reason.

Making use of reclaimed wood for furniture is a natural progression from using newly cut wood. Reclaiming makes use of old already used wood and giving it new life as opposed to destroying it. It’s a natural process and for the most part the reclaimed wood is actually more favourable to new. Some of its features are those that cannot be found in new wood. It’s generally weathered and spent time in the air drying so for the most part its more attractive than new wood. It often has a more rustic feel which is an excellent appealing feature for furniture. Giving it great contrast to a lot of the factory made flat packed furniture seen in today’s modern living.

There are more considerations then just look when purchasing reclaimed wooden furniture and this is the fact that, deforestation is ripe in the world and more ethical minds are appearing in society, and everyone feels duty bound to do their bit for the world, even if the process is not as easy as simply chopping down a new tree. The premium associated with reclaiming wood, and working with it to make furniture makes it a more expensive option, but not in any way a more unjust method.

There are strong arguments in favour of reclaimed wood:

First and foremost, it is environmentally friendly. Reclaimed wood isn’t grown simply for the purpose of cutting it down. Often timber farms choose wood that just grows quickly, just so that it can be cut down quickly and profits are made.

The character of the wood cannot be reproduced. Old wood has spent the test of time, and as a result is strong and durable. Ne wood is soft and less resilient because it hasn’t had the time to mature. Reclaimed wood furniture will last longer.

More recently the supply of reclaimed furniture has increased as people have started to discover and consider the importance of buying and using reclaimed woods for their furniture instead of funding the illegal logging that is a genuine concern in our society. Ethical concerns are paramount in today’s living and the associated extra costs do not outweigh the necessity of producing sustainable-furniture.

As with all new trends, there are those trying to abuse it, considerations need to be taken to the sourcing of the wood, for the most part people targeting this kind of market for their reclaimed wood furniture themselves have ethical views on the matter, however there are those branding and labelling their goods for the sake of a sale, and to exploit a situation. Consideration really needs to be taken when determining the source of the timber. When choosing the wood for your reclaimed timber, due to its age, you need to make sure on some types of wood that it has been treated in its life. Some woods, for example teak doesn’t need this treatment, but others do and reclaimed wood being older needs to be treated from the beginning to ensure its life.

Buying reclaimed wood not need be as scary as this article probably makes out, but considerations need to be taken as with any purchase (you wouldn’t not-research and not-look at a car before purchase!). These small considerations can ensure that you buy the best for your money and choose ethical sustainable sourced furniture that will last a lifetime.

Buying your reclaimed wood furniture need not be a hard chore, and choosing the right furniture can lead you to have some of the prettiest furniture in the world. Reclaimed wood can allow you to have sustainable-furniture and an eco-conscience.