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Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana) is the only true member of the ebony family that grows in North America. But unlike its tropical counterpart and many other trees, the vast majority of persimmon lumber consists of cream-colored sapwood, with only a tiny portion of dark heartwood. Surprisingly, though, its sapwood is more highly prized and utilized. 

In some ways, black locust might be considered a superhero (or maybe a supervillain). The tree the lumber comes from is one of the fastest-growing hardwoods, and the wood is one of the hardest, stiffest, and most rot-resistant species native to North America.

If you look around the room you’re in, chances are you can see edge banding on some of the furniture or trim in the room. That’s because it is almost always easier and more practical to build large projects with plywood.  For furniture or other decorative pieces, plywood is a less expensive alternative to solid wood and it is dimensionally stable so you don’t have to worry about expansion or warping.  

When it comes to interior renovations that add a ton of value, wood is always a good place to start. Expertly finished wooden renovations are highly prized by potential home buyers and are very likely to boost your property value. There are plenty of options to choose from in terms of interior wooden renovations as well, so in case you want a beautiful new wood addition that’s going to add home value, here are a few of our favorites.

Give your work a beautiful skin.

It all starts with a tree that was planted long ago. A tree that grew on a grandparent’s property. A tree that children climbed in the summertime. A tree that provided shade in a family’s backyard. Every tree has its own history, and three Columbus, Ohio, entrepreneurs aim to preserve the stories of their area’s fallen trees—in the form of furniture—for generations to come. Meet Tyler, Treg and Tyler, and learn more about their story in this Woodworking Adventures Blog. 

There’s something about the texture, warm hue and distinctive grain of heart pine that just makes you want to run your hand over the wood. Yes, it’s a yellow pine, but don’t confuse it with the yellow pine you’ll find at the lumberyard, often tinged pressure-treatment green. Heart pine is the heartwood of the longleaf pine tree (Pinus palustris), which is no longer harvested for commercial use and is now primarily available only as reclaimed lumber. The lumberyard stuff is slash pine (Pinus elliottii), loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) or less often, shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata).

West Penn Hardwoods, a company that specializes in exotic wood imports, has discovered a “Tree of a Lifetime” on a farm in the jungle of Brazil. The 1,000+ year old Pequiá tree had been dead for over sixty years!

This ornamental tree is a woodworker’s delight.

The sugar maple (Acer saccharum) entertains millions of “leaf peepers” every fall with its fiery foliage, and pancakes everywhere drip with syrup made from the tree’s sap.