Timber, Finish & Care

Everything we make starts with the material. Before a single cut, the timber decides what a piece can be, how it catches light, how it ages, how long it lasts. This page covers what we build with, how we finish it, and how to keep your piece looking its best for years.

Our timber

We don't use one material for everything. Each piece gets the timber that suits the job.

Macrocarpa. A New Zealand grown softwood with a warm honey colour and a beautiful, lively grain. It's naturally durable and takes a hand finish superbly, which is why it's the heart of our candle holders, frames, and solid timber pieces. Macrocarpa has character in spades: knots, grain swirls, and colour shifts that make every piece genuinely one of a kind.

Okoumé plywood. Our layered wall art needs a material that is dead flat, stable, and fine grained enough to hold crisp laser detail. Okoumé is a premium marine grade plywood that does exactly that. It cuts cleanly, finishes beautifully, and won't warp or twist on your wall as the seasons change. This is quality plywood chosen on purpose, not a cheap substitute. It's a different tool for a different job than solid timber.

American walnut, mataī, and white oak. Accent timbers we bring in where a design calls for deeper colour, contrast, or a particular grain. Walnut for rich chocolate browns, white oak for pale clean lines, mataī for a distinctly New Zealand reddish warmth.

Cast acrylic. Used where timber can't go, in pieces that involve light. Cast acrylic carries and diffuses light evenly, which is what gives our LED pieces their glow.

Because real timber is a natural material, no two boards are the same. Grain, colour, and figure vary from piece to piece, and that's the point. Your piece won't be identical to the photo's grain pattern, but it will be the same design, the same quality, and unmistakably itself.

The finish

A good finish protects the timber and lets it speak. We use two, depending on the piece.

Hard wax oil on our solid timber work. We use Gilly's Hard Wax Oil, a natural oil and wax blend made for furniture and woodwork. Unlike a plastic-feeling lacquer that sits on top of the wood, hard wax oil soaks into the grain and hardens within it, then the wax component seals the surface. The result is a low sheen, natural feel that you can actually touch, with honest protection underneath. It deepens the colour of macrocarpa and brings the grain to life.

Clear protective coats on our layered and engraved work, where fine laser detail needs sealing without filling. These keep the contrast crisp and the surface easy to dust.

Caring for your piece

furnACE pieces are décor, not chopping boards, so care is simple. A few habits will keep your piece looking new for decades.

  • Dust with a soft, dry cloth. That's the whole routine for most pieces, most of the time.

  • If something needs more, wipe with a barely damp cloth and dry immediately. Never soak timber or use spray cleaners on it.

  • Keep pieces out of prolonged direct sunlight. All timber mellows and shifts colour over time in strong sun, walnut lightens and macrocarpa deepens. Slow ageing is part of the charm; fast fading isn't.

  • Avoid steamy rooms. Bathrooms and unventilated kitchens cycle timber through moisture swings it doesn't enjoy.

  • Most pieces never need re-finishing. The one exception is our Macrocarpa coasters, which earn their keep under glasses and mugs. If a coaster starts to look dry, a sparing fresh coat of hard wax oil brings it back: apply with a cloth, leave briefly, buff off.

Candle holders. Each holder comes with a scented glass candle insert, and when it's done, any standard 54mm glass insert drops straight in as a refill. Never burn a bare candle directly on the timber. Don't let a candle burn unattended or burn down to its base, and keep flames clear of the engraved face. Treat it as you would any candle in your home.

LED pieces. Wipe the acrylic with a soft dry or barely damp cloth only. No solvents or glass cleaners, which can craze acrylic over time.

Built to be kept

We finish every piece to be handed down, not replaced next season. If anything about your piece ever needs attention, get in touch. It came out of one workshop, and that workshop is still here.

Want to know who's behind the bench? Read our story.