Simon and Penny are passionate about trees. Beautiful woods adjoin their property and they are fortunate enough to have land where they can plant more trees. They want trees to grow and mature to live out their long and peaceful lives taking in carbon dioxide and giving out life preserving oxygen. |
They are passionate too about the beautiful timbers these trees have yielded in the past and feel there is no longer a need to decimate the forests and woodlands of the world to create more furniture.
Right now, antique furniture from 17th - 20th centuries has never been so accessible in terms of quantity and value.
Right now, antique furniture from 17th - 20th centuries has never been so accessible in terms of quantity and value.
Collecting antique furniture can become a part of our future as well as our past.
The earliest furniture from 16th and 17th centuries was made from oak.
The majestic oak growing on the chalk downs, the Welsh oak: hard and dense or the European/Baltic oak which produces a straighter grain than the more gnarled English oak. The same species produces differences in timber due to the climate of the area in which it grows. |
The oak tree became the bedrock of Elizabethan society: ships, houses, furniture, furnaces all relied on oak.
But by the 17th century a new timber came to the fore: walnut. It was easier to carve and manipulate and yielded a beautiful honey colour. The tree grew throughout Europe and was used in veneers and marquetry. |
Then in the early 18th century walnut trees suffered in a dreadful winter and cabinet makers turned to the Americas for their timber. Mahogany was in the highest demand. Some of the straight planks of Honduras mahogany were steeped in water for a decade to give them a hard, dark and durable quality.
Simon and Penny feel that trees are in danger, whether through disease, exploitation or climate change. They want trees to grow old gracefully, unlike themselves.