Chests are pieces of furniture that are both functional and aesthetically pleasing. They could add much needed flair in any room in the house, and could serve as a container for other articles. Chests in bedrooms could contain children's toys, clothes, books and other things. It could hold important family memoirs like letters, papers, pictures and photos. Many chests are designed and carved to give out a classic vibe, while some designed to be more minimalist and streamlined. But whatever design or purpose a chest may have in your home, it all comes down to the question of whether or not your chest will last. Whether it will outlive you and become an antique is another question. This is why it is important to consider the materials that are used to make the chest.
Choosing the Right Materials
Hardwoods are the most reliable materials that are used when it comes to wooden chests and furniture in general. Hardwoods are strong and tough, and they come from natural sources. Synthetic woods like plywoods break down easily, but hardwood are more resistant to wear and tear. Furthermore, many hardwoods have beautiful natural colors that add to the beauty and design of a piece of furniture. Some hardwoods even vary in color depending on how they were processed. This gives hardwoods a lot of versatility when it comes to using them as raw materials for furniture.
A good hardwood combination to use to make wooden chests is cedar and walnut. These two hardwoods have distinct characteristics that combine beautifully to make a very striking article. The very fact that they are hardwoods would assure you that chests that are made of walnut and cedar would be very strong and would last more than a lifetime.
Cedar wood is popularly used as materials for furniture because of its properties. Cedar trees are chiefly grown and harvested in some areas because of high demand for its quality wood. Cedar wood is very tough and long lasting, and so many of cedar furniture become antiques. It is decay-resistant and weather-resistant and scented. Cedar is also most popularly used as wooden linings for closets and cabinets that are made to hold clothes especially woollen ones because cedar wood repels moths and their grubs. It is can also absorb moisture and deodorize and so it is used to make shoe holders and trees. Cedar is also known to be one of the 'tonewoods', because solid aged cedar produces warm tones in guitars and other musical instruments. Walnut wood on the other hand, is another good hardwood prized for its attractive colors and its tight grain which when polished produces a very smooth finish. Walnut is one of those hardwoods that change its color depending on how it is processed. Walnut wood color ranges from creamy white to the very dark brown color, similar to dark chocolate. It could also have a dull brown color when oven dried and a purple-brown color when air dried. Because of this, it has been used for many furniture. Walnut wood is not only used in furniture, but also in car dashboards and in guns and rifles. Like cedar, walnut is also used to make stringed instruments.
These properties when combined make a very good piece of furniture, especially on wooden chests. The colors of walnut wood give distinct aesthetic value to your wooden chest. With the variety of colors that walnut wood can assume, it will be easy for you to choose the color that suits your preferences. You can also choose the color that best fits the theme and design of the room you want to place your chest. Since it produces a very smooth finish, it can immediately command attention and brighten up any dull room. It's strong qualities make walnut wood great for the chest's exterior. It's weather proof, so it can resist common changes in humidity and sunlight. It makes it easy for the chest to last longer because of the resilience of the wood. Walnut wood is also known to age and become more beautiful as it ages. The beauty of your wooden chest appears more as the piece of furniture lasts longer with you.
Interior Considerations
Wooden chests with cedar and walnut combinations usually have the cedar as the lining of the chest. The properties of cedar make it good to be the material most in contact with the things you put inside it. This makes it good for storing clothing articles and other cloths. Since cedar is moth resistant, storing clothes in a chest made of cedar would help preserve your clothes, especially woollen ones. Same goes for the other things you put inside the chest. Books, photos and other memoirs stay well protected inside the chest. Since cedar wood has this nice fresh scent, you wouldn't fear to have your clothes smelling like the dull smell of wooden cabinets. Cedar also deodorizes so it can neutralize any strong smells that can take away the freshness of newly washed clothes. Since cedar is strong and resilient, you can be sure that the chest will remain as beautiful and functional as it is whatever you put inside it.
This combination of two strong hardwoods would guarantee the fact that your wooden chest will last. It can even outlive you and be part of your family's heirloom. This furniture is made to be the antiques of the next generation. A cedar walnut chest is surely an excellent purchase to make.
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