Homeowners shopping for furniture typically look for beauty, comfort and quality. Furniture should look good in the space for which it is intended, be comfortable to use, and last for a long time. In addition to providing all of those qualities, solid wood furniture is timeless in appearance can be handed down to future generations. When looking to purchase solid wood furniture, customers should understand what defines a piece of solid wood furniture, consider the type of wood available for the furniture they need, decide upon the finish available for the wood, and learn the care necessary to maintain the integrity of the piece.

A piece of furniture is considered "solid wood" when it is completely constructed with boards of wood. Solid wood furniture will be free of wood products that are a composite of wood pieces combined with other materials. In other words, a piece of solid wood furniture will not be constructed with particleboard covered with a thin layer of wood. To give the appearance of solid wood, furniture manufacturers will often construct the inner parts of furniture using particleboard and use solid wood boards on the parts of the furniture that can be seen. Such construction is not considered solid wood furniture.

While oak is the type of wood known to most people for use in solid wood furniture, there are many other types of wood that are used to make beautiful pieces. Cherry, walnut, mahogany, maple, and oak are considered "hard" woods. These types of wood tend to scratch less easily and absorb stain beautifully. "Soft" woods, like pine and cedar, will provide a different but equally as beautiful look for furniture. The type of wood chosen depends upon the intended use of the furniture. A table made of pine will likely nick or scratch from daily use, but a durable finish can make even pine a feasible material for a table.

The color of a piece of solid wood furniture depends on both the type of wood and finish. Some woods give a pinkish hue, regardless of the color of finish used. Other wood types have green undertones. When considering solid wood furniture, customers should get a sample of the possible wood type and experiment with using different finishes on the sample to ensure they achieve the color needed for the finished product.

Care of wood furniture is extremely important. Wood is very susceptible to water damage, so it is important to make sure that a durable finish is used on any piece that may come into contact with water on a regular basis. Solid wood furniture can scratch, depending on the hardness of the wood and the finish on the piece, but scratches and nicks can easily be repaired with wood repair products. Cleaning products specifically made for wood should be used when cleaning wood furniture.

Each piece of wood furniture is unique, as each tree from which the wood comes is unique in its own right. Solid wood furniture is beautiful, timeless, and can enhance any home décor for years to come.