WOOD FOR THE PROJECT

We selected American ash for our stools, as the species is extremely strong, stable and ideal for this kind of application.

Brendan and Seamus Harcourt-Wood of Rare Woods South Africa generously donated the wood for this project. Discover their comprehensive timber range at rarewoods.co.za.

AMERICAN ASH (FRAXINUS AMERICANA)

Along with hickory and oak, ash is one of the most commonly used utility woods in the USA. It is remarkably tough and has excellent shock resistance, making it perfect for a wide variety of applications, from tool handles to fine furniture, to the body frames of the famous Morgan sports cars.

Grains are typically straight and the reasonably coarse texture draws comparisons to that of oak. The wood’s easy working properties, generally light overall colour and good glueing and finishing characteristics make the species extremely popular for furniture making.