What is barnwood

As the first quarter of 2018 has already come and gone, we’ve been busy from manufacturing, installing and showcasing our products at trade shows and with that, we’ve had a number of questions and requests for certain items to be made out of barn wood.

But as we’ve noticed in the last six years of building furniture… there is more than one type of species when it comes to barn wood and what it actually looks like.

When it comes to types of wood that we use in crafting our barn door, feature wall cladding or even custom furniture. Every piece is different and has its own character from how it’s weathered before it’s procured by us and what species of wood it is.

The species of wood we get in Alberta varies from what you may see in other parts of Canada. At anytime there can be handful material at our disposal.

Alberta’s most common wood species we use are:

Fir, Spruce, Pine, Poplar, Cedar, Hemlock (Sub-species of Fir) & Tamarack (Sub-species of Poplar)

(Island Extension built with Poplar Wood)

When deciding on what wood is best for your furniture piece here are some quick facts on the following timber pieces.

Fir/Hemlock: Great for tables and barn doors and those looking for more of a modern finish while still having the reclaimed appeal. When applying wood stain, the rich undertones that go with a piece of fir material really makes the colour you choose illuminate giving that modern/rustic finish.

Spruce/Pine/Tamarack: This is when the client is really looking for that majestic rustic look from a piece of old growth Spruce or Pine (not the new spruce available to day at any hardware store or lumber yard) because that is what was used to build all of the structures we are now in the process of salvaging to re-use to keep that authenticity in tact. This material is excellent for making any project one of a kind. As it has more visible texture, can be used for finding that natural grey material that is extremely popular. We use this material in constructing our barn doors, feature walls or any piece of reclaimed furniture.

Lastly, let’s talk Grey Material, because ALL of the material we use could potential have grey wood characteristics… Why you ask? Because grey boards don’t actually start as grey boards, most of them were lighter tones and over time in typical Alberta weather fashion, they gradually petina and aren’t naturally grey. So the next time someone says they have grey barn boards, they may or may not… they may have weathered barn wood or they may have wind fencethat has become the colour grey due to years of exposure to natural sunshine, rain, wind and of course our dear friend… snow!

So when you stop by or inquire about grey products from Two Birds , keep these wood species in the back of your mind because depending on what you’re looking for you may want grey but you may need to add the species type to get what you’re really looking for instead of just having grey for the sake of grey when maybe a different colour tone/stain would go better with you’re furniture concept.

If you have any questions or follow ups on what material & colour you may need, come visit us anytime!

220 Stockton Ave #108 Okotoks, AB

403-498-4517 sales@twobirdsfurniture.ca