Teak
We import sustainable wood furniture and sculpture from the islands of Bali and Java in Indonesia, and Asian garden pots from Vietnam and China. All of our teak and mahogany wood furniture are from sustainable sources, and no rainforest degradation occurs in their procurement. Reclaimed teak is that which is salvaged from old buildings – primarily in Java – and much of it is several hundred years old.
Plantation Grown Teak
Plantation grown teak is certified as legal by an Indonesian government agency before it is harvested, and many more teak trees are planted for each one harvested. Teak trees must grow at least 80 years before they can be harvested. Java also has the largest mahogany plantations in the world, and they grow suar and Indian rosewood as well. These last two are species that were introduced to Java by the Dutch during the colonial period.
A sustainable source
The Indonesian State Forestry Company, a government sponsored entity called PT. Perhutani, certifies plantation-grown Teak and other hardwoods for harvest and export as furniture items. In addition to Teak, Indonesian Mahogany (Toona Sureni) and Suar (Albizia Saman or Monkeypod – a tree originally from South America) are also strictly governed to ensure they are not harvested too soon and that replanting exceeds harvesting to prevent rainforest devastation. Indonesia has the largest Mahogany plantations in the world, with over 460,000 acres, and new trees are planted continuously.
Reclaimed Teak
Reclaimed means salvaged and reused. Teak’s incredible resilience made it the ideal building material in old Indonesia – It was used to build everything from railroads to traditional Javanese homes, including the Joglo.
Constructed entirely of strong teak beams and ceramic tile roofs, Joglos were perfect both for protection during the rainy season and the hot dry season. Building a Joglo was a communal effort, and they were ornately decorated with intricate carvings. Untold thousands were built, but during the Dutch Colonial period they began to be demolished. The Joglo pictured here belongs to one of our artisans, who uses it as an office. Note the old beams stacked along the left side.
Bringing new life
These beams of old growth teak were salvaged from an older Joglo. The square holes in them were cut for mortise and tenon joinery, which is how the old houses were built. Look at our reclaimed teak furniture and you will often see where these holes have been patched. Our artisans plane this rare wood into boards and use it to build our furniture, ensuring that you not only have furniture that is extraordinarily strong, distinctive, and durable, but also has a rich history and is environmentally responsible.
