Unique Wood Design Bathroom Designs
16 December 2009
“Angels We Have Heard on High”
It’s interesting sometimes to see how we get from here to there, by which I mean not only the ways in which a product can be designed, but also the ways in which any given person can turn to manufacturing a particular product. Our case in point is the subject of today’s blog. Actually, there’s a tale to be told about their company name, because you don’t often come across a company name that is completely apt, but Unique Wood Design is certainly one. And the proof of that, of course, is in the pictures we’ve featured here.
But to return to our subject I found myself intrigued with how this European firm began doing what they now do. Actually, they started up in 1979 when they built yachts, boats and canoes, all of which are products that require a certain amount of waterproofing if they are to perform their function well. Anyone who lives near a marina must take a certain amount of fascination in watching the amount of scraping, sanding, varnishing and polishing that is done on any vessel in any given year, but especially so on those that are made of wood.
I bring that up, though, because it was the necessity of constantly having to waterproof wood that caused Unique Wood Design to go in their current direction, namely the design and manufacture of wooden tubs, showers, and sinks. What I find interesting, though, is that they began by making wood items that float on water and now make wood items that can be filled with water. And the secret of success for both concepts is a finish that keeps the water away from the wood itself.
If you’ve ever seen an expensive yacht (is there any other kind?), you will have noted the wonderful varnished teak used throughout. And what is especially gratifying to an old woodworker like yours truly is the way this wood, or any other wood that may have been used in the construction of the vehicle, shimmers in the sunlight. Unique Wood Design took that sort of thing a step further by developing a unique wood coating technique.
Numerous layers of the finish they use allow deep wood penetration, and the coating itself is outstandingly durable and fully waterproof. It protects the wood from scratching and UV damage and even has antiseptic properties. But the other part, the glorious part, is the esthetic side. The multiple layers that are an essential part of the wood finishing process bring out the original wood grain giving it the effect of incredible depth and variety of textures. And then, just to sweeten the offer, so to speak, they make their products available in a wide range of European, Asian and African woods.
Finally, there are the designs themselves, or should that be firstly there are designs? If the Word was in the beginning, so too, in the development of any successful product was the design, and the design was in the beginning, and without the design, nothing was made that has been made. So the most of what we celebrate here is not the materials that shape these products, but the ideas that give them form. Part of the charm of a wooden tub is its uniqueness, and if the design of that item is also unique, well, that’s the sort of thing that causes angels to sing, isn’t it?
Joseph
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One Response to “Unique Wood Design Bathroom Designs”
December 20th, 2010 at 9:45 AM
These are great looking sinks! I want one!