Wood Species

"The type of wood we use is the backbone of our work."

All items made by Serenity Woodworks are completely individual and there will be nothing exactly like it. Each 3D carved item is carefully chosen from premium hardwood with a specific grain that will accent the specific piece.

One of the most enjoyable parts of woodworking is to create the most beautiful work with different species. Below is a list of some of the hardwoods we work with and you can choose for custom orders. If you are constrained by a budget just let us know what species you like, and we can provide alternatives if needed.

*All pictures of wood are before treatment/finishing.*

African Mahogany

Common Name(s): African Mahogany
Scientific Name: Khaya spp. (Khaya anthotheca, K. grandifoliola, K. ivorensis, K. senegalensis)
Distribution: West tropical Africa
Color/Appearance: Heartwood color is variable, ranging from a very pale pink to a deeper reddish brown, sometimes with streaks of medium to dark reddish brown. Color tends to darken with age. Quartersawn surfaces can also exhibit a ribbon-stripe appearance.

African Padauk

Common Name(s): African padauk, vermillion
Scientific Name: Pterocarpus soyauxii
Distribution: Central and tropical west Africa
Color/Appearance: Heartwood color can vary, ranging from a pale pinkish orange to a deep brownish red. Most pieces tend to start a vibrant reddish orange when freshly cut, darkening substantially over time to a reddish/purplish brown (some lighter-colored pieces can age to a grayish brown). Grain is usually straight, but can sometimes be interlocked. Coarse, open texture and good, natural luster.

Black Walnut

Common Name(s): Black Walnut
Scientific Name: Juglans nigra
Distribution: Eastern United States
Color/Appearance: Heartwood can range from a lighter pale brown to a dark chocolate brown with darker brown streaks. Color can sometimes have a grey, purple, or reddish cast. Sapwood is pale yellow-gray to nearly white. Figured grain patterns such as curl, crotch, and burl are also seen.

Bubinga

Common Name(s): Bubinga, Kevazingo
Scientific Name: Guibourtia spp. (G. demeusei, G. pellegriniana, G. tessmannii)
Distribution: Equatorial Africa
Color/Appearance: Heartwood ranges from a pinkish red to a darker reddish brown with darker purple or black streaks. Sapwood is a pale straw color and is clearly demarcated from the heartwood. Bubinga is very frequently seen with a variety of figure, including: pommele, flamed, waterfall, quilted, mottled, etc.

Hard Maple

Common Name(s): Hard maple, sugar maple, rock maple
Scientific Name: Acer saccharum
Distribution: Northeastern North America
Color/Appearance: Unlike most other hardwoods, the sapwood of hard maple lumber is most commonly used rather than its heartwood. Sapwood color ranges from nearly white, to an off-white cream color, sometimes with a reddish or golden hue. The heartwood tends to be a darker reddish brown. Birdseye maple is a figure found most commonly in hard maple, though it’s also found less frequently in other species. Hard maple can also be seen with curly or quilted grain patterns.

Jatoba

Common Name(s): Jatoba, Brazilian cherry
Scientific Name: Hymenaea courbaril
Distribution: Central America, southern Mexico, northern South America, and the West Indies
Color/Appearance: Heartwood varies from a light orangish brown to a darker reddish brown, sometimes with contrasting darker grayish brown streaks. Color tends darken upon exposure to light. Sapwood is a light grayish yellow, clearly demarcated from the heartwood. Grain is typically interlocked, with a medium to coarse texture. Good natural luster.

Peruvian Walnut

Common Name(s): Peruvian Walnut, Tropical Walnut, Nogal
Scientific Name: Juglans spp. (Juglans australis, J. neotropica, J. olanchana, etc.)
Distribution: Southern Mexico, Central and South America
Color/Appearance: Heartwood tends to be darker than temperate walnut species, with a deep chocolate brown color, sometimes with a purplish hue. May also contain streaks of lighter-colored wood mixed throughout the heartwood, which can sometimes be extensive and result in a high degree of waste. Grain figuring such as curl seems to be much less common than other walnut species.

Purple Heart

Common Name(s): Purpleheart, amaranth, roxinho, violeta
Scientific Name: Peltogyne spp.
Distribution: Central and South America (from Mexico down to southern Brazil)
Color/Appearance: When freshly cut the heartwood of purpleheart can be a dull grayish/purplish brown. Upon exposure—usually within a few days—the wood becomes a deeper eggplant purple. With further age and exposure to UV light, the wood becomes a dark brown with a hint of purple. This color-shift can be slowed and minimized by using a UV inhibiting finish on the wood.

Soft Maple

Common Name(s): Soft Maple
Scientific Name: ,Acer spp.
Distribution: Temperate regions of North America
Color/Appearance: Soft maple is very similar to hard maple in most respects. Generally, the sapwood is greyish-white, sometimes with darker-colored pith flecks. The heartwood varies from light-to-dark reddish brown. The wood is usually straight-grained. The lumber is generally sold unselected for color.

South American Mahogany

Common Name(s): Honduran mahogany, genuine mahogony, big-leaf mahogany, Brazilian mahogany, American mahogany
Scientific Name: Swietenia macrophylla
Distribution: Southern Mexico to central South America
Color/Appearance: Heartwood color can vary a fair amount, from a pale pinkish brown to a darker reddish brown. Color tends to darken with age. Mahogany also exhibits an optical phenomenon known as chatoyancy. Grain can be straight, interlocked, irregular or wavy. Texture is medium and uniform, with moderate natural luster.

Wenge

Common Name(s): Wenge
Scientific Name: Millettia laurentii
Distribution: Central Africa
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is medium brown, sometimes with a reddish or yellowish hue, with nearly black streaks. Upon application of a wood finish (particularly an oil finish) the wood can become nearly black. However, unlike most other dark hardwoods, the heartwood of wenge can lighten (rather than darken) when exposed to sunlight.

White Oak

Common Name(s): White Oak
Scientific Name: Quercus alba
Distribution: Eastern United States
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is a light to medium brown, commonly with an olive cast. Paler sapwood is not always sharply demarcated from the heartwood. Quartersawn sections display prominent ray fleck patterns. The grain is straight with a coarse, uneven texture.