Hardwood in furniture production

Mango wood

Mango wood is a water-repellent hardwood, making it ideal for creating eco-friendly indoor furniture.  Mango wood is characterised by a wide range of colours since the wood core changes colour with the age of the tree. The colour ranges between light and dark shades of brown. The variation gives each product a unique surface and the rustic look that characterises Trademark Living products.

However, the aesthetic qualities of the mango wood are not the only reason Trademark Living has fallen in love with this material! The mango tree itself is a waste product from the production of mangoes. The mango tree grows quickly, but after 7–15 years the tree stops bearing fruit. The barren tree is then removed to make room for a new, fertile tree. Before we started producing mango wood furniture and interiors, the trees were typically burned down to make way for new, fertile trees. Because Trademark Living’s productions now use this fast-growing mango wood, the trees are now instead felled and planted in a 7–15-year cycle. So, mango wood has gone from being industrial waste to becoming a new income stream for hard-working farmers. Eventually, the ‘waste’ becomes beautiful furniture.

Acacia wood

Acacia is a solid, fast-growing hardwood tree, characterised by its warm, reddish shades. The hardness and water-repellent properties of the wood make it ideal for the production of rustic furniture, creating a warm contrast in contemporary homes. Wax or oil treatment is all that’s needed for the beautiful, rustic woodgrain to come into its own. 

Most people would probably recognise the iconic images from the African savannah, with a half-asleep male lion seeking some much-needed shade under the umbrella-shaped crown of the acacia tree. Savannah wildlife is not the only beneficiary of the acacia, however. There are more than 100 different types of this tree species across much of the southern hemisphere, where they’re used to produce everything from food and medicine to furniture and printer inks.

At Trademark Living, we use acacia wood from India, where the wood is particularly popular and contributes raw materials to the furniture, leather and textile industries.

Fun fact: The chemical reaction from the ‘Mentos and cola light experiment’ is primarily due to the content of edible acacia in Mentos mints.