A friend who has been looking for a modern dining table alerted me to 16th Workshop, a Seattle-based artisanal studio that designs and makes contemporary furniture from sustainably harvested or salvaged Northwestern hardwoods. Founded in 2008, the workshop is a true...

The front door tells you a lot about the home it serves: Warm and welcoming; large and imposing; sleek and modern; quiet and traditional—the range of possibilities is infinite. Here are three hardwood front doors, each with its own distinctive aura, that have caught...

I’m a big fan of custom built-in hardwood cabinetry for the bedroom. Not only is it practical and a great way to get rid of visual clutter, but it also offers a limitless range of design possibilities, as these three examples, culled from different corners of the...

Parquet flooring—the real thing, which uses solid hardwood blocks to create geometric patterns—first became fashionable in 17th-century France, when the aristocracy gradually replaced the marble floors in their chateaux with intricate wood parquetry. Even Louis XVI...

Beyond its purely functional role, a staircase can be a beautiful and expressive architectural feature, especially when it’s made of hardwood. Here are three residential staircases—each in a different style—that transcend their practical purpose to become aesthetic...

I’ve long admired the work of Desai Chia Architecture, a New York firm led by the husband-and-wife team of Arjun Desai and Katherine Chia. American hardwoods often play a major role in their projects, and the LM Guest House, a recently completed weekend retreat on a...

Wharton Esherick (1897–1970) was a true American original. An academically trained but unsuccessful painter, in 1924 he abandoned brushes and oils for chisels and wood. For the next half century, Esherick combined his passion for modern art with his skill at working...

This season I’m simplifying my holiday giving for everyone, from baby to grandma, by focusing on gifts made of American hardwood. There’s an enormous selection out there, ranging from the sleekly sophisticated to the charmingly rustic—and everything in between. Here...

I’ve always been inspired by hardwood-paneled interiors, from the dark, imposing banqueting halls of Tudor England to the charming wainscoted cottage parlors of 19th-century New England to the sleek walnut-sheathed offices of Mad Men-era Manhattan. So I was delighted...

Living in a space-challenged New York City apartment, I just don’t have room for a great big kitchen island, much as I would love one. So I was intrigued by a stylish new line of hardwood kitchen worktables from March, the San Francisco-based home furnishings store....