R  E  C  L  A  I  M  E  D    T  E  A  K

Our reclaimed teak comes in all manner of shapes and surprises, from tiny fittings to massive ancient timbers. Carefully recovered by hand from old and neglected buildings, each and every piece of this wonderful wood has a special history and story to tell.

Arbor Vetum only produce designs by using carefully graded and selected reclaimed teak timbers for four primary reasons:

1) Visually: these ancient timbers have a beautiful mature grain and colour very unlike new teak which tends to be very pale and plain in colour. This is achieved because the timber has been seasoning for almost 100 years and the oils in the timber have mellowed to a rich golden colour.

2) Stability: as our ancient timbers have been seasoning for such a long time the timber has become incredibly stable and is capable of withstanding fluctuations in temperature, weather elements as well as easily coping with the general rigours of every day use.

3) Structurally: these ancient timbers came from very mature trees, and by only using extremely large beams to make our furniture we make sure that there is a very high concentration of natural oils within each piece of timber. The presence of these rich oils makes our ancient teak timbers extremely dense, strong and perfect for furniture making.

4) Environmental: by ensuring that every single piece of our teak comes from carefully selected and salvaged timbers we eliminate the need to cut down living teak trees – which helps to preserve natural forests and protect the environment.

Arbor Vetum prefer salvaging from early 20th Century structures because the timbers available from that period were some of the best the world has ever seen. For instance, we are currently using some fabulous ancient teak beams which we salvaged last year from an old French Military Hospital c 1904. We will always be able to tell you where the timber to make your furniture came from and take pride in the fact that each and every piece of our furniture has a history and story to tell.

Importantly, Arbor Vetum reclaimed teak timbers are also independently audited by both the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and SmartWood to guarantee that they are genuinely reclaimed and salvaged in a responsible manner. This is our guarantee to our clients that all of our furniture is both environmentally, historically and socially acceptable.

So to reiterate: not only is our teak genuinely reclaimed but it also has a very clear conscience.