Blog | Furniture knowledge

Woven Furniture - Types & Techniques

Woven furniture comes in different styles & materials. Telling them apart can often be confusing, but it's essential to know the difference, particularly if you're looking for furniture that's suitable for outdoors. Our list details the different types with an infographic showing furniture examples.

10/09/18 11:50

Sustainable Furniture: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Creating sustainable furniture depends on legislation, type of materials used, logistics & waste & some of the designs are prettier than others! Green chairs usually include a headline product, which may be recycled or a waste product. Discover the Alhambra Eco Side Chair & the Zartan Raw Chair.

12/02/18 10:46

Things To Consider Before Buying Bespoke Furniture

We supply many types of bespoke furniture but take care, bespoke furniture will tend to take longer than range products, read this blog before committing. We give some guidelines for bespoke metalwork, upholstery, dining chairs, table tops and combinations of materials from different suppliers.

05/02/18 11:28

21st Century Furniture Trends

Since 2000 there have been numerous furniture trends, some longer-lasting than others. These are the ones that we recognise: contemporary classic, design classics & poseur tables, plastic chairs, eclectic layouts. Then came a fashion for interesting table tops & the latest major trend, retro.

22/01/18 11:37

Furniture Styles Infographic

A handy infographic explaining furniture styles with images and descriptions. Discover the difference between Industrial, Bentwood, Vintage, Scandinavian, Reclaimed, Ethnic furniture, Organic Forms and Classic Designs with pictorial examples of each.

08/01/18 10:47

Furniture Styles by Era

A handy guide to furniture styles by era with pictorial examples, synonyms and definitions. Discover the difference between Traditional Furniture & Early 20th Century Furniture, see examples of popular Mid-Century style chairs & differentiate between Timeless and Contemporary terms.

02/01/18 12:17

The A-Z of Contract Furniture Terms

Do you know your aris from your ogee and just what is a splat? Find out in our glossary of contract furniture terms. These terms are frequently used in the contract furniture industry. New terms often appear with new trends or innovative production methods and will be added to the list when we encounter them.

11/12/17 10:58

Contract Upholstery, Sofas & Soft Seating: 25 Points to Consider

Here are 25 points to consider that will affect the speed of delivery, lifespan, and overall design and feel of contract upholstery, sofas and soft seating. Tips include dimensions, fabric qualities and quantities, leather and hide ordering cushion conumdrums and the varying scope of seat softness.

27/11/17 11:06

Restaurant Table Tops: Marble, Metal & More!

Wood is often chosen for restaurant table tops but there are plenty of other options to choose from. Some are hard wearing but less attractive, while others are beautiful but brittle or easily tarnished. Here's a rundown of restaurant table top options including marble tables, metal tables and more.

30/10/17 11:58

Wooden Table Top Planks & Strengthening

Wooden table tops are generally made of planks of wood. These planks can have varying widths, giving the ability to make custom designs & can be reinforced with batons. Discover why open ended planks are used for outdoors, & why the direction of planks is important when joining tables together.

16/10/17 10:17

Wooden Table Tops: Finishes & Effects

As well as oil, stain & lacquering, certain surface effects like bandsawn, limed, fumed & charred are now applied to wooden table tops to achieve an impressive & unique style. See our standard oil & stain shades & learn different sheen levels possible when applying a lacquer to a wooden table top.

02/10/17 10:20

Tips For Specifying Bar Stools

Here's a quick rundown of important points to consider before specifying bar stools for a venue. We list the differing seat heights for low stools, kitchen stools and bar heights and discuss base options as well as weight, kickbacks & stacking possibilities. Do you need a return mechanism? Find out!

18/09/17 11:59

Chair Robustness & Furniture Testing

Durability is an important feature of hospitality furniture. You can protect chairs from damage as well as undertake furniture testing for robustness. Do you know your FIRA from your Martindale rub count? And which glides will you need for a specific type of flooring. All is revealed inside.

04/09/17 11:30

Pros & Cons of Different Dining Chair Materials

Here are the benefits and drawbacks of the most common types of dining chair materials used in hospitality settings. Which will suit your needs best? Metal, wood, plastic and upholstered chairs all have different pros and cons when used in hospitality spaces find out more.

21/08/17 11:00

The European Furniture Industry - What's Made Where & Why?

Find out why the European furniture industry supplies most of the hospitality furniture to designers, restaurants and hotels in the UK and discover why you shouldn't buy contract furniture from Asia and the Middle-East. A map of Europe also shows where the major furniture manufacturers are based.

07/08/17 12:01

What Top? Types of Wooden Table Tops

Wooden table tops are robust, last for ages, look better with a bit of wear and can be made to match pretty much any interior design scheme. We detail the pros and cons of different types of wooden table tops including beech, ash, oak & teak as well as the benefits of veneers and engineered wood.

01/08/17 10:58

Wood & Stone Table Top Edge Profiles

Most solid wood & stone table tops can be finished with your choice of edge profile. Our diagram shows many of the most popular table top edge profiles. We also give details of waney edges & metal edge options including copper, brass & steel and styles of application such as trim, band & overlay.

01/08/17 10:42

Hospitality Table Size Guide

The right table size depends on how many covers are required on each table and what the table is used for; fine dining or drinking will differ. Drinking requires less space than quick meals; fine dining requires the most space. To calculate how many covers will fit in a restaurant use this diagram.

01/08/17 09:09

Outdoor Furniture Buyer's Guide

For outdoor furniture choosing the right colours and materials matters even more than for indoor hospitality furniture. Black furniture can get too hot in prolonged direct sunlight, but it is equally important to avoid white table tops, which can cause an unbearable glare in the same circumstances.

01/08/17 09:09

Standard Table Height Guide

A handy list of standard table heights by type including poseur tables, console tables, coffee tables, dining tables and side tables. We also list other things you need to consider before ordering furniture for hospitality spaces such as leg space and space to push the chair underneath the table.

01/08/17 09:08