Buying Sustainable Outdoor Furniture
A quick browse of the internet will quickly show that teak is the timber of choice for most commercially made garden furniture. Whilst teak is an excellent durable timber due to its high oil content, we should not overlook the environmental impact of using such tropical timbers. Naturally occurring teak is now severely endangered, and most if not all teak used in furniture these days is plantation grown. Myanmar still sanctions the harvesting of old-growth teak, which may well be finding its way into garden furniture sold in the UK. Plantation grown teak is known to be significantly less durable than native teak, and mono-culture teak plantation bring their own consequences. Teak plantations are often grown to replace old growth teak which has been felled commercially. The resulting loss of biodiversity and the loss of natural habitats should be of concern to us all. Combine this with the high carbon footprint of both transport, and manufacture, it is clearly a route to be avoided if possible.
Luckily, here in the UK we have two native trees that have excellent properties for use in outdoor furniture. Oak, and sweet chestnut. Both are known to last for around 25 years left untreated, buried in the ground. A bench made from either oak or sweet chestnut will give many years of service untreated, and if treated regularly with a suitable exterior finish, will give many, many years of good looking life.
Careful selection of timber from well-managed, local sources is an important part of our process, and central to the ethos of Peter Lanyon Furniture.
We use exclusively Devon grown, sustainably harvested oak and chestnut. Many of the stocks we use have been air dried for many years, and we almost always used coppiced sweet chestnut for legs, spindles rungs and rails. These are split and shaved, retaining the natural shapes from the trees and branches we use. These pieces are then naturally air dried until they are ready for assembly. This keeps transport costs and energy use to a minimum. In fact, our garden benches are pretty much power tool free. We use a jigsaw to cut out the shape of the seat, and a cordless drill to make the holes, but other than that they are entirely handmade. You can see a video of the whole process of making one of our benches here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YkQCiTdMC0
We are able to personalise any of our benches - whether to commemorate a loved one, or to celebrate an special occasion.
It has always seemed a strange practice to fell a beautiful tree, with all its wonderful quirks and irregularities, then machine it into square edged boards, before a designer comes along and cuts it into pleasing shapes to be utilised in furniture! We celebrate the tree. In all its perfect imperfections.Using and enhancing the curves that nature gives us. Cleaving wood along the grain, using traditional techniques not only gives me the look I am after - it is in fact the only way to achieve this. This isn’t about harking back to a bygone time. It is about creating furniture in a way that is appropriate to the times we live in.
The Bugle Hole Bench - an exercise in pushing the limits of green wood furniture making. Standing at over 6 feet when installed, this bench is a real statement piece.
Our outdoor benches are available in either untreated or treated finishes. Untreated is the simple option. Your bench will, over time acquire a beautiful silver grey colour, and will then become a home to algae, lichen and mosses. A scrub down with a wet brush is all that is needed to remove this, or some customers prefer to leave it, allowing the bench to become a part of the ecosystem of your garden.
Alternatively we can finish your bench with an environmentally friendly oil finish. This will prolong its good looks, inhibit mould growth and give it added protection against the elements. If you do opt for this please be aware it will be necessary to re-apply the finish once of maybe even twice a year to keep it looking good.
