Wooden

One of the nice features of some bent plywood chairs is the fact that they spring up and down, so they have some give when you first sit down in them. Well, Polish designer Stanislaw Ploski has taken that flex appeal, and applied it to a one-of-a-kind bicycle. Named Bonobo, the bike’s frame is made from curved, laminated layers of plywood. Read More

If you think that heavy construction machinery like a Caterpillar 5230B Excavator is an unlikely source of inspiration for a piece of art, then you obviously don't work for Michigan art studio Woodchuck and Co. The team there has built a highly detailed wooden model, or rather, a semi-working replica of the large machine, in 1/16th scale. The collector's piece is up for sale at US$35,900. Read More

Just over six months after making a joke bet in his front garden, Michael Thompson has lived up to his idle boast of being able to make anything out of wood. Unlike other bike designs where wood is just one of several materials used in the construction - like the duo from Audi and Renovo, which has a hardwood frame - every part of the Splinter Bike is made from either birch plywood, Lignum Vitae, Ekki or an old broom handle. His friend, and accomplished triathlete, James Tully now has the unenviable and certainly uncomfortable task of riding the 31 kg (68 pound) engineering marvel into the record books. Read More

Taking up a large section of the Eco Habitat zone at the recent Viv'expo exhibition in Bordeaux was a walk-in cutaway model of a rotating wooden house known as Domespace. Built on a central concrete pedestal, the Domespace home benefits from little or no damp penetration, and its aerodynamic shape has been found to be resistant to cyclonic winds of up to 174mph (280kph). It also makes the most of passive solar energy, has a central chimney with a designer open fire and is surprisingly spacious. Read More

For most of us clocks are a purely utilitarian device. They tell us the time and we don’t generally give a second thought to their inner workings. But the mechanical wooden clock designs of Clayton Boyer put the inner workings of clocks on full display resulting in conversation starters that are not only functional, but beautiful as well. And, if you’re feeling up for the challenge, you can build your own. Read More

A Giroux “Daguerreotype” – the world’s first commercially-produced camera – is expected to set a world record price when it goes up for auction this May at WestLicht Auctions in Vienna. The previously undocumented camera has been in private ownership in northern Germany for generations and is in remarkable condition given it is 170 years old. Read More

Back in the 1700s before strong, lightweight metals were available, the first bicycles were made almost completely of wood. Crude wooden bikes are still used in many developing countries today, built from whatever recycled timber can be found. And as interest in sustainability and renewable energy grows, not only are more people (re)turning to pedal power, there is renewed interest in wooden frame bicycles. Renovo Hardwood Bicyles combine "high-tech magic and fine craftsmanship" to create a range of bikes from hollow wood and laminated bamboo, and are confident their bikes are “the smoothest bike you'll ever ride, stealth quiet, light and responsive, stiff as you want.” Read More