Berkeley: The Wooden Duck, a Berkeley based furniture workshop and warehouse store, will be showing for the first time in the Sonoma County Fall Home Show this weekend. One of the most appealing aspects of the company's furniture is that owners Eric Gellerman and Amy Ferber are committed to offering high-quality furniture that is made from reclaimed and restored wood. For example, all of the items made in their factory in San Francisco are from Douglas fir that is salvaged from places such as old warehouse beams and floors, and stadium bleachers. The factory line is influenced by traditional American styles such as Shaker and Arts and Crafts, and includes tables, chairs, beds, dressers, bookshelves and entertainment centers.
The Wooden Duck also has sought out woodworkers from a number of countries around the world who specialize in using reclaimed wood from their native lands.
"Over the past four years, we've spent a lot of time and energy to establish contracts and develop working relationships in other countries," says buyer Marina Ecklund.
The store carries a large selection of recycled teak furniture and accents from Java, including Arts and Crafts-style coffee tables, armoires, end tables, Chairs and benches, as well as smaller items like spice boxes and place mats. You'll also find restored pine pieces from Eastern Europe ad restored elm and pine from China.
Besides this ever-growing import business, The Wooden Duck has discovered California crafts people who work with recycled wood. These home-grown furniture makers employ styles ranging from the brightly colored and funky to the more sophisticated and classic.
Gellerman and Ferber point out that using reclaimed wood reduces the need to cut down more of the world's forests and diverts this lumber from landfills. Furthermore, they note, salvaged wood is much more stable and less prone to splitting because it has aged gradually over a long period of years. It also is harder and denser old growth and has a patina and character impossible to get from new wood.
With more than 20,000 square feet in its Berkeley warehouse showroom, The Wooden Duck is the largest manufacturer and retailer of recycled wood furniture in California.
At the show, The Wooden Duck will display a sampling of its Colorado bedroom set along with an abundance of photographs illustrating the diverse range of furniture to be found in the store.