Grinning for Shagreen, Boasting for Burl Wood

World’s Away Hudson Chest

Made Goods Maxine Side Table

If you have scrolled through some of our favorite Made Goods and Worlds Away prod­ucts, you have noticed that many are avail­able with “faux sha­green” fin­ishes and that select col­lec­tions boast burled wood. As one of our favorite ways to add subtle tex­ture to your fur­ni­ture and room, we thought it was only fair to pro­vide you with a short his­tory lesson about these looks.

Made Goods Armond Mirror

The use of sha­green dates back cen­turies to the French Aris­toc­racy– talk about making a room royal. During this time period, the gran­ular tex­ture of stingray and shark skin (keep in mind our prod­ucts are faux!) adorned most leather prod­ucts and small acces­sories. It was not until the begin­ning of the Art Deco period that designers like Clement Rousseau and Jean Michael Frank incor­po­rated this

Made Goods Cara Cock­tail Table

con­cept into larger fur­ni­ture pieces. In the past five years, designers such as Made Goods, Arte­riors Home, Empo­rium, and Regina Andrew thought that if sha­green was good enough for the French Aris­toc­racy, then it is good enough for us! Through the use of resin molds, these com­pa­nies inte­grate the sha­green tex­ture onto fur­ni­ture pieces ranging from coffee tables to head­boards, even lighting. Its durable finish and subtle touch of pat­tern make it one of CGH’s must-​​haves for any room in your house!

Regina Andrew Python Accent Cube

World’s Away Shiloh Bar Cart

World’s Away Biggs Stool

Burl wood? What? Don’t worry, we won­dered about the idea too for a while! The eas­iest way to think about this recently preva­lent tex­ture of many of  Worlds Away prod­ucts is to think of it like you think of a marble finish, but of wood. Under­neath a layer of lac­quered good­ness rests a unique cut of wood that is not com­monly found on  fur­ni­ture. The “wild grain” has been twisted and inter­locked to deform the wood, cre­ating the “burl” – hence the name. Because it is hidden within the tree’s root system, this cut is truly an orig­inal find and some­thing that will surely be a talking point in your home. Worlds Away has cre­ated its pieces as a small hint to the past, but added in flare for classic ele­gance that ensures they will be tran­si­tional pieces lasting into the future!