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New Zealand · Aotearoa
Wolffmark makes New Zealand made furniture in Tauranga from timber with provenance, character and enough substance to shape the design. Some of these species are native. Others were introduced and have developed a long history in New Zealand forestry and making.
The materials
From ancient Northland Kauri to native Rimu and New Zealand grown cypresses, each timber brings its own colour, grain, stability, history and working character. We source some of our premium native timbers from Tauriko Sawmill.
Kauri forest once covered about 1.2 million hectares of northern New Zealand. Today mature kauri survives in scattered remnants and is largely protected. Swamp kauri is different: trees that fell naturally and were sealed underground in peat and wet ground, protected from oxygen and decomposition for between 800 and 60,000 years. It is salvaged, finite and regulated, not timber cut from today’s surviving kauri forest.
See Ancient Kauri furnitureCoast redwood is native to the Pacific coast of North America and has been grown successfully in New Zealand for more than a century. New Zealand grown redwood is straight grained, warm in colour, easy to work and notably dimensionally stable, qualities that suit broad, substantial furniture.
See Redwood furnitureJapanese cedar, or Cryptomeria, is native to East Asia and has been grown successfully in New Zealand for generations, in shelterbelts, farm forests and specialist plantations. The timber is warm reddish brown, light and aromatic, with pronounced grain and excellent dimensional stability. Its heartwood is naturally durable and the timber seasons well, making it particularly suited to furniture, interior joinery, panelling and other applications where warmth, character and stability matter.
Mexican cypress, or Cupressus lusitanica, is native to Mexico and Central America and has become an important specialty timber species in New Zealand forestry. Closely related to macrocarpa, it produces a fine, even textured wood with subtle grain, good colour and excellent dimensional stability. Its heartwood is naturally durable, while the timber machines and finishes well, making it well suited to furniture, joinery, panelling and architectural applications.
Lawson cypress is native to the Pacific northwest of North America and has been grown in New Zealand for more than a century, particularly in farm forests and shelter plantings. Its pale yellow to light brown timber is fine textured, aromatic and naturally durable. It is also strong, stable and easy to finish, qualities that have made Lawson cypress valued for furniture, joinery, panelling, exterior applications and other work where both appearance and performance matter.
Macrocarpa, or Monterey cypress, has been grown in New Zealand since the nineteenth century and became a familiar part of the rural landscape through farm shelterbelts and plantations. Mature trees produce distinctive golden brown timber with fine texture, subtle grain and natural lustre. It is moderately strong, easy to work and notably dimensionally stable, with naturally durable heartwood. These qualities have made macrocarpa a longstanding New Zealand timber for furniture, joinery, kitchens, boat building and architectural work.
Rimu is one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s great native conifers, occurring naturally throughout the North Island, South Island and Stewart Island. Its rich reddish brown timber became one of the country’s principal building woods following European settlement, used extensively for framing, flooring, doors, panelling and furniture. Today rimu is especially valued for furniture and interior work, with recycled timber an important source and the harvesting and milling of native timber tightly controlled under the Forests Act 1949.
New Zealand made furniture
Wolffmark pieces are designed around the material rather than forcing the material into a predetermined form. Grain, scale, natural edge, colour and provenance shape what the furniture becomes.
Available now
The current Wolffmark catalogue includes an Ancient Kauri River Table and a New Zealand grown Redwood table, both made in Tauranga.