A small glossary from the atelier

Suarwood (Albizia saman) is a fast-growing tropical hardwood that reaches monumental trunk diameters of 100-150 cm within 25-40 years, making it ideal for single-slab live-edge dining tables of 200 cm or longer. The wood has a warm chocolate-brown heartwood with a distinctive light cream sapwood band along the natural edge — a signature look you cannot replicate with European hardwoods. Density sits around 600 kg/m3, similar to teak. It is naturally resistant to insects and rot, takes oil and wax beautifully, and stabilises into a deep patina over time. Because suar trees grow fast and abundantly across Java and Bali, the wood is not endangered and is sourced from agroforestry plantations rather than primary rainforest.

Teak (Tectona grandis) is one of the world's most respected hardwoods, dense (~650 kg/m3) and rich in natural oils that make it virtually immune to insects, fungi, and weather. Originally from Burma and India, today commercial teak is grown on managed plantations in Java, Indonesia — where WoodLife Atelier sources its sculptures. The grain is straight and tight, taking knife and chisel cleanly, which is why master carvers prefer teak for animal sculptures of every scale, from a 30 cm dog to a 3.7 m monumental lion. The colour starts honey-gold and silvers to a soft grey when left outdoors, or deepens to dark amber when oiled and kept indoors. Plantation teak from Perhutani-managed forests is FSC-traceable and arrives in Europe under CITES paperwork.

A live-edge slab keeps the original outline of the tree along one or both long sides, instead of being sawn into a straight rectangle. This means every table is unique: the curve, the knots, the cream sapwood band, and any natural inclusions are all part of the piece. WoodLife Atelier finishes live edges by hand-sanding to 240 grit, then applying a hard-wax oil that highlights the contrast between the dark heartwood and the lighter sapwood. The bark itself is removed (it would eventually flake), but the natural undulation underneath stays. Live-edge slabs perform best as dining tables, console tables, and bar tops where the silhouette gets to read at a distance. Care is identical to any oiled hardwood: re-oil twice a year, wipe spills promptly.

Boomstamtafel (literally "tree-trunk table") is the dominant Dutch term for a live-edge dining table made from a single slab, as opposed to a glued-up panel of narrower boards. The thickness is typically 6-10 cm, length anywhere from 180 to 440+ cm, depth following the natural width of the trunk (usually 90-110 cm but often tapering). Boomstamtafels are paired with one of three base styles: spinpoot (steel spider leg, modern look), wortelpoot (matching-wood root pedestal, organic look), or unique single-piece pedestals carved from the same trunk. WoodLife Atelier and the broader Indonesian-furniture market in the Netherlands use suarwood for boomstamtafels because no European species reaches the required slab width.

The spider leg ("spinpoot") base is a four-arm steel construction with a vertical central post and angled legs that radiate to the floor at roughly 45 degrees. The look reads as architectural, modern, and gives the impression that the slab floats above the floor. Standard finishes are powder-coated black (most popular), antique brown, bronze, or champagne. Footprint is compact — usually 60 x 60 cm at the base — making it easier to slide chairs in and out than a wide trestle. Steel thickness is 6-8 mm so it carries the 80-150 kg of a suarwood slab without flex. The spinpoot is fully demountable for shipping and installation; we deliver a hex key for assembly.

The wortelpoot ("root leg") is the wood-on-wood counterpart to the steel spinpoot. Each pedestal is hand-shaped from a single block of suarwood — sometimes from the actual root buttress of the tree the slab came from — and finished to match the tabletop's oil and patina. Because the form is sculpted, no two wortelpoten are identical: some are massive and almost mineral in appearance, others are more sinuous. They visually weigh more than steel and ground a slab strongly in a room. Footprint is typically 70-90 cm wide. Wortelpoten are heavy (60-100 kg on top of the 80-150 kg slab), so we recommend planning the room before delivery — they are not meant to be moved often.