Lacewood Wood Uses, Properties, Advantages, and Disadvantages

What is lacewood wood?

Lacewood is the common name for several Panopsis species that are distributed throughout Tropical South America.

This plant is only about 30-50 feet tall, with only a 2-3 feet stem diameter. This is an exotic wood with a unique appearance, where the surface looks like large-sized spots like Leopardwood. It’s just that Lacewood looks brighter than Leopardwood.

This wood is also of good quality and availability, although its durability against decay and insect attack is poor. However, you can hope for ease of work processing.

Lacewood is commonly used as fine furniture, veneers, cabinetry, and musical instruments (guitars).

The properties of Lacewood

The wood is reddish-brown and has conspicuous spots of a different color from the base. However, other colors exist in some parts, such as light brown or grey rays.

Lacewood has a straight grain and an uneven and fairly rough texture. In resistance to rot, this wood is considered not durable. Not only that, but Lacewood is also considered susceptible to insect attacks.

This is a considerable drawback for exotic hardwoods. But overall, this wood is quite easy to work with, has no distinctive smell, has good availability, and the price is in the mid to high range.

Lacewood advantages

Fairly easy to work: This is a wood that, on the whole, is fairly easy to work, although we do not guarantee that the process can be carried out without problems because some problems may occur, such as the occurrence of tears.

Not only tears but also blunt on the cutter. That’s because some Lacewood species can give the cutter a moderate dulling effect.

It seems that the work with machines and hand tools can be completed quite well.

However, it would be best to be careful with some work, especially those that can cause tears. It’s also wood that stains, glues, and finishes nicely.

Availability: You don’t have to worry about the availability of Lacewood. Even though exotic woods are mid-to-upper prices, that doesn’t mean their availability is limited.

Because the wood is not listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species or CITES Appendices, that proves that Lacewood is not vulnerable or endangered.

Not only that, but we also found no information regarding population decline or trade restrictions. That’s why it’s certain that availability is still good, although this is not absolute.

However, it’s a good idea to tell the difference between Lacewood and Leopardwood before making a purchase.

Appearance: The Lacewood look is a very significant advantage. Because we think it’s unique and not many woods have. Because of this, you can use it for many uses, including for luxury wooden items.

The appearance that has striking spots can give an artistic impression and is different from the others. It seems you can recognize this wood with just a glance.

Not only that, but the color of Lacewood is also quite attractive; reddish-brown and others make this wood look charming.

The straight grain is also good, although the wood has a rough and uneven texture.

Lacewood disadvantages

Not durable: Although exotic wood with a charming appearance and quality tends to be good, this wood has a significant weakness.

We think you need to reconsider before using Lacewood, especially if you want to use it for large or long-term items or in humid rooms.

That’s because Lacewood is not durable in its resistance to decay and is susceptible to insect attack. However, it seems that this low endurance we hope is not as we imagined.

You can still use it because of some reasons and for some things. We just hope it can make your home more beautiful.

Pricing: Because Lacewood consists of several species, we cannot provide completely accurate pricing information. We also do not have information on the commonly sold forms of Lacewood.

Our sources of information say that prices for imported Lacewood are in the middle to high range. We can only speculate that Lacewood with a unique, beautiful look is likely to be higher or more expensive.

Before making a purchase, you should think about using Lacewood because some general uses are not recommended for this wood, including its price and appearance.

Health risk: Lacewood has been reported to have no adverse health effects, at least in the Panopsis genus.

However, we think that doesn’t make it completely free from all the health effects that wood usually causes.

Because we also get information that reports about several other genera that are in the Proteaceae family can cause skin and eye irritation.

We think that other health effects may also occur during the manufacturing process, whether due to the natural impacts or simply worker mistakes.

That’s why it’s best to take precautions before working on Lacewood.

Lacewood for veneer

You can use Lacewood as veneers, although we don’t think this is a good choice. It looks like the striking speckled appearance of Lacewood doesn’t look very good for coating anything, including furniture or walls.

However, if you still want to use it, then please use it. The quality of this wood is also good, although you can’t expect its durability. This is wood that is not durable against decay and is susceptible to insect attack.

That might be a problem, though only a small problem. This wood is fairly easy to work, although you have to be careful of tear-out.

Lacewood for cabinetry

Cabinetry is one of the common uses of Lacewood. This wood will be great for that, especially if you use it as cabinetry to store decorations and collectibles.

Not only that, it looks like you also need to maintain the natural look of Lacewood and not paint it with other colors that can cover up the appearance. It will look beautiful, especially if you make it shinier.

However, we don’t seem to recommend it for kitchen cabinetry because Lacewood has poor resistance to rot. We think a humid environment like a kitchen can speed up the decay process.

Lacewood for fine furniture

Because it has a beautiful appearance, good quality, and the price is also in the mid to upper range, Lacewood is commonly used as fine furniture. But we doubt the veracity of the reasons we stated earlier because that’s not the only reason.

What is certain is that the unique appearance plays an important role for fine furniture because it will provide a different beauty with a fairly high artistic value.

However, its resistance is unreliable, including against decay and insect attack. It seems that reason could make you have to reconsider using it as fine furniture.

Lacewood for musical instruments (guitars)

Lacewood is commonly used as guitars, although we think it’s probably not just guitars. However, we are not sure about the quality of the sound produced if it is on par with Spruce, Mahogany, and Ash or not.

However, the main advantage of Lacewood guitars is that they are unique and look different from other guitars. Striking spots are a significant plus.

It seems like the process can also be done well and easily, although we are not sure it will go very smoothly. Be sure to plan well and do the work with good quality tools.

Lacewood for turned objects

If you like making decorative, useful, or artistic items, using Lacewood for turned objects is a great choice.

This is an excellent choice, especially since Lacewood has a unique and beautiful look. With turnings, you can make lots of unique items, such as bowls, wooden cups, and even unique toys.

The spots on Lacewood are an additional artistic value to make it more valuable. We don’t know about the quality, and it’s best to compare it with Cherry, Ebony, or Rosewood first so you can find the answer.

Don’t forget to do some experiments before making something big.