How is Willow Creek's Teak Furniture Made?

All of our teakwood is sourced in Jepara Indonesia located in central Java. Jepara is world renown for its craftsman that specialize in furniture manufacturing. The 2 main materials used to produce furniture in the region are mahogany (indoor) and teak (outdoor). All teakwood is shipped from all over Indonesia to Jepara as a central raw material hub for furniture manufacturing. Erin visits Jepara once a month to QC raw material purchased. Teakwood is purchased 4 months in log form before used in construction. This is the start of the journey in which your teak outdoor patio furniture is made.

-Erin picking the choice cuts

-We start with the tree to control quality of material. Grade A

After the raw material is purchased, the wood will continue to air/sun dry for an extended period of time. To speed up the process the trees will be processed in a saw mill to pre spec slab length and thickness.

-Don't want to get a hand stuck in The Terminator

The cutting of the teak wood into more manageable slab wood allows for easier handling, quicker and more efficient drying and most important quality of wood inspection...show me the grain! Grade is compiled of a number of aspects but size and age of tree is a important part.

-Processed teak tree slab wood. All snuggled top in the drying chamber

Drying of the wood is the most important stage of the teak manufacturing process. Moisture in the wood causes cracking and other detrimental issues that can effect the teak. Willow Creek pays particular attention to the moisture content of the wood. All wood needs to be test to below 25% of moisture before the manufacturing process can starts.

-Willow Creek operates it's own drying facility in Jepara, Indonesia

-Hand checking wood moisture content

Now that the wood is cut and dry, it is time to make teak outdoor patio furniture. The manufacturing of teak is still mostly labor intensive and reliant mainly on one's hands, eyes and experience.

-Dried teak slab wood ready for the next process. PARTS!