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Jul 20th, '08, 14:16
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Indulgence - sandalwood tea table

by Geekgirl » Jul 20th, '08, 14:16

Image

This table smells divine. I thought it was varnished, perhaps with some kind of marine grade varnish, but I can still smell the sandalwood.

Anyways, the question is, how do I maintain it and keep it looking as beautiful as it is right now when it's new? Furniture wax?

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Jul 20th, '08, 20:53
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Re: Indulgence - sandalwood tea table

by Space Samurai » Jul 20th, '08, 20:53

GeekgirlUnveiled wrote:...how do I maintain it and keep it looking as beautiful as it is right now when it's new?
Don't use it?

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Jul 20th, '08, 21:21
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by Wesli » Jul 20th, '08, 21:21

Hah.. what Alex said.

Personally, I think it's such a nice table that it will only look better as it ages. Just remember to keep it dry. If you rinse and dry it off after every session, you shouldn't have a problem.

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Jul 20th, '08, 21:34
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by Geekgirl » Jul 20th, '08, 21:34

:lol: Well I'm going to use it, probably daily, since it will be set up right by my desk at home. (Yay!) Drying it off is not an issue, I just know very little about maintaining something like this, wondered if I need to oil or wax it periodically.

Regardless, I love it.

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Jul 22nd, '08, 00:48
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by MarshalN » Jul 22nd, '08, 00:48

If you use it everyday..... make sure you keep it in a moist place if you have to go on a long vacation or something, because mine cracked when I left it alone for two months.

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Jul 22nd, '08, 01:05
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by Geekgirl » Jul 22nd, '08, 01:05

Good to know. Thanks!

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Jul 22nd, '08, 01:41
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by chamekke » Jul 22nd, '08, 01:41

I don't know a thing about tea tables, but some oils and waxes can smell very strongly. That might interfere with your enjoyment of the tea.

With wooden kitchen utensils (e.g. knife handles), I usually use Clapham's Beeswax Salad Bowl Finish. It has a pleasant, light, beeswax scent and there is never any worry about its being toxic. Of course you are not drinking tea off your tea table, but still...

There are probably better solutions out there, but there's nothing quite like proposing an idea to encourage other people to pipe up with theirs :wink:
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by Chip » Jul 22nd, '08, 02:55

As long as it is not from RoT, no problem! But they would not have a sandalwood one anyway.

That is a real beauty. Sandalwood teaware...ftw! 9 years and counting since I started drinking tea...I should really have one.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!

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Jul 22nd, '08, 11:35
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by Geekgirl » Jul 22nd, '08, 11:35

chamekke wrote: I usually use Clapham's Beeswax Salad Bowl Finish.
I've never heard of this, it sounds great!

Chip, get thee a table!

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by Mary R » Jul 22nd, '08, 14:45

I second the beeswax, but conditionally. A long time ago on Stephane's blog someone had discussed how a varnish-smelling tray completely destroyed their tea experience. Apparently if anything hot was placed on the surface, it would release the varnish smell all over again. If you're going to try to protect the piece, beeswax would do the job, but without an offensive odor.

The condition, though, is that I don't know the recommended way to protect sandalwood, but I've got a fuzzy memory of being told that it has to be treated carefully or the integrity of the wood is spoiled. I can't quickly find info on that now, but perhaps you could contact some furniture specialists?

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by bi lew chun » Jul 22nd, '08, 20:52

Love-a-ly.

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Jul 22nd, '08, 21:21
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REPLY

by orguz » Jul 22nd, '08, 21:21

Hi,

My mother has sandalwood which is used as incense. It is by nature very oily, I've seen it burn and you can see the oils come out and quite smoky. So i'd guess sandalwood doesn't require much care. I have a huge chunk that's not cut to smaller strips yet, and it hasn't cracked or shown signs of splitting, we've had it since 1985. One thing I do know; real sandalwood is rare and expensive! Regular gong fu brewing with its water spillage keeps it nice and moist anyway.

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Re: REPLY

by Geekgirl » Jul 22nd, '08, 22:25

orguz wrote:One thing I do know; real sandalwood is rare and expensive! Regular gong fu brewing with its water spillage keeps it nice and moist anyway.
There are different types of sandalwood, right? The green is the most common and least expensive. Red sandalwood, the one that turns deep reddish purple with age- nearly black, is both rare and I believe protected. It would be unlikely to see something like that in your standard teashop, and would have cost many times what I paid for mine. Still, the one I got is so pretty, and has that wonderful sandalwood smell. I'm definitely enjoying it.

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by orguz » Jul 22nd, '08, 22:41

Yes, sandalwood has a nice fragrance. Probably with the hot water that spills onto your table it'll perfume it even more, enjoy. Here is a picture of 2 cups I received as a gift from a very generous Tea Purveyor.

Image

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