How do we describe what we do at Trunk Reclaimed?
Our time served, dedicated craftsmen labour religiously with ancient tools, only resting to polish their leather elbow pads, blah, blah, blah…
You’ve heard of sexy football, now Trunk bring you sexy kitchens, carpentry… it’s the new rock and roll- er not quite.
Trunk Reclaimed- Eco warriors saving the world one reclaimed kitchen at a time
Or maybe that we’re just passionate about what we do and believe we’ve got a great product. We’re a small team, based at Foundry Yard Workshops in Bellingham, in the heart of beautiful Northumberland where we hand make bespoke kitchens and furniture from reclaimed timber. Fuelled by pies and coffee and sometimes cake if we’re lucky, we make the magic happen using old school techniques coupled with fresh innovative ideas. We like to come up with design solutions so that there are no limitations. Each bespoke piece we make combines the functionality of let’s say a Kitchen Aid with the good looks of lets say a Kitchen Aid (I really want a Kitchen Aid!) compliments your lifestyle, will last a lifetime, and literally doesn’t cost the earth! We know we’re not the cheapest out there but we think we are the best (can I say that?)
So how does it work?
We buy in fantastic reclaimed timbers such as pitch pine, oak and redwood always finding out the history behind them to pass on to you so you can impress your friends! ie. ‘my kitchen used to be the part of the High Level Bridge in Newcastle’, or, ‘see that coffee table?… mental asylum’ okay so some histories are more impressive than others but isn’t it better to know where your wood has come from?
A recent study by the World Wildlife Fund, ‘What Wood you Choose’ found that wood sold by some companies in the UK, used to make kitchen worktops, doors and decking comes from parts of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Congo Basin from illegal logging.
Each piece of wood we reclaim is given a home in the workshop until a new family can be found, subject to approval! The wood and architectural salvage we use is obtained from a variety of locations; churches, schools, warehouses, farmhouses, hospitals etc… the startling facts are that these beautiful and useful materials could have ended up in landfill.
Look at the grain on that!
When the time comes to make something the wood is selected for its suitability for the job, even if its right at the bottom of the pile! It can be a very touchy feely process‚ so if you can get down to the workshop‚ then do, we’re a bit geeky when it comes to talking wood but we’ll try not to bore you too much!
It often surprises customers to see how different reclaimed timber is compared to timber they may be used to seeing in furniture stores and brochures. The quality is incomparable; heavier, denser, stronger, heavier, more workable and looks better, did I mention heavier? Forget about the cheap, speed grown pine you know, or the so called ‘solid oak ‘ often bandied about which is actually an oak veneer. Our wood is as different as chalk and cheese and it is transformed before your very eyes with a bit of cleaning up and waxing. If pine or oak don’t float your boat then select from our other of reclaimed woods. Our recent stock has included elm, beech, birch, ash, iroco and mahogany. Nice.
