For a long time now, the quality of the average piece of furniture has been steadily declining. As newer, less expensive materials have become readily available and more widely accepted, solid wood furniture has sort of fallen by the wayside. But in the past year or so, natural wood has started to come back in a big way, and solid wood bathroom vanities in particular are starting to see a resurgence. Legion Furniture has just introduced a new line of solid wood bathroom vanities specifically designed to make the most of this durable, beautiful natural material.
Shop Legion Furniture Bathroom Vanities:
One of the major advantages of choosing a solid wood bathroom vanity is the appearance of the wood itself. While MDF, laminate, or even veneers can mimic the appearance of natural wood, they do so imperfectly at best. Real solid wood bathroom vanities have a distinctive wood grain and often some minor imperfections that give the vanity the character that’s missing from imitation wood. The vanity may be stained or finished, but solid wood bathroom vanities frequently put the wood itself front and center, allowing the natural beauty to show through.
A solid wood construction also means that each of these vanities will have a unique, one-of-a-kind patterning. Though the finish and overall appearance will be the same from one vanity to the next in a collection, the smaller details – like the prominent grain on the flat cabinet door panels above – will be subtly different, adding a beautiful natural element to the design. This emphasis on wood as decoration evokes more traditional furniture making techniques, and gives solid wood bathroom vanities a classic look and feel that you just can’t get any other way.
If a rustic or antique style bathroom vanity isn’t quite what you’re looking for, a simple whitewashed finish can make a solid wood bathroom vanity look more clean and polished while still allowing the wood to show through. A traditional coat of white paint is thick, solid, and even, covering the entire surface of the vanity and completely hiding the material underneath. But a whitewash style or distressed white finish is thinner, which means the underlying wood is still visibly present, both in terms of color and texture. Rather than covering up the grain, a lighter finish will actually emphasize the patterning in the wood, giving you the best of both worlds – a natural wood look, but a finish that’s a little brighter, cleaner, and more contemporary.
If you want an even more ornate look, you can opt for a bathroom vanity with inlaid wood panels. Now, this admittedly stretches the definition of a “solid” wood vanity, since intricate wood designs, like veneers, may be made of a different type of wood than the rest of the vanity. That said, the patterned wood panels themselves are made entirely of wood, and unlike many lower quality vanities, all of the underlying materials are solid wood as well. The only difference is, instead of being made of a single piece of wood, the door and drawer fronts are made from smaller pieces of wood that are cut to accentuate the grain of the wood and reassembled and stained to create a unique and distinctive pattern.
It’s also worth noting that solid wood bathroom vanities aren’t just valued for their appearance – they’re also prized for their durability. Where many vanities use a minimal amount of real wood, and often low quality wood where it’s required, solid wood bathroom vanities are usually held to a higher standard. Rather than having a simple knock-down box design, solid wood vanities are usually framed, built more like traditional furniture than a bare-bones cabinet.
(Click image for product details)
This heftier construction means that solid wood bathroom vanities are on the heavier side, and also tend to be a bit more expensive (to account for the higher quality materials), but the added expense and difficulty at purchase and installation make for a vanity that will be much longer lived. Whether you opt for an antique inspired design or a more contemporary look, a solid wood construction will ensure a beautiful, high quality bathroom that will stay looking great for many years to come.
What do you think of these solid wood bathroom vanities from Legion Furniture? Let me know in the comments below!
