Jun 30, 2009

Living with wood

Photographs by Sam Tham

THE work never gets done, simply because it is not meant to be a quick slap-dash sort of job. This has been a 10-year exercise in turning this house into a tribute to wood, and it looks like even another 10 years won’t see the end of it.

And that’s the way they like it. The couple have/has? stayed here for the past 20 years, and it is only in the last 10 years that they have started this all-consuming pastime, as well as collecting antiques, both wooden and metallic.

This couple have their own style and take the time to build it up.

If it sounds like a long drawn-out drudgery, but it is far from a chore for them. The husband works as a surveyor, and is only at home about two weeks a month, as he travels around the country on his field-work. Taking their time, fitting in this hobby during long weekends, this wood-loving couple is bent on surrounding themselves with wood and more wood.

While the visitor may find the house dark, they no doubt find it cosy. When he is outstation and chances upon discarded wood, which others consider junk, he would pick it up and get the 30- to 40-year-old wood, cut into smaller pieces to bring home in his car. At home in Petaling Jaya, he works on the latest piece to bring about the finished product, which eventually adorns his house from floor to ceiling.

DIY

The wife is obviously proud of her husband’s handiwork, and says to the writer, “I called you not because of the glamour or the publicity, but to show that one can do so much with wood. We believe in DIY; what you can do to your home to suit yourself.”

Adds the husband: “It is easy to spend money and call the contractor and in a few weeks you have something beautiful, but when you do it yourself, you have a sense of satisfaction. I transform discarded wood into something beautiful and I feel good about it.” And love it, they do. No messy workshop is in clear sight, as the woodworking machine is tucked in a corner near the stairs, hidden behind a wooden screen. “He comes back from his trips, rests a few days and then pulls the woodworking machine out to the porch or backyard to do his work,” relates the wife.

Pointing to the strips of moulding which run quite consistently around the mid-section of the walls of the lower floor of the house, he says they are made of kayu rengas, the Malaysian equivalent of rosewood. Of the warm red colour, he notes: “This is the true colour and it’s true form, as it is just polished. It is in its natural state, without any artificial coating.”

The panelling below the moulding is made out of damar minyak, which features interesting looking “wood knots” here and there.

“This type of pattern is for export as Malaysians prefer a plain and uniform look of the same colour, whereas Europeans see the naturally occurring knots as attractions,” he says.

More space was added to the sitting room when the terrace ouside the grill doors was converted into an "anjung".

The panelling, which rises about four feet from the floor, is kept simple and natural as it is only finished with varnish.

FEATURE WALL

One wall of the dining area is totally covered in damar minyak, making it a feature wall. On it hangs his collection of old tools, which are about 70 to 80 years old.

At the side of the dining area, stands a side-table made from discarded merbau. Interesting items, such as a metal blow-torch (which still works) and an antique fire-extinguisher, are displayed.

A particularly challenging job is the crown moulding overhead, which is made of nyatoh. This is an unfinished job, which presents more satisfying days ahead.

It is not only in the interior that the couple express their fascination with woodwork. Outside, a wooden fence and a row of decorative carvings of bunga peles at the edge of the roof, much like the roofs of kampung houses, carry on the theme. Old electricity poles of cengal are the raw material for the fence as well as the pergola in the garden.

While the dining area has its wooden feature wall, the other areas of the house are not devoid of this natural material. The wooden front door opens into the foyer, which has a pair of heavy Chinese blackwood chairs. A pair of Burmese teak chairs with wood inlay on the back, are placed in the sitting room, and the couple point/points? out the complete piece for the seat, and another complete piece for the backrest. This is a couple who are not afraid to go their own way. They treat the wood with respect, working on it slowly, touching it lovingly; adding to the pleasure they find in living with wood.

*E-mail the writer (annieo@thestar.com.my) if you know of interesting homes to feature.