Thu 3 Dec 2009
Today I wanted to talk about a beautiful, unique exotic wood called Pink Ivory. While it is not real ivory, it is truly pink and comes from Mozanbique, Zimbabwe and South Africa. The botanical name is “Berchemia zeyheri”. We have been importing this wood for approximately 10 years. It has become one of our most popular exotic woods due to the unique coloring and fine grain pattern which make it highly suitable for ornamental turnery.
The grain is straight to irregular, while the texture is very fine. Pink Ivory sapwood is almost white, and the pink heartwood, after long exposure, tends to become orange-colored. With proper finishing with a UV finish you can prolong the color. Pink Ivory seasons very slowly and needs care to prevent checking. The timber is reported to be very strong and stiff. It is difficult to work with hand tools, but is an excellent wood for turnery and carving. It takes a high polish.
When we attend the Vendor Trade Show at the AAW National Symposium each year, this is one of the woods that people seek out and it sells very quickly. At the show we tend to sell a lot of pen blanks and bottle stopper blanks, which are not so pricy and are a great way for the beginning turner to give Pink Ivory a try. At that show we also sell many large 3×3x12 and 4×4x12 blocks to turners that make higher end projects like vases and threaded boxes.
We have seen many unique things turned out of this very beautiful wood. For example, one of the most skilled and highly respected craftmen in the woodturning industry, Malcolm Zander, has done some amazing things with Pink Ivory. The technique he is best known for is filigree or lace work as shown below:
- Malcolm Zander – “Lace Mouse”
The delicate work shown here is really astonishing, if you ever have a chance to see his work in person you will be amazed!
- Malcolm Zander – “Elizabethan Lace”
In this piece he has also used fresh water pearls as an accent which is just beautiful!