Tiger or Curly Maple are terms that are used to describe the appearance of wood from the Maple tree that is "figured" in appearance.  This "figure," or grain pattern, is an anomaly that occurs in all of the various species of Maple trees on an unpredictable and sporadic basis.  When this anomaly occurs, the wood from a common Maple tree is transformed into one of the few "exotic wood varieties" indigenous to North America. While Maple is usually straight-grained and smooth-flowing, Tiger or Curly Maple grain appears somewhat erratic, striped, or even iridescent in appearance.

Other terms that have been used to describe Maple that has abnormal grain patterning include quilted, blistered, flame, bird's eye and fiddle-back to name just a few.   All of these names are just attempts to verbally illustrate what one may be seeing in a particular piece of wood.  There are many varieties and species of Maple Trees and even more opinions as to which grain pattern terminology should be applied to each.

There are many possible explanations which attempt to explain why a particular Maple tree will produce this abnormal grain that we choose to call Tiger Maple; they include the genetics of the tree, the presence of a bacteria or infection while the tree was growing, and certain environmental conditions the tree may have been exposed to as a seedling such as soil PH, temperature extremes and insect infestation.  It is not possible to determine if a Maple tree has figured wood unless the bark of the tree is stripped off or until the log is sawn.

Throughout history Tiger Maple has been revered by craftsman and used to produce some of the most visually stimulating objects ever crafted.  Musical instruments, Long Rifles and many of America's 18^th & 19^th Century furniture masterpieces showcase to this day the unique grain patterns that were carefully selected by craftsmen as they produced the objects of their craft.

We source the Tiger Maple that we craft our furniture with from mills & sawyers that are primarily located in Pennsylvania and New York states, all of which practice sustainable forestry and conservation methods.  While still used by many craftsmen today, Tiger Maple is eschewed by larger furniture manufacturers due to its limited availability, need for increased grain-matching requirements and the excessive wear it places upon machinery and tooling.

We have often seen the selection of this gift from nature turn an ordinary piece of furniture into a true work of art.........