Veneer

What's in our veneer range

Veneer is a thin slice of real wood; most sheets here are 3.5 to 4 mm (550+) because that slice comes on a thin backing, ready to paste onto plywood or MDF. 500+ are natural wood veneers. Dyed (21), smoked (18), ash (16) and sapele (8) veneers have their own groups, and the PVC range is explained below.

Title names give a sense of the species: oak (70+), walnut (65+), teak (35+), ash, eucalyptus, wenge, rosewood and ebony, plus burl designs (20+) with swirling figure. Crown-cut designs, the classic cathedral-arch grain, appear in 45+ titles.

Nearly every sheet is 8x4 ft; Royale Touche also lists 22 designs in 10x4 ft. Lignea Veneers has the most (500+), including the Senzura Styles, Amazonian and Grimm series, then Inoui Veneers (95+) and Royale Touche (40+).

PVC veneers are not real wood

Lignea's PVC Woodero series (65+ designs) is a 1.5 mm PVC sheet with a wood or metallic look and a ready gloss or matte finish. It needs no polishing and wipes clean, but it is a printed surface, not timber, and it cannot be sanded or re-polished. Check the title for "PVC" if you want real wood.

How to buy veneer

Every sheet is different

Because natural veneer is real wood, no two sheets are identical, and the photo online shows one sheet from a lot. For a wardrobe or a wall, buy the full quantity at once, from the same lot, and ask for consecutive sheets so the grain flows from door to door.

Lay it out before pressing

Stand the sheets side by side and decide the order, which way up each goes, and where each door will be cut. Mark the backs. Some designs come book-matched from the factory, with neighbouring leaves mirrored; ask for that if you want a mirrored grain across a pair of doors.

Polish is part of the job

Most natural veneer is sold unfinished and has to be polished after pasting: PU for the most protection, melamine or lacquer as lighter options. Budget the polish and the polisher's time along with the sheets. A good matte PU keeps the wood looking like wood.

Where veneers suit

Designs carry several room tags, so these counts overlap: 600+ are tagged for bedrooms, 600+ for living rooms and 500+ for kitchens. Veneer is at its best on wardrobe shutters, main doors, panelling behind a bed or TV, dining tables and office cabins. In a kitchen, keep it to shutters away from the sink and hob, and make sure it is properly PU-polished.

Veneer FAQs

What is veneer?

A veneer is a thin slice of real wood, peeled or sliced from a log and glued onto a board such as plywood or MDF. It gives the look and feel of solid timber at a fraction of the wood, and lets rare species go much further.

Veneer or laminate?

Laminate is a printed image of wood: uniform, tough, no polishing. Veneer is real wood: every sheet has its own grain, it can be polished to any sheen, and it can be re-polished years later. It needs more work, but it lasts and can be refreshed.

What size and thickness are veneer sheets?

Most of ours are 8x4 ft and 3.5 to 4 mm thick, with a few 10x4 ft sheets for tall doors and walls. The 1.5 mm sheets are mostly the PVC Woodero series.

What base should veneer go on?

A flat plywood or MDF board. For kitchens and bathrooms, use a BWP plywood base. Veneer on plywood is often sold as "veneer plywood"; here you choose the veneer and the board separately.

Does veneer need polishing?

Natural veneer does, after it is pasted: PU polish gives the most protection, melamine or lacquer a lighter finish. The PVC Woodero sheets come ready-finished and need none.

Will veneer change colour?

A little, like any wood. Sunlight slowly deepens or softens natural tones, so install and polish all the sheets in one room together.

What are dyed and smoked veneers?

Dyed veneers carry colour through the wood, for greys and tones nature doesn't make. Smoked or fumed veneers are darkened by fuming, which deepens the colour and keeps the grain.

Can veneer be used on doors?

Yes, and main doors and wardrobe shutters are where it looks best. Use a flat, stable door blank, veneer both faces so the door stays straight, and finish it with PU polish.

Is black veneer real wood?

Usually yes: either a naturally dark species such as ebony or wenge, or a lighter wood dyed or fumed dark, so the grain still shows. A few black looks here are PVC sheets instead; the title says "PVC" when that is the case.

What is the price of veneer sheets?

Each design shows its own price per sheet on its page, GST included. Remember to budget for the base board, adhesive and polishing as well. For a whole room, ask the store for a quote.

Related collections

Narrow down with natural veneers, smoked veneers or dyed veneers, or see Inoui veneers. For deep 3D texture, see Inoui hybrid veneer. You'll need a base board from plywood, and for a printed wood look, wood laminates.

Veneer has to be seen in person. Ask to see veneer samples at our Choolai or OMR store in Chennai, and call ahead if you want a particular species.