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CEDAR, WESTERN RED

Thuja plicata
Thuja plicata of the family Cupressaceae, the cypress family

The technically correct common name is western redcedar (no space between red and cedar). The wood is soft, light, and somewhat aromatic (but not as much as eastern redcedar) and varies quite a bit in color as you'll see in the pics below.

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my samples:


4 small planks and end grain. I was told by my supplier that all 4 of these pieces came from the same tree, but based on the end grain I judge that to be impossible since the first one clearly has a much differnt growth rate than the other three. I think he was just trying to make the point that this wood has a lot of variety in grain and color.

the middle two pieces do a nice job of illustrating the difference between flat cut and rift cut (almost quartersawn).


end grain closeups of the 4 pieces directly above --- colors are a little too dull


sample plank and end grain


end grain closeup of the piece directly above


sample plank and end grain


end grain closeup of the piece directly above


the vendor from whom I bought this veneer was only able to identify it as cedar, so I am not positive it is western red, but that seems the most likely.

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web pics


a set of planks that give a little of the color variation in this species


planks


long planks (the longest is 10 feet)


pen blanks


veneer

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the western red cedar piece at the front of this bowl pic was taken from the same plank as the 2nd of the 4 small planks shown in the same picture at the top of this page. This is one of the few woods where application of a finishing agent lessens rather than increases the beauty of the wood. The bold separation between early and late growth is muddied by the application of a coat of natural stain. And by the way, the growth rings show a slight edginess that is caused by image reduction and is not present in the enlargement. Speaking of cedar, the thin vertical piece at the left rear that shows both red and cream colors is red aromatic cedar with sapwood.


the small section of the board that was exposed from the inside of the bowl wall shows even worse muddying after the stain was applied