Mori has a unique process in creating his pieces. He spends time connecting and learning about the client so he can incorporate their personality and characteristics into the piece. He also spends time researching about the project and discussing the meaning behind the project with the client so the appropriate emotions are conveyed.

Mori’s respect and passion for wood, positive energy, and unique style has landed him many awards including Canada Home Builders’ Association’s Best Creation of Unique Feature of Room Interior award for creating a wrap around staircase with a cougar post (image below).

For more information, visit www.mkono.net 

This success story started many years ago, when designer and builder Michael Host left his hometown of Vancouver, BC to pursue his passion – the design and construction of timeless furniture. His path led to places like Australia and New York where Michael became an accomplished furniture maker. His journey also brought him to Europe where he was inspired by the architecture and furniture designs. Michael spent many years studying and acquiring renowned and unique woodworking techniques.

Tanja Hinder, on the other hand, grew up in Switzerland. Fascinated by architecture and furniture design, Tanja soon found herself involved in many design-consulting projects. In 2001, she travelled to Vancouver where the paths of Michael and Tanja crossed for the first time. The rest as they say “is history!” Tanja eventually immigrated to Canada and become an aspiring furniture and interior designer.

Over the past year, they have been able to refine their construction techniques to enhance the longevity and durability of their designs. They also further developed their original concept in a new series of products that complement the organic shapes of their salvaged woods in a surprising way.

Today, mth woodworks’ mission is to connect people with BC’s beautiful surroundings by fusing together raw natural elements with organic resin.

“The inspiration for our designs comes from, well, EVERYWHERE. However, nature and travel definitely fuel our creative minds. To us, these are the most important ingredients for all our creations. Guided by clean lines and functionality, we are proud to offer “the bloom collection” and “the host collection” to a diverse clientele.”

For more information on mth woodworks, please visit: http://www.mthwoodworks.com/

Click below to watch a great video on how they salvage their wood:

If you can not see the video link above: click here

The team at San Diego, CA-based Happy Owl studio, who self-describe as “Apple devotees,” launched their “cash register of the future” last year. The Cashbox, as it is called, is an all-in-one iPad point of sale system featuring a bamboo box handcrafted from Cali Bamboo plywood available in Flat Grain Amber, Flat Grain Natural and Marble Woven.

According to the company, each box is available with custom laser engraving. “A lot of people are getting lost in the surface-level beauty of the Cashbox,” said Devon Read, Happy Owl Studio CEO in a statement, “but the real beauty is under the hood. Payment processing with iPad is a game-changer.”
 Click here to read the entire article

If you are interested, please contact Fred from F&B Saws at 604-826-1834 or  fbsaws@hotmail.com

But the opportunities are there, and your management is asking for you to make it happen.  So here are 11 tips, provided by Senior Account Executive Leslie Hopkins and Project Manager Julie Comfort of Skyline Houston, and Director of Development Philip Foust of Skyline Exhibits and Events, who have traveled around the world with their clients:

1. When exhibiting abroad, you need more of everything: more time, more money, and more planning.
2. It may sound obvious, but take the time to research before you go – about the country, the city, the people, and the show regulations.
3. Learn about cultural differences, which transfer to how local attendees do trade shows differently.  What is considered polite and “politically correct” changes from country to country.
4. Different cultures need different common phrases, even when you are communicating in English.  When emailing outside of the United States, it’s better to write “can you please?” instead of “will you please…”
5. You have to remain flexible, even more so than domestically.

Click here to read the entire article

Do not ignore the wood dust. Clean it up, but do not blow it off with an air gun as that simply releases and stratifies the dust – use a vacuum to collect it. Then investigate to determine the source of the dust. For example, if the ductwork is not airtight, seal joints to prevent the release of dust. When inspecting the workplace for dust accumulations, consider all flat surfaces including rectangular-shaped ductwork, overhead beams, lighting fixtures and areas such as hung or suspended ceilings.

Click here to read the entire article

The six-storey Wood Innovation and Design Centre (WIDC) at the corners of George and 5th Avenue will be the tallest contemporary wood building in North America, and will rival the tallest examples anywhere in the world.

New seven, eight, nine and 10-storey buildings have arisen during the last five years in Sweden, Austria, Italy, London and Australia respectively.

These buildings, based on massive-timber-panels, have attracted the attention of innovative designers, progressive builders and environmentally responsible buyers.

Even at only six-storeys, the mezzanine and vaulted ceilings of the WIDC will make equivalent to about a nine-storey building according to architect Michael Green of Michael Green Architecture (MGA), who championed the winning design.

Click here to read the entire article 

March 2013 new home starts in the U.S. were 1.036 million units SAAR, according to a joint press release from the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. In June 2008, they were 1.046 million units. Between then and now, they dropped as low as 478,000 units (less than half a million) in April 2009. They last “peaked” at 2.273 million units in January 2006…

The single-family segment of homebuilding accounted for 60% of all residential groundbreakings in the latest month, leaving the remaining 40% to multi-unit construction. The share more typically taken by single-family starts is 70% to 80%, with 20% to 30% being of the multi-unit variety.

Regionally, the strength to-date in 2013 has been mainly in the West, where average monthly starts are +63.6% versus the first quarter of last year, an increase of nearly two-thirds. The comparable figure for the South is +31.8% (almost one-third higher) while in the Northeast it is +26.9% and in the Midwest, +18.7%.

The monthly pattern in the South and West through the first three months of this year has been a steady progression of steps upward. In the Northeast and West, monthly starts have been more level.

Returning to the national scene, how significant is a “starts” figure of one million units?

It’s a huge psychological breakthrough. Far below that level, homebuilders are drowning. Slightly under a million, they’re still floundering. Above the one-million-unit threshold, residential contractors are breathing fresh air again.
Click here to read the entire article

Central Valley Cabinet Doors, based in Abbotsford, BC, manufactures custom wood cabinet doors, distributes a line of Thermofoil doors, and re-faces existing cabinets. They have been supplying custom cabinet shops in the Fraser Valley with locally produced cabinet doors since 1994.

In 2008, they expanded by selling to the end user who wanted to replace their existing doors with new ones. Over the next few years, they began to sell and promote several products that helped streamline the re-facing process. Re-facing is a process of giving your kitchen a face-lift without having to rebuild the entire kitchen. The current layout stays the same; however, the cabinets get re-skinned, new doors are put on, new hinges and hardware are added, etc. to change the appearance of the original cabinets. The process is quite cost-effective and a popular choice amongst homeowners on a budget with a limited timeframe. Central Valley Cabinet Doors offers a few different solutions for re-facing such as Shaker White Thermofoil door. Watch this quick video on their re-facing solutions.

If you can not see the above video link, go to: http://www.centralvalleycabinetdoors.com/refacing-video.php

Central Valley Cabinet Doors has the ability to custom create what the customer specifies. They prefer to use locally sourced wood; however, they can import rare species and have a wide variety of material available according to the customer’s specifications.

For more information on Central Valley Cabinet Doors, visit www.centralvalleycabinetdoors.com

Our new address:
2947 Shuswap Rd
Kamloops, BC V2H1S9

You can see a map on our website: http://www.daizen.com/contact.php