Depends on who the manufacturer is. Many high end companies use veneer. It is very stable and allows the use of spectacular wood species that would make furniture prohibitive if done as whole wood.

More important than the issue of veneer is the company's quality level.

Hamptonmeadow is right. There is nothing wrong with veneer if it is done correctly. As far as the marketing comments of solid lumber warping over time, that would only be true of poorly finished furniture.

Veneers have been used in high-quality furniture for centuries. The durability depends on how well the underlying furniture is made.

1 - when the wood is pretty, but dimensionally unstable, VENEER! The base wood is chosen for stability.

2 - when the wood has a beautiful grain you want to see in a large area - VENEER! Think those amazing 18th-century mahogany or walnut cabinets with matching grain on the fronts (book veneered)

3 - When the wood is beautiful, but the pieces are not big enough or it's too expensive - VENEER! Think "oystershell" veneer on a cabinet, burl walnut, rosewood, etc. Some furniture from Tut's tomb was veneered with ivory.

4 - Just because you can - VENEER! Think waterfall mid-century modern pieces.

I have a solid walnut lawyer's bookcase, and one end panel warped badly. Veneer over plywood would have been better.

Chipping and scratching usually only affects the finish on furniture unless you are talking hard use, like restaurant furniture as one example. In such cases, there is an advantage to edge-glued solid wood over wood veneer/plywood as it is more easily repaired and takes abuse better.

Well-made solid wood furniture does not warp if one can keep RH between 40%-60%. I have large edge-glued solid wood panels on bedroom furniture tops and sides that have not moved since being purchased in 1999.

Wood veneers/plywood are very beautiful and more versatile than solid wood. From a manufacturing standpoint, they are cheaper and easier to use for a given panel. Also, they are lighter and more stable in furniture when shipping them in containers across the oceans. 75% of all furniture in the USA is now imported and close to 66% of wood furniture is now imported.

I should have specified that I was talking about new furniture, which could be either hardwood/softwood with veneer, or plywood with veneer (or really low end can use particle board covered with veneer). Antique veneers are in a whole different category- there are some exquisite veneered antique pieces, often with beautiful inlay work.

I'm trying to compare bedroom dressers, same styles with similar prices (around $600-900). Thank you for confirming some of the marketing text, that veneer can be ok, and not necessarily mean low quality.

I think veneer is junk, no matter how well made.

Veneer is cheaper, pure and simple. There are other reasons for veneer, but that's the main one.

Well-built solid wood furniture will last forever, even if you abuse it.

Extremes of temperature and humidity aren't any big deal. Some of my furniture was stored in a barn at the family farm for decades. Much of my furniture has spent months in self-storage in adverse conditions such as FL in the summer and PA in the winter.

If poorly constructed, then temperature and humidity changes can certainly be a problem. With veneer as well as with solids.

SBS9 hon, you apparantly have no knowledge about quality furniture.
A lot of veneer is more expensive that a simple solid construction......and of course much finer quality.
If you are talking the veeneers put over furniture made from rude and crude planked up boards, why then, of course you are correct. But it is obvious that you have no acquaintance with fine old book veneers nor flame maple, burl walnut veneers nor the exotic woods.
Don't make a blanket statement unless you have really done your homework.
Linda C

Linda hon, "better" is highly subjective, and I've given my reasons why solid is better. The only reason you've given why veneer is better is that it's more expensive.

If something being more expensive means to you that it's of higher quality, well, I admire the simplicity of that world view. It certainly would make shopping simpler.

Oh, and I have quite a bit of acquaintance with fine old furniture, thanks.

Try and stick to the question and avoid the personal attacks.

This is a good thread. I'm buying a veneer bedroom set by Lifestyle Solutions. It's beautiful, but I must say I had some reservations about the veneer. I was shopping for solid wood but the style of the furniture won me over. The furniture is solid and gorgeous. I'm glad "most" of you think that veneer is good. By the way, do any of you have any thoughts about Lifestyle Solutions?

I don't like veneer. I bought a veneer coffee table from Broyhill and when it was delivered, I noticed a bubble at the tabletop. I refused delivery, and exchanged for a solid wood coffee table!

oh my, such a heated discussion! thanks to everyone for weighing in with their thoughts.

I'd like to clarify my original question, which may reduce a bit of the disparity between some of these responses.

I equate Low end - really low end - veneer as Cheap, in that it's probably a inexpensive veneer wood (eg. pine) covering particle board. think low end ikea.

I equate high end veneer with expensive, fine quality furniture, some you may even find in museums. The veneer is often used to create delicate inlays. the people who made these pieces are artisans. I cannot afford these pieces, and they wouldn't go with anything else in my place :)

What I'm asking about is how to evaluate veneers used in modern-day, middle of the road furniture, such as a bedroom dresser. Like samshep, I saw a br dresser that I liked, but took pause because it's a veneered piece. The one I saw is by Stanley; srp $1070, on sale at 40% put it at about $650. not clear what wood is under the veneer, the marketing materials just say "solid lumber" or "solid woods" with a "quality veneer."

How to compare that against a solid pine dresser (a soft wood that could also get dinged and scratched, but much easier to repair) of a similar price?

My friend got a veneer DR table from ethan allen about 5 years ago and a 1" chip came off in the center where the table was opened and closed a number of times to add/remove the extra leaf. She had someone come to repair it, and yes, they did a good job - "You can hardly see it" but you kind of can...

What is veneer?

Peaches -
You know what "plywood" is, right? Veneer is a sort of plywood - a thin layer of wood used for its appearance, over a layer of wood or other material used for the strength or cheapness or whatever.

Veneer is not good or bad ... it all depends on what is under it.

It can be junk or it can be exquisite. It all depends on how it is done. A beautiful crotch mahogany veneer on a solid mahogany piece is stunning. That veneer will never be called junk by anyone who knows quality furniture.

from Merriam-Webster

Main Entry: ve·neer
Pronunciation: v&-'nir
Function: noun
Etymology: German Furnier, from furnieren to veneer, from French fournir to furnish, equip -- more at FURNISH
1 : a thin sheet of a material: as a : a layer of wood of superior value or excellent grain to be glued to an inferior wood b : any of the thin layers bonded together to form plywood
2 : a protective or ornamental facing (as of brick or stone)
3 : a superficial or deceptively attractive appearance, display, or effect : FACADE, GLOSS

Someone asked what veener is.

Veener is nothing more than a very thin slice of wood. The very best specimens of wood, such as burl, crotch, etc. are typically reserved for veeners since they are in limited supply.

Let's take a good real world example. In my view, Henkel Harris makes the best case goods furniture today. They offer both solid and veener construction. Which you prefer is a matter of taste only. Quality cannot be assigned on the basis of whether a piece is solid wood or veneered.

Many people like solid wood because they believe they are getting a more substantial piece of furniture for the money. I don't personally hold this view but understand the rationale. Others buy veneered furniture because they prefer what they see as the beauty of veneer over solid wood.

Another issue that has surfaced with modern construction methods is the substrate. That is the wood or wood product that sits under the veneer and to which the veener is glued. It can be solid wood either of the same type of wood the veneer is or not or it can be "dimensioally stable" substrates such as plywood, particleboard, MDF or high density board. I am sure there are probably others. Some are used because they are cheap - particleboard - and others are favored by manufacturers because of their stability.

While many tend to think of antique furniture (> 130 years old) as being made exclusively of solid wood, this is simply not true. At least two master craftsmen, Thomas Chippendale and Heppelwhite used veneers in their furniture. Hardly junk.

I might be the only one here who works with both solids and veneers every day. The previous posts have been, for the most part, on the mark. I disagree with sbs9, as there are plenty of ways to screw up solid wood construction - plenty of ways to screw up any kind of construction, for that matter, whether solid or veneer. Also, solid wood cannot survive extreme levels of abuse - if the barn leaked you would have had a differnt story to tell. Which brings us back to the OPs question: is a veneered dresser that costs $650 any good? The exact wording that she quoted from the Stanley brochure makes me suspicious, because a well made solid case will not warp. In fact, building solid wood panels into boxes (with proper joinery at the corners) is an excellent way to prevent warping. Quality of a particular piece of furniture is a function of how it was made, not what materials were used. It's hard to say whether the dresser is a bargain or a mistake without evaluating the totality of the piece: materials, design, manufacturing quality, and price. If I had it in front of me I could tell you for sure. So have I been helpful? Probably not. Good luck!

Paul Downs

I just purchased a veneer dining table from Bloomindales. It is a lovely piece covering solid cherry wood. How can I avoid water stains? I don't want to use place mats. Would a glass covering suffice or should I have a stain resistant finish? Any suggestions.

IMO glass is the best protector for wood table tops. You'll need to use thin clear "plastic" non-adhesive pads between the glass and the wood. You could use felt pads, but some felt can mark/stain the wood.

Some people say, you can protect a wood table top with regular use of good furniture polish -- NOT aerosol cleaner-polish. I've seen so may opinions on what furniture polish to use, and NOT use, it makes my head spin.

Here is a link that might be useful: Furniture Care Tips - Furniture Polishes

This post was edited by GypsyWaterfowl on Tue, Aug 13, 13 at 8:20

The pics depict veneered table tops. None of these intricate, and often expensive designs would be possible if veneer wasn't used to create them.

Great thread! I also want to point out that there are different types of veneer and a quality veneer can be better than solid wood. When you see knots in wood they may be beautiful but to a furniture manufacture that is a weak spot in the wood that could be susceptible to warping, when veneer is placed over layers of pressed hardwood (some are up to 7 layers) you have an super strong and resilient piece of furniture. You very much get what you pay for when it comes to veneers. If you buy an IKEA paper veneer for $200 don't expect heirloom quality. If you buy a Broyhill wood veneer you may expect the finish to be nice and durable but again not heirloom quality. And as noted in an above comment they had bubbling. If you buy a piece of Stickley Furniture, their veneers are about the thickness of a credit card compared to paper veneer there is no contest and you will have a beautiful very high quality heirloom quality piece of furniture. You will also have spent considerably more, but it's worth it!

When I was young, I bought a bedroom set with veneer. I had it for years, and never had a problem with it. When I had more money, I bought solid wood bedroom furniture. Don't have a problem with this either, and have had it for over 20 years now.

repair is challenging with veneer

Where can I find a SOLID king bed?? It is driving me crazy but can't stand veneer!

Stickley makes a solid wood bed. Truly heirloom quality. It's extremely heavy. Amish furniture manufacturers would have a solid bed I would think.