Skip to content
Unfinished Wood Furniture
An empty bare wood bookcase with open shelves standing against a dark charcoal wall

Choosing unfinished furniture

What unfinished means, how makers describe wood, and pieces that need anchoring.

Disclosure: We may earn a commission if you buy through links on this page. It does not change our guidance. Affiliate Disclosure

Guides

A bare unfinished wood nightstand with a closed drawer in a calm bedroom corner

What unfinished wood furniture is

Sold without a final finish.

A bare wood cylinder beside a thin curled sheet of wood veneer on a dark surface

What makers mean by solid wood and veneer

Wood terms are the maker's words.

Edges of plywood, fiberboard, and particleboard offcuts stacked on a plain workbench

Plywood, MDF, and particleboard: the EPA label

The TSCA Title VI label.

A bare wood dresser, drawers closed, against a wall with a small strap at back

Unfinished dressers and tip-over: what CPSC says

Anchor it, says CPSC.

A tall empty bare wood bookcase against a warm brown wall with a bracket fitted above

Unfinished bookcases and shelves: anchor them

Shelves go on the wall.

Start with what unfinished means

Sold without a final finish.

Read the basics
Unfinished Wood Furniture

Guides

Site

Legal