By Silverstar Function Hiring

Rustic and raw wooden tables are all the rage at the moment. Many weddings are bidding farewell to table cloths and runners and opting for raw wooden tops, and Pantone (colour of the year: 2017) green and nature-like décor.

This trend has been filtering into weddings for the past three to four years, according to Alèt Wessels, an event planner, floral designer and the owner of Candle-lite. “It is a trend you can play around with and have fun.”

“It is very popular, but in different ways,” she says. “In South Africa, usually, a trend comes in, goes big and then turns into different phases of the original trend.

“With wood, we see that it is not just the wood that is popular now, but various elements of wood. Like designs cut from wood, and wooden tables.”

She says the DIY-trend or the use of old with new is very “in” right now. And going green and the use of wood, as well as the rustic feeling, fits in perfectly with this.

“With wood, you can add glass or silver to create a more elegant feeling. Wood is not necessarily the main element, but you can just add touches of it here and there.

“I have found that the bride and groom’s personality reflects much more in the wedding than popular trends do in our country,” she says.

Good quality hard woods are however expensive and very rare at present, due to substantial regulatory burdens hampering exports out of Zambia according to Graham van Wyk, a wood dealer and fine wood specialist who supplied Silver Star Hiring on a recent project.

“We first started brainstorming, and conceptualising Silver Star’s wooden table concept in 2016. There was a mutual desire between us to create truly special and “One of a kind” wooden tables, that had both exquisite grain qualities and the right colour properties.

“I immediately felt we would need to use European sourced wood, instead of Zambian. This, unfortunately, delayed us quite a number of months. Due to the European climate being cooler, the trees grow much slower than their Zambian counterparts, and the grain tends to be harder which really creates special character and the rustic look we were looking for. It took us more than 8 months to find the right batch of reclaimed European timber, but the wait was worth it, and I am astonished at how Silver Star’s carpenters transformed them into truly exquisite tables. The grain on each of their tables is just hypnotising to look at. I must be something of a wood junky I suppose!  A satisfying end to a very enjoyable sourcing project.”

“The grain on each of their tables is just hypnotising to look at. I must be something of a wood junky I suppose!  A satisfying end to a very enjoyable sourcing project.”

Contact Silver Star Function Hiring if you are interested in wooden products or tables for your event.