You can choose between different finishes on most of our furniture. We mainly work with open finishes that let the wood continue to live, such as egg oil tempera, soap, oil and white oil. These finishes require some maintenance, but if you follow the care instructions, your furniture will continue to give you pleasure for many, many years to come.
Oil brings out the lustre and grain of the wood and gives a darker tone. If you want a slightly cooler and whiter tone instead, you can choose white oil. An oiled surface will be slightly smoother than a sawn one.
Soap
The soap used for our furniture is completely natural and pure. Soap gives a soft and natural wood feel and emphasises the natural lightness of the wood. A soaped piece of furniture will often be slightly lighter and have a more grey tone. The soap comes as colour- and fragrance-free soap flakes, mainly made from vegetable-based raw materials.
Egg oil tempera
Ever since Norrgavel started in 1993, we have been painting with egg oil tempera. The fully matt surface has in many ways become our hallmark. Egg oil tempera captures light in a unique way; the same colour can be perceived differently depending on the light. The surface patinates over time and takes on a beautiful eggshell lustre. Egg oil tempera is the most organic colour we could find and consists mainly of organic eggs (surplus eggs from grocery stores) and linseed oil.
Water-based lacquer
Some of our furniture is available with a lacquered, semi-matt finish. Our lacquer is water-based and is the most environmentally friendly variant we could find on the market. Lacquer gives a more modernistic look than egg oil tempera.
