MINNEAPOLIS - September 1, 2004 - Creative Woodwork International (CWI), a privately held U.S. company that imports eco-friendly, enduring outdoor wood furniture from Vietnam, announces that it now manufactures all its Lifewood furniture in plantation-grown, sustainably harvested eucalyptus.

“Eucalyptus has been one of our alternative hardwoods, along with balau. Harvesting of balau is controlled under strict quotas. Those limits are being reached, so manufacturers have begun to encounter longer lead times for timber delivery, and the price of balau on the world market is heading up,” explains Bernadette Carroll, president of CWI. “In order to provide retailers with a steady source of affordable, eco-friendly wood furniture, we decided to take action now and standardize on eucalyptus, which has proven to be popular with consumers.”

“In addition, by standardizing on eucalyptus, we streamline our entire production, inventory management and importing process,” says Carroll. “Thus, CWI will maintain our two-thirds wholesale price advantage over comparable teak furniture and simplify product selection, display and sales for retailers.”

Lifewood from CWI includes two distinctive collections of earth-friendly wood furniture, Lifeware and Veranda, which bring natural character and style to outdoor living, at reasonable wholesale prices. With its exclusive and ingenious modular design, Lifeware enables consumers to select and connect individual chair and table modules to create customized seating and dining arrangements. Lifeware’s seven SKUs connect to create more than fifty style configurations. The European-inspired Veranda Collection features clean lines and simple elegance and includes more than two dozen intriguing styles of benches and armchairs, collapsible seating, loungers and deck chairs, café and dining tables, and dining sets.

CWI is exhibiting Lifewood at the Casual Furniture & Accessories Market in Chicago at the Merchandise Mart, Suite 8G-238, September 18-22, 2004.

Eucalyptus is as strong and as durable as teak and is 10 to 20 percent more dense. With its density, straight grain, smooth finish, and honey color with subtle rose highlights, eucalyptus is a first-rate choice for outdoor wood furniture that compares favorably to teak:

Teak: Strong, Moderately Durable, Average Density of 640 kilograms per cubic meter

Eucalyptus: Strong, Moderately Durable, Average Density of 750 kilograms per cubic meter

Technical Definitions and Sources:

Strength – Hardwoods rated as Extremely Strong, Very Strong, Strong or Weak, based on a measurement in pounds per square inch of the working stresses a wood can tolerate.

Durability – Hardwoods rated as Very Durable, Durable, Moderately Durable or Not Durable. Durability relates to the resistance to fungal decay of a wood species. The ratings are based on the average life span of an untreated 50x50mm section of heartwood (middle of the log) in exterior ground contact.

Density - Calculated in kilograms per cubic meter. Tropical hardwoods can exhibit considerable variation around mean density. The greater the density, the greater the exterior resistance.

Sources: Species of Tropical Hardwood Timber: Principal Uses and their Equivalent Woods (Trade Development Board, Singapore) and the Timber Research and Development Association (TRADA)

About Creative Woodwork International (CWI)

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., Creative Woodwork International (CWI) is a privately held U.S. company that imports eco-friendly, enduring outdoor wood furniture from Vietnam. Lifewood from CWI, including the Veranda and Lifeware collections, provides a superior alternative to meet consumers’ growing demand for distinctive, durable, and affordable wood furniture that brings comfort and style to outdoor living, naturally. More information on CWI, including Lifewood product catalogs and photos, is available at www.creative-woodwork.net.

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
FSC-US-0040

Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC™) identifies products which contain wood from well managed forests certified in accordance with the rules of the Forest Stewardship Council.

FSC Trademark © 1996 Forest Stewardship Council A.C.

Note to Editors: CWI will introduce its new mixed-media Vienna Chair & Table (http://www.creative-woodwork.net/utility/vienna.htm) at the Casual Market in Chicago at the Merchandise Mart, Suite 8G-238, September 18-22, 2004. A limited number of editorial appointments with Bernadette Carroll, president of Creative Woodwork International (CWI), are still available on Sunday, September 19 and Tuesday, September 21. For assistance, please send an e-mail to davidaquilina@msn.com.

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