Thick sliced Olive Ash veneer (Grade 1 / Grade I, 1.5 mm thickness, lengths from 0.50 m to 0.75 m) is used for veneering compact items: drawer fronts, wooden boxes, decorative panels, and small interior joinery parts. The 1.5 mm thickness provides increased wear resistance and allows for calibrated surface sanding and texturing. We dispatch goods from 1 bundle/pack upwards or in wholesale volumes. Remote selection services, warehouse pickup in person, and delivery across Ukraine are available.
Key Characteristics of Olive Ash Veneer
- Thickness of 0.6 mm. This standard thickness allows for proper gluing to the base. The adhesive does not seep through the timber slice. You can safely sand, tint, and varnish the veneered surface without damaging the face layer.
- Moisture content of 8-10%. This is the optimal moisture level for joinery work. The veneer retains its shape and remains stable during gluing.
- Contrasting palette. This veneer is named for its heartwood figure, which closely resembles the wood of a genuine olive tree. Unlike white ash, which typically features a nearly monochromatic palette, olive ash delivers a high-contrast aesthetic. A single veneer sheet integrates ivory, cream, grey, and deep brown hues.
- Distinctive grain pattern. The veneer is characterized by its signature alternating light and dark “olive” streaks. This striking visual appeal is a preferred choice for high-end furniture manufacturing and bespoke interior projects.
- Minimal finishing requirements. Olive ash looks exceptional when finished with a clear matte lacquer or natural oil. This premium facing material requires no staining or tinting, as nature has already provided a perfectly balanced color composition.
How to Choose Natural Wood Veneer
To ensure the final result meets your expectations, pay attention to three key parameters when selecting your veneer:
- Shade and texture. Choose bundles from the same log to ensure maximum consistency in colour and grain across the entire piece.
- Cut type (pattern). Crown cut (tangential) veneer features a wavy or arched grain. This option is popular for cabinet doors and worktops to highlight the natural beauty of the wood. Quarter cut (radial) sheets display a pattern of straight, longitudinal lines, making them ideal for creating sleek, neutral designs.
- Thickness. A thickness of 0.6 mm is sufficient for standard furniture fronts. If you plan to make a worktop or a surface subject to heavy use and sanding, consider a thicker veneer (1.5 mm to 2.5 mm).
Professional Tip: How Much Veneer to Buy?
The rule of balance. You must veneer both sides of a component (the face and the reverse). This compensatory gluing prevents the base material (MDF or chipboard) from warping. Therefore, you should multiply the component’s surface area by two.
Wastage factor. You must add a 30-40% reserve to your net surface area. This extra material is necessary for pattern matching, edge trimming, and fitting the sheets.
IMPORTANT. The timber used to make the veneer is a natural material. The shade and grain of the veneer sheets will always vary depending on the bundle.
How to Calculate the Price of an Olive Ash Veneer Bundle?
The price of a sliced veneer bundle is calculated using the formula:
Bundle price = price per sq. m × sheet surface area × number of sheets in the bundle.
The sheet surface area is calculated using the standard formula: length × width.
The price per sq. m depends on the wood species, timber grade, sheet dimensions, and bundle volume.
Example. A bundle of Grade A veneer priced at €8 (or $8 / standard currency units) per sq. m. The bundle contains 24 sheets, 2.50 m long and 0.20 m wide.
First, calculate the sheet surface area: 2.50 x 0.20 = 0.50 (sq. m)
Then apply the figures to the first formula: 8 x 0.50 x 24 = 96 (standard currency units)
Applications for Natural Olive Ash Veneer
Sliced veneer is widely used in the manufacturing of interior furnishings. When glued to a stable core, this thin slice of timber gives products the appearance of solid wood while remaining far more affordable. This natural facing material is used to produce items such as:
Cabinet Furniture
Veneered doors and carcasses for cabinets, wardrobes, chests of drawers, dressing tables, and tallboys can maintain their aesthetic appeal for decades with proper care.
Interior Doors
Veneer is commonly used to finish door leaves and architraves. Veneered doors blend seamlessly into various interior styles, from traditional classic to modern minimalism.
Wall Panels
Decorative wooden panels are a traditional design technique for creating feature walls in residential and commercial spaces. A veneered wall panel looks striking in a study, office, boardroom, living room, bedroom, hotel room, or restaurant.
Lighting Fixtures
Veneer with a 0.6 mm thickness is an excellent material for crafting lampshades and decorating light fittings. Table lamps, floor lamps, and pendants adorned with timber are exclusive pieces, perfect for eco, neo-classic, country, or retro interiors.
Jewellery Boxes and Interior Decor
Veneer is a highly decorative material that allows you to finish small items beautifully. Timber-clad jewellery boxes, desk organisers, figurines, photo frames, and napkin holders are always in high demand.
Grades of Sliced Olive Ash Veneer
Grade 1
This grade features a uniform texture and consistent colour. The surface is free from visible defects. Minor natural colour variations and subtle texture differences are acceptable. Grade 1 veneer is used when the timber’s grain is the primary aesthetic feature of the piece.
Grade 2
You may find colour variations, inconsistencies in the pattern, and some unevenness in the texture. Knots up to 5 mm in diameter may occur. The overall grain structure might be less uniform than Grade 1, but it remains suitable for decorative finishing. This grade is often used to veneer internal surfaces or projects highlighting the wood’s diverse texture.
Grade 3
This material possesses several features that are not technically defects but result in a rougher, less uniform appearance. Various knot types (sound or loose), dark streaks, noticeable colour transitions, and uneven textures are permissible. This veneer is ideal for internal surfaces and rustic design projects.
Main Types of Veneer Faces
A veneer face (or veneer layon) is a pre-assembled sheet composed of multiple leaves of natural veneer, jointed edge-to-edge into a single composite layout. The veneer leaves are matched by grain direction, texture, tone, and figure to ensure the veneered surface appears continuous and visually balanced after pressing. Veneer leaves can be arranged in various configurations to create symmetrical, architectural, or decorative patterns. The most common veneer matching types include:
- Mismatch (random match);
- Slip match;
- Plank match (planked / mix match);
- Book match;
- Diamond / reverse diamond match;
- Slip and turn (reverse slip match).
Olive Ash Timber: An Overview
Olive Ash, also known as brown-hearted ash (Fraxinus excelsior), is not a distinct botanical species but a unique natural variation of European Ash. It is named after its characteristic heartwood coloration, which visually resembles Mediterranean olive wood. This material is highly prized in the joinery and furniture industries for its combination of structural strength and exceptional decorative properties.
Regarding its physical and mechanical properties, Olive Ash is equivalent to standard European Ash (often compared to American White Ash in terms of utility). Its Brinell hardness typically ranges from 4.0–4.2 HB. The heartwood (the «olive» section) is often denser and harder than the surrounding sapwood. The average density ranges between 670–720 kg/m³, classifying it as a heavy, strong, and remarkably tough timber.
As with all ash varieties, the olive variant is an excellent material for manufacturing steam-bent components and glued-laminated (glulam) structures. The species is highly resistant to impact and abrasion, which accounts for its popularity in the production of high-end parquet flooring, staircases, and heavy-duty worktops.
The defining characteristic of Olive Ash is its visual contrast. The sapwood remains light (creamy or beige), while the heartwood features a complex pattern of alternating dark brown, grey, olive, and nearly black stripes. The growth ring pattern on a tangential cut (crown cut) creates intricate parabolas, which are further enhanced by the natural colour contrast of the heartwood. The pores are large and ring-porous, arranged in distinct chains. While the grain is typically straight, figured or wavy fibres are often observed in the colour transition zones.
Due to the high toughness of the wood, machining can be demanding; therefore, carbide-tipped tools must be kept sharp to avoid tearing. The olive heartwood can occasionally be more brittle than the lighter sapwood, a factor that should be considered during fine milling or CNC processing. Ash sands to a high-quality finish. Due to its open-pore structure, dust must be thoroughly removed from the surface before any finishing agents are applied. Olive Ash rarely requires staining; the material shows its best figure under clear matt lacquers or hardwax oils.
To request a quote, please call us or submit an enquiry. We will help you calculate the exact square metreage of veneer required for your project.
