Tables of Guanacaste: natural and sustainable
They have it all: beautiful, durable, environmentally friendly?
Huanacaxtle or Guanacaste, Parota wood, caro hembra, conacaste... It has a thousand names but the appearance of this wood is unique and unmistakable. A light or medium brown colour, sometimes with a reddish or amber tone, and with an unmistakable pale yellow grain on the edges.
In Spain it is not very well known, but in Central and South America it is widely used in carpentry and joinery in general for outdoor furniture due to its great durability, especially for the manufacture of doors, gates and tables. Here, it is mainly used for coffee tables and office tables. Always designed in one piece, with natural cuts, either vertically for long dining tables (up to ten metres long!) or horizontally for round coffee tables up to two and a half metres in diameter.
It is similar to acacia or koa wood, but more textured and much lighter in weight than more exotic hardwoods. The result: larger cuts of natural wood that are durable, easy to work with and lighter in weight.
It is also very resistant to water. Interestingly, it is also used in shipbuilding and in the manufacture of canoes and light boats.
Where does the wood from Guanacaste come from?
The Huanacaxtle tree is one of the largest and most impressive trees. It is found in tropical America, from western and southern Mexico to northern South America (Venezuela and Brazil). It can reach a height of 20 to 45 metres and widths of up to 2.5 metres in a relatively short time, which makes it an ideal wood for reforestation and enables long pieces of wood to be obtained in an environmentally friendly way.
In Spain, one of the distributors of Guanacaste or parota wood is Escandón Motif, a Mexican-Spanish company that, together with local Mexican cabinetmakers, creates stunning tables and side tables made from wood sourced from the tropical regions of Mexico, specifically from the Huanacaxtle area.
"Using timber from regulated forest communities means not only doing business in an environmentally responsible way, but also contributing to the social and economic development of those communities.
According to its founder, Mariana Escandón, "the finishing process is 100% handmade, carried out by carpenters and joiners with a long family tradition, who have passed on the craft from father to son".. The finishes are made with natural oils, to simply highlight the natural beauty of the colour and texture of the wood, without leaving marks as with varnish or other toxic substances.
In Mexico, Guanacaste or Parota wood is certified and protected by the government through the supervision of reforestation and good environmental practices.
As Mariana Escandón explains, this timber is covered by what they call "forest referrals" issued by the Mexican Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, with the aim of guaranteeing the legal origin of the timber and, therefore, environmental sustainability. "Using timber from regulated forest communities means not only doing business in an environmentally responsible way, but also contributing to the social and economic development of those communities.
Mariana Escandón is also a fan of Monapart decoration (you know, decoration with taste, not luxury), and she has recently joined our Monapart club. It had to happen...
Being sustainable (and monaparter!) has its rewards
To celebrate the occasion, his company, Escandon Motif, has signed an agreement with Monapart Madrid by offering a discount on their dining tables and coffee tables to all our monaparters followers. All you have to do is contact Escandon Motif through their website and identify yourselves as monaparters. If you like natural decoration, a piece of wood from Guanacaste can be the beginning of a great story.
In Spain it has yet to be discovered... but this wood from Guanacaste has it all: beautiful, durable, ecological... what more could you ask for?
