Researching Wood Finishes To Meet Design Objectives
Welcome. You have arrived at the first stop in the 9Wood Field Guide.
This page launches your early design discovery, where you can explore ceiling and wall finish concepts, shape palettes, and gather inspiration for what the space could become. The goal is to engage your client with ideas that are visually compelling while beginning to consider how those finishes support functional needs and align with early budget and schedule expectations.
Before exploring the range of ceiling and wall finishes, take a moment to orient yourself.
Why You’re Here
At this stage of the design process, your role is to explore the right questions before committing to solutions:
- What does this space need to do?
- What roles can ceiling and wall finishes play in meeting those needs?
- What should the space feel like?
- Which finish types may be appropriate?
- How might these options align with budget and schedule expectations?
- How do you build excitement and confidence with your client?
This first stop helps you approach these questions with visual and credible insights to support early discussions, especially when a client asks, “What is the best option for our space?”
As you move through this section, you will find tools and guidance to help clarify the intended role of your ceiling or wall finish, explore available forms and aesthetic directions, and begin evaluating feasibility. Together, these resources provide the clarity and context needed to guide early design thinking and productive discussions.
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Researching Wood Finishes To
Meet Design Objectives
15 min read
Alvar Aalto: The Father of Modern Wood Ceilings
A Case Study of Mount Angel Abbey Library Alvar Aalto rests fully in the twentieth century as one of its defining architects. Yet through his use of organic form and natural material, he speaks today at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The use of wood, a favorite material in his architectural finishes, was both …
4 min read
3 Reasons We Work at 9Wood
We interviewed 9 employees at 9Wood on why they work here. These stories honor the production experience and what it takes to make award winning wood ceilings.
6 min read
Design Guide for Common Types of Wood Paneling
Anyone who has visited a library, airport, restaurant, church, or college campus has been exposed to a variety of wood paneling types. A natural insulator, wood paneling added to a wall or ceiling brings warmth and an organic aesthetic to a space. Wood provides a timeless, yet inviting look that really stands out. If you’re …
7 min read
The 8 Different Types of Ceilings
Ceilings Matter. And although we prefer wood, understanding the different types of ceilings can help you communicate your vision for a space.
4 min read
9Wood – Division 9 Custom Wood Ceilings [VIDEO]
2020 has been an unprecedented year. Following our state’s stay at home order in March, the 9Wood team took action quickly. Within a few days of the order, almost all office staff switched to working remotely, and our production staff swiftly put in place measures to mitigate risk and ensure safety. Needless to say, our …
6 min read
What to Look for in an Independent Manufacturer’s Representative
Originally published by ISAarchitectural on their website – May 13th, 2020. By: Larry Windsor. VP Construction Services Independent Manufacturer’s Representative Firms are an essential component of the commercial construction industry. These companies are contracted by domestic and international architectural product manufacturers to be their exclusive, trusted salesforce within a defined geographic territory. Many individuals believe the primary …
4 min read
The Forgotten Third Surface
Some call the ceiling the ‘Forgotten 3rd Surface.’” – Paul Emmons What is a Ceiling? A tent’s canvas is both roof and ceiling. Except in minimalist buildings, roof and ceiling are rarely the same surface (even modern tents separate the fly—its roof—from the inner shell and screen—its ceiling). In basic construction, rafters support the roof above while they are clad below to create a ceiling. In this construction the ceiling tracks the roof line; more commonly, ceilings lay flat, covering a room. A ceiling, then, is the overhead surface of a …
4 min read
Design Trends with Wood Ceilings [VIDEO]
Michael Roemen: “Wood is such a beautiful material and brings warmth to any space, but because it’s more of a premium finish with a higher cost, it really should work harder for you both aesthetically and acoustically. Let’s take a look some of those ways you could utilize wood ceilings in creative ways.” 1. Custom Stains MR: “We love …
4 min read
Does 9Wood do Exterior Wood Ceilings? [VIDEO]
We asked one of our lead engineers, Nathan Pfeifer, to give us the answer. Nathan talks through design considerations, limitations, and of course the possibilities of exterior wood ceiling applications. Q: Does 9Wood do exterior wood applications? “A question we get quite often, is whether or not we can do exterior applications with our wood …
4 min read
Does 9Wood do residences?
Does 9Wood do Residences ? The short answer is “No”. 9Wood supplies wood ceilings for commercial architecture. A full answer is, “Rarely, with one exception.” The best way to explain this exception—if you’re still curious—is to understand why we focus on commercial architecture. There are four reasons. Acoustics. In commercial buildings the problem is quieting noise. Group spaces, …
4 min read
Schedule
Projects of all kinds encounter budget and schedule challenges. And schedule busts—no surprise—are the major cause of budget busts. Schedule is the central nervous system that controls the activities of the entire project, so claimed Eli Goldratt, founder of Theory of Constraint (TOC). With time in mind, Goldratt invented Critical Chain Project Management to apply …
4 min read
Charles Schwab Campus
Award of Excellence: The 2019 CISCA Award of Excellence — West Region, Office. Learn more about this project.
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