How Strumber differs from oak
Strumber® is hemp lumber: a biocomposite of hemp stalks bound with a binder. It is not particleboard and it is not veneer. A saw, planer and thicknesser work it like wood, but the figure comes from annual-plant fibre, not from growth rings. The brand belongs to The True Green (Green Lanes); there are also grades from other annual plants, flax among them.
The first time I held it was a trial beam, 70 × 9 × 9 cm. I prefer a beam to a ready-made board, because I decide the fibre and the section. The same machines as for oak, a different feel. For a surface people will touch I take a higher density — in practice Hemp 750 or 900. A lower density is harder to close in the finish.
For a top, a windowsill or a tread I do not take “whatever density is on the rack”. A shelf in the shade can be a discussion. Where someone looks across the light and puts a hand down, I want a density that can be polished.
Where it comes out ahead
Dust. On the planer and the thicknesser, hemp dust and shavings are clearly less irritating than oak dust. Extraction stays on. A mask stays within reach. The difference is still real: after a day on oak my throat remembers the work differently than after a day on Strumber.
Touch. After sanding and lacquer the surface is velvety — warmer to the hand than lacquered oak at a similar sheen. At the fair, people stopped for exactly that: they looked, then they put a hand down.
Light. In sunlight the material lightens slightly. That is the opposite of many woods, which darken over time. Indoors it ages quietly, without a dramatic patina. Worth telling a client before the piece stands in a window.
| Trait | Solid oak | Strumber Hemp 750 |
|---|---|---|
| Dust when planing | Irritating, typical of oak | Gentler on the airways |
| Lacquer absorption | Predictable | Clearly higher, more coats |
| Touch after finishing | Smooth, hard | Velvety, warm |
| Light over time | Often darkens | Lightens slightly |
| Role in the piece | Frame and load | Surface and accent; I leave the frame to oak |
The faults, and how I work around them
This is not a stock that forgives copying yesterday’s process from another species. Three places need their own decision.
Absorption and lacquer. Strumber is more porous than oak. The first coat disappears faster than I am used to. On HempWoven I used more lacquer, an extra protective build and a different sandpaper sequence between coats. Finish it “like oak” and the pores stay open. Plan spare finish and take time with the grits, and the skin closes evenly.
Estimate lacquer from the porosity of this batch, not from an oak top of the same size. Reset the grit sequence after the first coat — what closes oak often still leaves a fibre scratch on Strumber.
Routing the edge. Fibre is not a growth ring. A dull bit that still “sort of” passes on oak tears the edge on Strumber. What works for me is a genuinely sharp, good-quality bit, plus feed and spindle speed set for that pass, not copied from the previous species. I will not quote one setting: it depends on bit diameter and on the density of the batch. The rule is simpler. If the edge fuzzes, fix the cutter first, then the parameters. Sandpaper is not there to hide a blunt tool.
Structure and load. Strumber does not behave like solid oak. I do not give it the whole load of an element that has to take a point load. On a longer span I leave a timber frame and use the hemp lumber as the surface and the accent. Using the composite as a frame, without thinking through the sections, would be a gamble. The PLANET side table is different: the whole form is Strumber, but the span is shorter and the shape is drawn for this material.
Beam or 28 mm board?
I have worked with both a beam and a 28 mm laminated board. The board is an interesting experience — you get a large plane quickly, and the layers show on the edge. Personally I still prefer a beam: it gives better control over the final shape, the fibre direction and the mass of the piece. A board has already made some of those decisions for me.
Two Strumber projects
Below are two different uses of the same stock: the HempWoven table from the Five Colors of Wood workshop, and a table from the Co-Balance collection for Rehemptation, which I had the chance to work on thanks to an invitation from Jadwiga Husarska-Sobina.
HempWoven coffee table
Solid oak frame, rattan weave and Strumber Hemp 750 — Japandi, about 61 × 61 × 39 cm. Here the material is the accent and the surface; the load stays with the oak. The film of the piece is at the top of the page; a gallery follows below.
Co-Balance — a table designed for accessibility
Thanks to an invitation from Jadwiga Husarska-Sobina I worked on a table from the Co-Balance collection, designed with people with disabilities in mind. The stock was 28 mm laminated Strumber board. It is a different experience from a beam — worth knowing, though for my own projects I still prefer to go back to the beam.
HempWoven gallery — main view, top detail and room setting.
A windowsill, a tread, a detail in a building
I can also see a Strumber beam as a finish material. A windowsill and a stair tread are demanding: abrasion, point loads, daylight, water from a plant pot. With a dense grade, a hard-wearing lacquer and a construction that does not dump the impact into the hemp alone, I can imagine that element. It is not a line in the price list yet — the conversation starts from a sample and from how the element will be loaded.
Today the windowsills are solid wood — species, nosing and finish are set before we cut. If a project stays with oak, ash or walnut, that path is ready. If hemp is meant to enter, we start from the detail. Anything outside a finished piece goes through custom work.
What else this workshop makes
Next to hemp, the shop still stands on solid wood — the same hand, the same machines. People who arrive for Strumber often stay for oak. A smaller piece made entirely of Strumber is the PLANET side table.
In solid wood, on the same spiral cutterheads, we also make a Mid Century nightstand and an oak sideboard. The wider set is on the portfolio page.
A sample beats a description
A paragraph will not replace a hand on the surface. I send a set of wood and hemp-lumber samples — the form is on the contact page. If you are an architect or you are specifying a building and you want to test Strumber on a detail, write what the element has to do. I would rather talk about load and finish than about the word “eco”.
Short answers
How is Strumber hemp lumber different from wood?
It is a biocomposite of hemp stalks bound with a binder. A saw, planer and thicknesser work it like wood, but the figure comes from annual-plant fibre, not from growth rings. It is more porous than oak and reacts differently to a router bit and to lacquer. A short definition is also in the glossary.
Which density for a tabletop?
For a surface people touch, take a higher density such as Hemp 750 or 900. It is easier to finish smooth. HempWoven was made with the 750 grade.
Is the dust less irritating than oak?
When planing and thicknessing, yes — hemp dust and shavings are clearly gentler. Extraction and respiratory protection still stay at the machine.
Why does it need more lacquer?
Because it is more absorbent. The first coat soaks in deeper, so it needs more coats, a different protective build and a different sandpaper sequence between coats.
Will you make a windowsill or a stair tread in Strumber?
I see that as a direction with a dense grade, a hard-wearing lacquer and a construction that does not leave point loads to the hemp alone. Today windowsills are solid wood. A hemp piece is specified individually — from a sample and from how it will be used.
From the same workshop
- HempWoven coffee table — oak, rattan, Strumber Hemp 750
- Co-Balance collection (Rehemptation) — a table designed for accessibility
- PLANET side table — entirely hemp lumber
- Solid-wood windowsill, made to size
- Custom furniture and details
- Mid Century nightstand in solid wood
- Portfolio
- FAQ on materials, finish and delivery