People ask us this all the time, usually while standing in the workshop with a length of oak in one hand and a length of pine in the other. The short version is that oak is the tougher, heavier, more expensive wood with a grain worth showing off, and pine is the lighter, cheaper, friendlier wood that loves a coat of paint. Which one is right for you comes down to what you are putting on the wall and how you want it to look in five years time.
What oak gives you
Oak is a proper hardwood. It is dense, it is heavy, and it shrugs off the knocks and dents that would mark a softer timber. Load it up with books, a row of cast iron pans or a heavy mirror and it will not sag or complain. It is also lovely to look at. The grain is deep and full of character, and rather than fading it darkens and warms over the years, so an oak shelf usually looks better a decade in than it did the day it went up. The trade offs are honest ones. It costs more, and it is heavier to lift into place. For a shelf that is on show and earning its keep, most people decide that is a price worth paying.
If that sounds like what you are after, our oak shelves and floating shelves are a good place to start.
What pine gives you
Pine is a softwood, which is exactly why people love it and occasionally curse it. It is lighter and far kinder on the wallet, with a paler colour and those knots that give it a relaxed, farmhouse feel. Being softer, it marks more easily and will not carry quite the weight that oak will. But it takes paint and wax better than almost anything, so if you are planning a painted shelf, a whitewashed one, or something to match a colour already in the room, pine is usually the smarter buy.
So which should you pick?
Be honest about the job. If the shelf needs to hold real weight, stay on display and last for years, spend the extra on oak. If you are watching the budget, or you already know you will be painting it, pine will do the job and look lovely doing it. Plenty of our customers use both around the house, oak where the wood is the whole point and pine where it is going to disappear under a coat of paint anyway.
Whichever way you lean, you will find both in our wooden shelves collection. And once you have settled on the wood, it is worth a minute on the other big question, whether to go for floating or bracket shelves.
A few things people ask us
Is oak really worth the extra? If you need the strength and you want it to last, yes. Oak holds its looks and its value long after a softwood shelf would be looking tired.
Will pine hold heavy books? A few, happily. A full run of them, less so, and at that point we would point you towards oak or a shelf on brackets.
Which one paints better? Pine, easily. Its smooth, even surface was made for it. Oak we tend to oil rather than paint, because covering up that grain feels like a waste.