Wood is the gateway drug into making things. It's readily available, relatively affordable, can be worked with either hand tools or machines, and is far easier to get started with than plastic or metal. Most industrial design programs have you learning to use a table saw before a welding rig. So this year we logged (cue rimshot) a bunch of wood-related resources and stories.

While you know that wood comes from forests, you may not realize how it gets from there to your shop. First it's harvested by logging companies, some of whom wield This Terrifying Mobile Tree-Harvesting Machine That's Like a Robot Koala Bear with Chainsaw Limbs.

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Once it's been logged, it's got to be shipped, which isn't as easy as it sounds. Here's How They Stuff Logs Into Shipping Containers.

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But maybe you're not working with freshly-logged wood, and instead have a good source for reclaimed lumber. In that case it might do you good to know Three Ways to Identify Different Wood Types.

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It also might help you to know which woods to choose for your particular application. A good place to start would be to consult this Handy Wood Durability Chart.

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Another great way to learn about wood is to speak with someone who's worked the stuff for decades. Which led us to wonder, Who Knows More About Working Wood, Furniture Designers or Shipwrights?

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As noble a material as it is, wood has of course been getting replaced with plastic for years. But it was still sad to see the question Is Wood No Longer the Right Choice for Boardwalks?

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Learning that then begged the question: As it starts to get ripped out, What Happens to the Valuable Wood Removed from Boardwalks? (And How Can You Get Some?)

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One country that seemingly has no shortage of wood is Sweden. So when Ikea launched an all-pine furniture line earlier this year, we showed you How Ikea is Managing Their Natural Wood Push.

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While Ikea's got a handle on pine, sadly, some other wood species that were mainstays are starting to go scarce. An unfortunate trend has continued this year, as we saw in "True" Mahogany is Getting Harder to Come By.

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Lastly, we saw some neat wood-related production methods this year. The first isn't anything we're likely to be able to replicate in our own shops, but might lead to some interesting developments down the line. Here's some Video of Wood Being Friction-Welded Together.

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The second method seems a lot more practical. Here's A Steam-Free Way to Bend Wood: The Hot Pipe Method.

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The last is a little tricker, but an interesting way to salvage otherwise worthless live-edge scrap pieces. Check it out in How to Cast Wood with Resin.

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More from Core77's 2015 Year in Review

• 15 of Your Favorite Posts from 2015

• The Coming Age of Automobility and What It Means for Designers

• 10 Clever, Innovative or Bizarre Design Processes from 2015

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• 10 Brilliant and Beautiful Objects from Our 'Designing Women' Series

• 12 Projects to Inspire Future Living

• Design Entrepreneurs Were Killing it in 2015

• The Year in Furniture Designs, Part 1: The Beautiful, the Innovative and the Unusual

• The Year in Furniture Designs, Part 2: Design/Build Techniques and Learning from the Past and Present

• 15 Tools and Tool-Based Projects We Loved in 2015

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• 17 Random and Amazing Phenomena We Saw This Year

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