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Wilsonart's Highly Convincing Inkjet-Printed Wood

These aren't real woods. Can you—or your clients—tell?

By Rain Noe - January 18, 2017

in Materials

Wood is a fickle material, and what can be fun for a woodworker can be a headache for an architect, industrial designer or interior designer. I'm talking specifically about board selection. Whereas a woodworker might relish the challenge of working around defects in boards, a designer might require the complete absence of them, or a slightly different coloration, or a more pleasing grain direction that Mother Nature seems unwilling to provide.

To address this finicky designer market, companies have begun using inkjet printers to digitally create highly tailored facsimiles of wood. As one example, Wilsonart maintains their own digital library of woodgrains and can create laminates on-demand that are highly convincing, at least to the eye; everything from planer marks to sawblade scars to weathering is reproduced with stunning fidelity.

"Antique Limed Pine is a white washed wood of varying sized planks. A rustic beauty with warm white and browns mixed with cool grey and charcoal."

"Repurposed Oak is a sun kissed barnwood. It has a beautiful warm patina that is the perfect rustic look."

"Repurposed Oak Planked is an oak barnwood that is planked with light and dark naturally occurring color variations."

"Antique Barrel was once an old oak whisky cask. The distressed markings and fawn color elevates this design to a refined industrial look."

Here's the same "pattern" as above, but with a slight color variation:

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In general, you get four to five feet before the pattern starts to repeat. Some, as with the Antique Limed Pine, repeat randomly. If you just glanced at the photos above, you may not have noticed the repetition; but if you go back and look more carefully you're sure to notice it.

But will your customers?

If you want to learn more about companies using inkjet printers to simulate natural wood, Bill Esler's got an article about it over on Woodworking Network.

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Paul Lewis

8 years ago

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There is never an appropriate application for fake wood. …or fake stone.

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Jo Mo

8 years ago

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Digital photography and digital printing are one thing but the real magic with new laminates is in the embossing. I'm not sure about Wilsonart but our company just had a presentation from another laminate company and their Thermally Fused Laminates (what the trade formally called Melamine) are using embossing that is actually matched/registered to the print. So if there is a knot in the wood print the embossing will also have the knot, etc. At this level it is getting almost impossible to distinguish between real wood/veneer and laminates.

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Peter Barajas

7 years ago

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Wilsonart has embossing technology for both Laminates & TFM (Thermally Fused Melamine)
Beauty of the laminate is it's much more durable in both higher wear resistance & impact resistance.

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James Mathis

7 years ago

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Combine these with an embossing and you'll have an incredible looking reproduction. Floor manufactures have been chasing the perfect print for decades.

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