I really admire Kerf Design's cabinets. They use plywood, and often have an exposed plywood edge.

I think the plywood is beautiful; the OSB, what I know as particle board, not so much. Do you know how to finish plywood so that dirt, etc. won't get worked into it?

The plywood is one thing, but the particle board is just terrible. I cringe thinking of the splinters that are bound to happen when you brush up against a wall. Eek. Plus, I don't think it is very attractive at all. Looks more like you're living in the middle of a construction zone!

Plywood? Really? "The Strange Beauty of Plywood"... this must be a joke. I'm convinced you were laughing as you typed that title! Whats next? The Sensual Allure of Sheetrock?

Um. No.

Dress it up with all the eloquent phrases one wishes, it still looks like what it is. Cheap.

It can be done well and it can be done badly. I prefer plywood stained (maybe a colored stain like green) that shows the grain, but is finished exquisitely with very smooth sanded and polyurethaned or lacquered surfaces. No unfinished edges, banding needs to be applied (except with those really dense plywoods that have beautiful solid-looking striped layers.)

OSB should be used in small doses that emphasize the patterns it creates, and it should also be finished perfectly.

Whole walls of either material unstained and unsealed look like an unfinished project.

@SHERRYBINNH is right. Good quality furniture grade ply looks really gorgeous and modern. My last place had all the cabinets made from furniture grade 3/4" birch, with the edges showing the striped plywood. It looked good and was quite durable. On the other hand, I just went to an open house where the kitchen island and living room were paneled in regular old fir plywood -- no knot holes, but still... it made the whole place look like a cabin, and a cheap one at that. I would have it painted for sure.

I loved the look of "dressed up" plywood. It's such an inexpensive, versatile material. My partner is a carpenter and has made quite a few pieces from plywood with exposed edges and interesting joints incorporated. We get a lot of compliments and requests! It is true that you need to finish it carefully, especially in a room like the kitchen where it may be exposed to water. Danish oil is great for bookcases and decorative surfaces, tabletops tend to need more serious finish like a matte polyurethane.

LOL to BYNSKIMISS' comment above! :)

The only one I like is number 9, and I think that is because I like the Hudson Bay blankets.

Yeah. This really doesn't work for me.

I agree, 9 is the only one I like.

I really like some of these -- love 6&7!

I'm old enough to remember that back in around 1983 or so, the architects responsible for Alfred Sung's Club Monaco stores used finely textured particleboard that had thick layers of matte urethane. These were used for all counters and shelving units I believe; could have had more uses. Anyway, they were stunningly beautiful and transcendent. Wish you could dig up some shots of these stores AT.

i like that big table but mainly because the massive room its in

I've done my bathroom in dark stained plywood which is gloss finished using yacht varnish. It's just basic building grade but I chose pieces with interesting grain. I love how it looks: deep and luxurious but a little harshness from the striped edges.

This post automatically made me think of the salon where I get my hair cut. The raw, unfinished look of the wood makes the look appear both industrial, vintage and with a touch of modern class. http://www.salonpanache.ca

I see plywood and think "unfinished." Not doing it for me.

I like the grey wall in the first pic, but the rest; kind of like 'construction stopped because ran out of $$$. There may be something to the idea, but most of these pics missed the mark.

I must say #13 looks like splinter-central...

Ooh la la! One of my Sculpture professors challenged his students to make something out of plywood because it didn't really have a life or beauty of its own. One student built a human-sized cocoon, with all the layered edges showing. Gorgeous. I love plywood and OSB. We've built a house using plywood for many of the finishes. It looks well-planned out and wonderful, I must say!! Thanks for the great pictures.

It takes some finesse to make this work and not have it look like a construction zone or unfinished project, but I like it in certain settings.

No plywood floors? I've seen a lot that are gorgeous! Some where the sheets are cut into squares like a modern version of parquet, and others cut as wide planks, stained and laid like a regular wood floor. It's a great cheap flooring alternative and when you are ready to spend some more money, you can still use the plywood floor as a subfloor. I'm thinking of using it, topped with some marine grade varnish, for a bathroom until I can afford the mosaic tile I really want. I also used a nice birch plywood for my kitchen counters for years until I found a deal on some stone. Stained and sealed, they looked great and wore well.I agree with the headline, it IS strange but beautiful.

I've had some birch plywood panels hanging in my bedroom for years as "art". I like the pattern of the grain and they look really nice, but I'm not crazy about pine veneered plywood, however (especially when it has visible knots). When I was a kid we lived in a house that had plywood cabinets in the kitchen. I don't think they looked that good then (late 70s) and still don't like them now. haha

My hair salon here in houston is decked out in plywood. I love the look. http://www.doordyetx.com/

In 2006, with great joy, I painted over the honey-stained,, shiny-varnished plywood cabinets that were installed in my house circa 1960.

Hallelujah!

No plywood, thanks.

We just re-did our bedroom in plywood flooring and it looks amazing. It was specially sealed so the floors simply *shine*. And priced at $1200 for labor and materials versus $3200 for wood, engineered wood and laminate, it was a no-brainer for us. We love it.

The true "raw beauty of wood" is that it is doesn't poison people as plywood does while it offgasses.

The plywood in some of these looks pretty slick, but I'm also not digging the particle board so much.

No thank you, it's both ugly and toxic, by my way of thinking. None of the above seem to me anything but cheap and nasty, no matter how they've been dolled up.

I love these ideas! Reminds me of the architecture school at UC Berkeley that had full height shutters built out of plywood. Plywood is inherently strong, available with several finish grades and had a pretty pattern that looks like zebras to me. Also, it can be stained in great colors and used as "storage backdrops" for beds -- Koning Eisenberg Architects did this in their home and also arched it over their stairs in Santa Monica -- stunning and affordable.

Oh, I've had a thing for the beauty of plywood for ages, but never the occassion to use it. I'm moving soon, and I'm definetely going to find an area for some chipboard as I've known OSB to be called. It's time the world caught up with my tastes!!!lol!