About Us

Welcome to the website of Australian Woodwork, a small, family run business that specialises in the retail of fine woodwork, made by Australia's leading artisans and designer/makers utilising sustainable, Australian native timbers.

Our History

Australian Woodwork was started 16 years ago by us, Gregory White and Sarah Davidson, with a stall at Sydney's Rocks Markets and an idea to bring together the fine Australian woodcraft seen in our travels at many country galleries. Aware of this rich vein of skill and artistry that quietly existed, we thought that the local and overseas markets would appreciate it too. We proceeded to open our flagship store in Sydney's Darling Harbour in 2000, followed by our Hunter Valley Gallery in 2005. These are both now closed, which has allowed us, joined by our son Ben, the freedom to concentrate on our online shop. Here, customers will find the same wide range of products made by the many talented woodworkers with whom we have worked over the years.

Our Product

Australia has some of the best timbers in the world, well known for their beauty and durability, encompassing a variety of colour, grain and hardness that make them suitable for many purposes - from railway tracks and bridges through to fine furniture and homewares. We have a broad range of products, from turned wooden bowls, chopping boards and salt & pepper mills to jewellery boxes and chess sets; from hand carved birds to writing pens and rocking horses, all made using traditional techniques but with modern technology. Good contemporary design is of the utmost importance in our choice of products, ensuring their durability and longevity, guaranteeing they will be cherished and kept - the antiques of the future.

A Family Business

It was a customer that suggested we make a feature of being a family business and who mused that people still really liked dealing with them. A family run business equates to more personal service, one of us will be available to answer your questions with an intimate knowledge of our product. And it's a two way street, when you deal with a family company they get to know you and you get to know them - we have received some wonderful suggestions from customers regarding improvements to our online site, things that we have not noticed from the inside looking out. So, yes, we are a family concern over all aspects of the business including the online site, managed as you may imagine, by the younger generation.

Greg in the woodshed making a chair

Almost there!

The finished product

The chair in our Gallery Showroom

The other part of our being a family business is our relationship with our woodworkers who are many and spread all over this wide brown land, giving us the opportunity of wonderful road trips (sometimes we catch a plane) in our effort to catch up with at least a few each year. Many have become friends and developing new designs and coming up with new concepts is a pleasure when you are enjoying freshly caught fish and a glass of wine at the end of the day. These relaxed and friendly encounters have given birth to some of our best product designs and I regard these craftsmen as being part of our extended family. We are largely engaged in sourcing, designing and developing product but though we do not make most of our range one senior member is a very talented chairmaker.

Eco-friendly & Sustainable

We make every effort to ensure that the timber used in our products is sourced from sustainable forestry practices. This basically means that where a tree is removed it is replaced by another which may be planted or naturally grown. Australia has one of the best forest management systems in the world with a great deal of collected data that allows the level of harvest to match the annual level of growth. Of course sustainability is not just about numbers of trees but also about ensuring there is no damage to biodiversity or to other species, plant and animal. The craftsmen we work with are all on board regarding sustainability as their livelihoods depend on there being timber available into the future – also they are by and large admirers of the natural world and want to see it looked after.

Australian Made

We guarantee 100% that ALL our products are made in Australia from Australian timbers and we are very proud of our certification by the AUSTRALIAN MADE CAMPAIGN. Of the many customer testimonials we receive, one that pops up all the time is gratitude at being able to buy something Australian made of good quality, workmanship and design. That's us and that's our product in a nutshell – a great natural material, quality workmanship and good design, AND all made in Australia.