Jiawood 嘉物

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Jiawood 嘉物 We do Japanese style wood-working using traditional methods, tools and philosophy. Occasionally we also conduct classes for adults and teenagers.

Another view of home office project I had been working on for the past year or so. I prefer this arrangement to the one ...
08/04/2026

Another view of home office project I had been working on for the past year or so. I prefer this arrangement to the one seen in a previous post. I also think the floating wall cabinet really brings the room together nicely.

I cannot wait to see how this room will age and grow with the owner.

This is the top floor office of a house I’ve been working on for over a year.Shoji windows and doors throughout. Custom ...
06/04/2026

This is the top floor office of a house I’ve been working on for over a year.

Shoji windows and doors throughout. Custom table and cabinets in this room.

This project played a big role in helping me restart when I came back to Malaysia in 2024.

Built for one of my earliest clients. Very grateful for her continued support.

More of this project soon.

I would like to present to you the work of Jiawood's latest graduate . It was a an absolute joy conducting the classes ...
06/11/2025

I would like to present to you the work of Jiawood's latest graduate . It was a an absolute joy conducting the classes with her. Here is how she explained her experience:

"July 2025 at Jiawood will forever remain one of my core memories. Beyond learning the art of cabinet making, I gained irreplaceable friendships and a new appreciation for the woodmaking.
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I joined the course with only six months of prior experience (and a little nervousness), but Javad sensei tailored everything to my pace. Sensei often says, “Wood is alive.” He taught me to slow down and really listen, to feel the resistance of the grain, to notice how the sound of a tool changes when something’s off. His way of teaching isn’t about memorising techniques, but about building a relationship with the material. He reminded me that each piece of wood carries its own personality, and our role is to work with it, not against it. That lesson changed the way I see craftsmanship - it’s less about control, and more about respect and acceptance.

The bonus excursion to the timber mill was eye-opening! I got to witness how raw timber is sourced, processed, and crafted into beautiful furniture, connecting the entire journey from tree to table. Visiting a fellow wood maker from Sensei’s network also allowed me to see the beauty of skills honed through time and passion.
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The biggest takeaway for me wasn’t just techniques or knowledge, but the lesson of intention. Every step in the cabinet-making process carries thought for what comes next. Living in Singapore where things move too fast, the month at Jiawood reminded me to slow down and be present.

I spent July shaping wood, and somehow it shaped me too."

We made this cabinet for the same house as the previous posts. The design of the house follows the image of a tree, the ...
29/10/2025

We made this cabinet for the same house as the previous posts. The design of the house follows the image of a tree, the ground floor as the trunk, the second floor as the branches and leaves and the top floor as the flower. This piece seats on the second floor. The wood tones here are warmer, with red hues.

The cabinet is made of agathis, a Malaysian wood, together with beech for the panels and the top. It measures about 1.4 meters in length and serves as a supportive cabinet beside the work desk.

Its construction is inspired by traditional tansu joinery which is frame and panel with mortise and tenon joints. But here I adapted for a more modern design. The main difference is in the top: unlike a traditional tansu where the top is integrated, here it’s built as a separate, much thicker piece that sits on top of the frame.

The top was hand-planed and includes breadboard ends connected with pegged mortise and tenons. This allows the central panel to expand and contract naturally with humidity, keeping the surface flat over time.

The frame is made of agathis, the panels are beech, and the lower section features two large kumiko doors with a simple pattern. Above them are five drawers in different sizes, assembled using bamboo nails in the traditional way.

Thank you to .studio and for their continued support in this project.

This cabinet is 2.5 meters long and built using tansu-style construction. The frame and panels are joined with mortise a...
27/10/2025

This cabinet is 2.5 meters long and built using tansu-style construction. The frame and panels are joined with mortise and tenons, and the drawers are assembled using bamboo nails. It includes two kumiko panels with an Asanoha pattern, and a smaller storage area with sliding doors on the left side.

The top and the panels are maple, hand-planed to bring out a soft sheen in the wood. The frame is kasah wood, matching the shoji screens from the previous post. Since this piece is on the third floor of the house it was intended to represent the “flower” of the tree so the Asanoha pattern is added and the timber color is light.

This is the biggest cabinet I have ever made. It was constructed in three modules so it could travel up the narrow staircase, and then assembled on site with the top placed afterward. A challenging piece to make and to move but the tansu structure really helps with handling something so large.

Thank you to Monokayu for their support in this project. More cabinets in this style will be shown in the upcoming posts.

These shoji panels are placed throughout the same house featured in my earlier posts. They create a clear visual boundar...
25/10/2025

These shoji panels are placed throughout the same house featured in my earlier posts. They create a clear visual boundary, giving each space its own character without feeling closed off.

It’s always amazing for me to see how a room changes once shoji is added. The way light diffuses through the washi paper, the thinness of the kumiko strips, and the gentle sliding motion all bring the space to life. I really do love it! In modern Malaysian homes, they also help air-conditioned areas stay cool and efficient.

The shoji in these photos are on the third floor. In contrast to the ground floor being the trunk of the tree, This level is much more private and intimate. It is the “flower” of the house, the lightest part of the tree, so we used kasah wood and maple to keep everything bright and soft. Some of the shoji screens has a pattern inspired by grass fields. The washi paper helps to filter sun and reduce UV for a cooler room.

The set on the landing closes up the staircase and transforms an awkward open area into a comfortable workspace.

There are many more shoji to build in this home, but these are the first to be completed. In the next posts, I’ll share the cabinetry that pairs with this space.

A series of lanterns we designed and built are intentionally placed throughout the house from our previous post. They ar...
23/10/2025

A series of lanterns we designed and built are intentionally placed throughout the house from our previous post. They are part of our Hinobi series, inspired by Andon Lamps. The lanterns have a very simple construction but they have had small updates to suit this project.

The idea behind these lanterns is to create a sense of quietness even when they are off. I find them in a way grounding. Eventhough they are hanging in air. I also love how when they are lit, the light filters through them.

With the amount of wood and traditional elements in this house, it would have been difficult to find suitable lighting. The simplicity of these lanterns helps everything come together.

More elements of the house will be shared soon.

This is the build process for the walnut entrance door featured in the last post. The door is made using stave core cons...
22/10/2025

This is the build process for the walnut entrance door featured in the last post.

The door is made using stave core construction. meranti wood on the inside and thick walnut veneer on the outside. The quarter-sawn walnut was custom cut to keep the grain straight, avoiding crowns that might distract the eye. It also gives the door greater stability.

A large part of the work was preparing and laminating the stave core panels. Once that was done, the top rail was joined with pegged mortise and tenons, and the bottom section used double pegged mortise and tenons for added strength. Each strip of the inner grid has its own tenon that fits into a corresponding mortise on the outer frame. A hidden groove at the back holds the glass panel in place.

The entire surface was finished with hand planes to bring out the natural sheen of the walnut.

The scariest moment of the project was the installation. At around 75kg, it was a tense process to see if the hinges would hold, cutting big holes required for the hinges on surfaces I so careful handplaned really ached my heart. That is perhaps why I prefer making sliding doors that don't require so much hardware. At the end though, when it was all in place I had a smile on my face.

Special thanks to .studio and for their support and teamwork on this project.

This house entrance was inspired by the garden gates of Japan. The door is made of walnut with a stave core construction...
21/10/2025

This house entrance was inspired by the garden gates of Japan. The door is made of walnut with a stave core construction and pegged mortise and tenons. To keep it stable and strong for a long time to come . It holds a laminated glass panel at the back for safety and weighs around 75 kilos.

The design of this entrance creates a gateway point where the homeowner leaves behind the noise of the world and steps into the stillness of home. The large walnut panels were chosen to give a sense of strength and groundedness, like the trunk of a tree.

This is the first part of a larger design series we are building for this house. The ground floor, where this door sits, represents the base, the earth, the roots. The upper floors will become the branches and flowers, each with their own tone and feel.

The stepping stones were included to encourage mindful movement to make each step intentional as you enter. The small shelf softens the space, and the lantern indicates the way in. To complete the composition, and hide some wirings, moldings were added around the frame, and we made a walnut case for the electric box that also carries the house number.

It was one of the most challenging doors we've made, both to build and to install. The size, weight and construction method really put my skills to the test. But I was so proud of it when it was finished and installed.

Thank you to .studio for all your support on this project, and to for the beautiful flooring and stepping stones.

The next post will show the build process - stay tuned.

In this post, I’m sharing a closer look at some of the details of the two-sided cabinet I built.The drawers are joined u...
16/04/2025

In this post, I’m sharing a closer look at some of the details of the two-sided cabinet I built.

The drawers are joined using hand-cut half-blind dovetails. A traditional technique that hides the joinery from the front while providing a strong mechanical hold.

The drawer insides are kassah wood, and the faces are kayu arang. I made the drawer pulls in-house. One of them had to be inset slightly to allow the sliding doors to pass in front without interference. Just one of many small adjustments needed to make everything fit and function smoothly.

The sliding doors are framed with and built with semangkok for a contrast. Incorporating 4 different wood species in a cabinet is something I used to be very afraid of doing but now I find a lot of joy in doing so in a harmonius way.

Behind the kumiko, I used shoji paper to help soften the light from the internal lamp. At the back of the cabinet, there’s a small holder for the light, which glows through the kumiko to represent the sunlight filtering through the forest. Different parts of the cabinet are sized and beveled consecutively inwards to create depth and give the whole piece a more layered and interesting form.

This was a complex build with many big challenges but after it's all done I am very proud of it and I hope my clients enjoy using them for a very long time!

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