International Wood International Wood 2005 | Page 26

“Santos mahogany adds a warmth to our home
that could not have been accomplished
with any other material.”
JOHN LEJA
New Home,
Heirloom Floors
Kim and John Leja are settling into their new
home north of Madison, Wisconsin, and to say
that they’re pleased with the Santos mahogany
and Brazilian cherry floors they’ve chosen
would be an understatement.
“I absolutely love the wood,” says John. “Its
enduring beauty, depth, richness of color and
grain adds a warmth to our home that could
not have been accomplished with any other
material. Our floors will be a focal point of our
home for generations to come.”
The home was built by Duren Custom
Builder. Dan Duren builds six to eight homes
per year that sell from $400,000 to $800,000,
and says exotic species have become very
popular.
“People love the real rich natural color,”
says Duren. “And right now it’s relatively inex-
pensive, about the same price as a dark maple
that we use. Availability isn’t a problem. It’s
relatively hard for flooring, so we don’t have
any problems with dings and scratches, and it’s
really stable.”
“We were originally going to put wool car-
peting in the office,” says Kim, “but I’m really
glad we made the last-minute decision to go
with the Santos mahogany. In the end, it was
about the same cost as the carpeting.”
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IMPORTED WOOD