EMBOSSING OF A NATURAL WOOD SURFACE

Natural wood, such as plywood, is wetted on one surface with an aqueous liquid, such as sodium xylene sulfonate, and thereafter embossed with contoured embossing plate at a temperature of about 400-550.degree.F, a pressure above 750 p.s.i. and for a period of time sufficient to permanently reshape the wood surface. With pressures above 2000 p.s.i., it is possible to use temperatures in the range of 300.degree.F to 400.degree.F, but it is preferred to utilize temperatures in the range of 400-550.degree.F. Temperatures as low as 300.degree.F required about two minutes of press time at pressures below about 4000 p.s.i. The wood is thereby permanently reshape and maintain its shape even under adverse and varying weather conditions. In addition, the embossed wood surface has an attractive color highlighting imparted to the wood by hot-pressing the wetted surface, whereby the most deeply embossed portions of the surface are most darkly colored.