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# How veneer is cut: a visit to Alpi

Source: https://betton.erpixel.com/en/blog/veneer-alpi

July 9, 2026 · 6 min

Why the grain repeats from panel to panel, what that takes in production and when it’s worth paying for.

With ordinary veneer, two neighbouring panels never match: the tree grew as it pleased. With Alpi they all match — and that’s not image editing but a different way of making the material. We went to Modigliana to see how it works.

## What happens at the factory

Here the wood is first taken apart down to the sheet, then put back together — like a construction kit.

- 01 Peeling An ayous or poplar log is unrolled into a continuous ribbon a fraction of a millimetre thick. At this stage the natural grain disappears completely.
- 02 Dyeing The sheets are dyed right through in autoclaves, not just on the surface. So sanding doesn’t change the colour, and the edge looks the same as the face.
- 03 Building the block The dyed sheets are stacked into a block weighing several tonnes to a set pattern — and that pattern decides the future grain: oak, walnut, zebrano or a geometry that doesn’t exist in nature.
- 04 Slicing again The block is sliced across. Each new sheet repeats the one before — which is why one panel matches the next.

A sheet after slicing. The grain was set when the block was built, so the next sheet will repeat this one.

## When it’s worth paying for

The answer is simple: when there are lots of surfaces and they sit side by side. A kitchen along a whole wall, a dressing room, concealed wardrobes, wall panelling from door to door. Over an area like that, the variation of natural veneer reads as a mess, and repeatability as expensive joinery. On a single cabinet the difference won’t pay off.

> Natural veneer is a lottery with every panel. Reconstituted veneer is an agreement on how it will all look.

## How it differs from natural veneer

| Parameter | Natural | Alpi | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Grain | unique to each panel | repeats | invisible joins |
| Colour | varies by batch | consistent | easy to top up |
| Knots | yes | none | less waste |
| Price | depends on species | above average | pays off over large areas |

Panels, reveals and doors in a single product code. Over an area like this, repeatability pays for itself.

## What to ask when ordering

The product code, the grain direction and the matching pattern. Veneer arrives in sheets and the joiner glues it onto the board — how the sheets are laid out decides whether the grain carries on across a joint or breaks off. It is a separate line in the joinery order, and it has to be spelled out.

We keep samples of every popular product code, including lacquer and oil finish swatches — after finishing, the colour differs from the raw sheet more than you’d think.

## Brands from the article

[Alpi — Reconstituted veneer, 200+ product codes](https://betton.erpixel.com/en/brands/alpi) [Wall&Deco — Veneer-look wall coverings](https://betton.erpixel.com/en/brands/wall-and-deco) [Inkiostro Bianco — Murals and textures](https://betton.erpixel.com/en/brands/inkiostro-bianco) [Kriskadecor — Metal curtains and screens](https://betton.erpixel.com/en/brands/kriskadecor)

See the block in person

[Book a visit](https://betton.erpixel.com/en/contact)