New Decor Trend: Using 3-D Chart Art to Add a Sense of Place to Coastal Homes

SAINT PETERSBURG, Fla. - Aug. 7, 2014 - PRLog -- One of the latest trends in interior design for coastal lifestyles is the use of wooden artwork, based on nautical charts, to provide a “sense of place” for the home.  Regardless of whether it’s a primary residence or a vacation get-away space, most coastal homeowners want their abode to reflect, in some way, the home’s location near the water.  A piece of 3-dimensional Chart Art from Uniquely Nautical – Décor & Gifts is a perfect way to capture the local geography and waters.

         Uniquely Nautical’s Chart Art has been used to decorate homes, offices and yachts from the Lake of the Ozarks to Winnetka, Illinois, from Tampa Bay to Seattle, Washington.  Chart Art is popular because it allows homeowners, family and guests to understand the local geography and waterways and to re-live their memories of favorite places visited, adventures taken and boating cruises.  Admirers also enjoy the fact that the artwork is made from all-natural materials and is crafted and hand-finished in the U.S.A.

         A “sense of place” is an important social and relational factor that encompasses a location’s character, as represented by such things as a place’s demographics, its history, its cultural profile, its political structure and its environment.  It is a sense of identity with a given location.

         Chart Art, generically, is a wooden depiction of the land areas, shorelines and waterways that encompass a local coastal area, with geographic information taken from the appropriate nautical chart.  For decorating purposes, Chart Art is available as a Wall Chart and as a Table Chart, with a variety of sizes and wood selections to choose from.

Uniquely Nautical’s Chart Art is laser-sculpted from the finest of natural hardwoods and captures a myriad of local chart information including cities, towns, major roadways, point-of-interest, water depth contours and depth soundings.  The Chart Art can also be customized for a particular purchaser; customizations can include boat names or profile line drawings, icons for family residences/addresses, or the prize fish caught just offshore.

         The 3-D effect of the Chart Art is created by using an ultra-precise laser to etch the land areas and water depths incrementally deeper into the thickness of the wood.  Like a fine sculptor, the laser cuts away multiple layers/sections of the wooden “canvas” to create the graduated depths, reflecting the depth datum from the local nautical chart.  The laser also etches into the surface of the wood the place names,  custom text if desired, significant local attractions and, of course, the customer’s own personalizations for the chart.

         Popular Chart Art geographies include the Great Lakes, Lake Winnipesaukee (NH), Chesapeake Bay, Cape Cod + Nantucket & Martha’s Vineyard, San Francisco Bay, and the U.S. & British Virgin Islands.  While Uniquely Nautical has a library of over 300 U.S. and international locations already drawn and ready for customization, company co-owner, Mary Warren, stresses that “we can create a chart or map for virtually anywhere in world as long as a chart or map for the area is available.”

         A “standard” piece of wooden nautical Chart Art is crafted from Baltic Birch wood for the chart, with a choice of cherry, oak or walnut woods available for the frame.  Charts can also be cut from either “Birdseye Maple” or “Curly Maple” woods, both of which are premium woods.  Upgraded framing options include a contemporary black, mahogany or padauk woods.

         Uniquely Nautical’s Chart Art is priced from $995 for a 24”x30” Wall Chart to $2700 for a similar sized Table Chart.  Larger sizes and premium wood upgrades are available.