Te Puna Design makes a range of paulownia coasters and boxes from our locally grown paulownia timber. Embellished with paua inlays, each design symbolises an element of New Zealand culture or heritage.

Here’s yet another example of the versatility of paulownia. Peter Parvin is building this Roger Hill 179 design, using paulownia planking.

Bruce Pickering uses paulownia to build radio-controlled model planes. The fuselage and tail of the De Havilland Beaver (top two images) are made of paulownia. The wings are glass fibre over polystyrene foam. The model has a 3-metre wingspan, and is powered by a 45cc petrol motor.

The second model is a Lockheed Sirius and has a wingspan of 2.5 metres. It is powered by a 35cc petrol motor. The entire model is covered with paulownia machined to 1.5mm thick.