A traditional trade that helped shape La Orotava’s buildings, furniture and rural life
Carpentry has been part of life in La Orotava for centuries, with the forests of Vallebuena providing much of the timber used by local craftsmen.
Woods including viñátigo, til, mocán, granadillo and Tea – Canary pine were used alongside more valuable timber brought through Puerto de la Cruz.
It gave generations of carpenters the materials they needed to develop a distinctive style of woodworking that can still be seen in the town today.
From buildings to furniture
The work of these craftsmen wasn’t limited to making furniture.
Local workshops produced roofs, ceilings, balconies, doors and other elements that became part of La Orotava’s traditional architecture.
One particularly recognisable piece is the Victoriera chair. It looks relatively simple, but making one properly requires a high level of precision and a good understanding of traditional woodworking techniques.
The craft became particularly important during the 1950s and 1960s, when family-run carpentry workshops were common throughout La Orotava.
Skills were passed from one generation to the next, and from master to apprentice.
These workshops supplied much more than household furniture. They also produced building materials and tools needed for agriculture, making carpentry an important part of everyday life in the valley.
A trade that has become harder to maintain
Like many traditional trades, things eventually changed.
Industrial production and mass-produced furniture pushed prices down, making it increasingly difficult for small workshops to compete.
Wood also began to lose ground in construction as materials such as aluminium and PVC became more widely used.
Then there was the problem of training the next generation.
Traditional carpentry takes time. Learning the techniques properly requires years of practice and plenty of patience, while the work itself can involve long hours and considerable manual effort.
Today, only a small number of these traditional workshops remain.
Keeping the craft alive
But the trade hasn’t disappeared completely.
Increasingly, traditional carpentry has become a way of preserving La Orotava’s architectural and cultural heritage.
Restoring old balconies, ceilings and furniture gives today’s craftsmen a reason to keep those skills alive while protecting the buildings and objects that tell the story of the area.
It’s a reminder that sometimes preserving the past isn’t about putting something behind glass.
It’s about making sure somebody still knows how to build, repair and restore it.