Rivera | Acacia Resin River Board

A river board is made by pouring resin into the gap between two pieces of timber, so the line running down the middle follows the shape the wood already had rather than a line someone drew. On this one the resin is a deep teal, and it winds down the centre of the board between two slabs of acacia with the natural edge of each plank left visible against it. No two boards break the same way, because no two planks do.

The timber is acacia, dense and tight-grained, and the board is a full 4 centimetres thick — unusually substantial for the size, and the reason it does not lift or skate when a knife is working across it. It measures 48 by 25 centimetres and weighs about a kilogram. The proportion is deliberately long and narrow, which is what suits it to a table: a cheese course laid out along its length reads better than the same thing crowded onto a square.

It is made in one size and one finish, so there is nothing to weigh up. Use it for cheese, charcuterie, bread and fruit, and keep knife work to the timber rather than the resin. Wash it by hand in warm water and dry it immediately rather than leaving it standing wet, and give the wood a coat of food-safe board oil now and then to stop it drying out; treated that way it will outlast most of what else is in the drawer.

• Timber: solid acacia, natural edge against the pour
• Inlay: deep teal resin river down the centre
• Dimensions: 48 x 25 cm
• Thickness: 4 cm
• Weight: approximately 1 kg
• Care: hand wash and dry immediately; oil the timber periodically