I felt constrained to help explain the phenomenon in certain types of Maple (mostly in soft Maple), known as “quilting.” Now, I’m certainly no expert on the matter, but I have worked with the wood before.

Basically, the wood looks blistered and crinkled up – and the more three dimensional the quilt, the better.

Now, another factor that can come into play is the viewing angle required to see the quilting. On the best pieces, (that is, with the heaviest amount of quilt), it will look completely three-dimensional at nearly all angles, and you’ll have to rub your eyes to make sure that what you’re seeing is actually flat. But most pieces, like the one pictured on the left, looks good only at certain angles.

You’ll notice that this picture was taken at a fairly low angle to the wood. (Plus, it’s dyed blue!) Usually, when viewed at a steep angle like this, the quilt is easily recognized. When it becomes less apparent is when the wood is viewed straight on, that is, basically perpendicular to the surface of the wood.

Here’s the same piece of wood, viewed straight on. You can see how some of the “3D effects” aren’t as prominent anymore. And to be honest, I think the camera is even being generous in this picture – this wood looks mostly flat.