For a lot of my projects I use and recommend furniture grade baltic birch plywood. I get asked “what is the difference?” “Why not regular plywood” I will let the pictures speak for themselves. You may want to click on the photos to get an enlarged view.
Plywood comparison
Plywood comparison 2
The knots in standard construction grade plywood stop me in my tracks when thinking of most of my projects. That’s not to say it doesn’t have it’s time or place. But, the baltic birch has fewer pockets, or voids, between the layers, has a beautiful grain pattern and will finish up smooth as glass. It takes stain very well, and it paints extremely well also, especially if using sanding sealer and primer.
Furniture grade, as it’s name implies, is used for furniture types of applications. Drawers and cabinet doors primarily come to mind, but a lot of my plaques are done with this wood due to the attributes mentioned above.