This veneer is created by slicing the log around its circumference, following the annual growth rings. This creates a bold, variegated grain, and enables very wide leaves to be produced. Rotary cut veneers are most often used in plywood production.

To create a quarter cut veneer, the log is first cut into quarters, creating four flitches. Each quarter flitch is then straight sliced, at roughly right angles to the growth rings. This then produces a veneer with a uniform lined vertical grain

For crown cut veneers, the log is cut in half, and the halved log is then sliced straight across. The cut runs parallel to a line through the center of the log, and at a tangent to the growth rings. Crown cut veneers tend to have a strong grain pattern in their center and a more linear effect at the edges.

Rift cutting is used mainly for Oak species, which has lines radiating out from the center of the log. The log is quarter cut, with each quarter being sliced slightly across the outward radiating lines of the tree. This accentuates the vertical grain.

For half round cut veneer, the log is mounted off-centre in a lathe. Slices are then taken slightly across the growth rings. This produces veneer leaves with some of the visual characteristics of both crown cut and rotary veneers.

A burl is a tree growth in which the grain has grown in a deformed manner. It's commonly found in the form of a round outgrowth on a tree trunk or branch, often filled with small knots from dormant buds. Burl veneers are valued for their highly intricate and unique patterns.