What is Victorian Styled Furniture?

…..and how is it different than Queen Anne? Victorian style furniture was named for Queen Victoria of England and was developed 1840-1910. The Victorian style draws its influence from gothic forms with heavy proportions, dark finish, elaborate carving and ornamentation.

Queen Anne Furniture was named after Queen Anne of England who reigned from 1702-1714. This styling is a refinement of the early Dutch and Chinese influences and is characterized with a moderately proportioned, graceful appearance. It has cabriole legs terminating in a pad or drake foot, fiddle-back chair back and bat wing shaped drawer pulls.

Whether you’re looking for Victorian styling or Queen Anne, Amish Workbench Furniture has the largest selection at www.amishwbf.com:

• Queen Anne Collection: extravagant curves, sharp accenting and ornate panels; these pieces are ideal for dining space that must double as formal and informal

• Regal Collection: lush with exquisite detail, it luxuriates in the formal accenting like dramatic curves, fine scrollwork and carving, and luxurious upholstery

Step into a different place and time when grace and ceremony were reflected in the elegant embellishments applied to everyday items. This furniture will bring back the days of white roses and cotillions with the same kind of furniture found in formal dining rooms of a gilded era.

What is Country Style Furniture?

…..there’s a lot more to country style furniture these days. Many cosmopolitan trendsetters are finding that a dash of that homey feel can liven up a space.

Whether you’re pulling up a chair for a cup of coffee with friends or gathering the clan together for Friday pizza night, Country styled collections will become part of your family and make your house a home.

View the largest collection of Country styling at Amish Workbench Furniture at their website: www.amishwbf.com:

· Traditional Collection: the name says it all. The ultimate dining set straight from the country kitchen; instant warmth of hearth and home.

· Andover Collection: top of the line construction techniques and the best finishes allow this collection to be used and loved for generations.

· Canted Collection: elegant yet informal, this is ideal for the active family that enjoys spending time together.

· Lancaster Collection: cosmopolitan flourishes give this collection a decidedly urban feel.

A step back in time may actually be a step forward (“less is more”). Enjoy the simple, utilitarian American country style of furniture with a Pennsylvania Dutch quality for furniture to last a lifetime.

AUTUMN EQUINOX

One calendar says the Marigold is the flower for October. My marigolds are eaten alive by the snails and slugs long before October. Someone must have been able to keep them looking bright and cheery until the chill of October comes. On the east coast, it’s often more than chill, but snow that will last until Easter.

A change of season, a change of a new school year, perhaps a change in your décor. Especially for the holidays. Time is running out to order for holidays. The Amish builders receive many orders at this time of year. Don’t be disappointed and find you’re too late to order. Remember, it takes a minimum of 6 – 8 weeks to build, and a week to deliver to our warehouse for inspection before being released to you. Often production will be delayed because of the increase in orders. Like flowers, if you don’t get to the nursery early for your selection, you’ll be without and very disappointed.

THE POOL IS CLOSED

That kind of sign would be a wonderful sight for Professor Harold Hill to see. To the rest of us, it means summer is over. Young ‘uns goin’ back to school, including Amish children. No more bare feet. New tennis shoes, new lunch pail with thermos, the smell of new books, new friends to make, old friends to see, ahh. And a quieter house for parents. Some parents will find time to assist in the classroom at school. Amish parents do this too, taking pre-school age children with them.

The new Nickel Mines Amish school will be open for its second year.

Is It Mission or Arts & Crafts Furniture?

…..are they antiques or are they new furniture pieces? Whatever you want to call them, they are some of the finest heirloom quality pieces made in the USA today.

The descriptive name “mission furniture” was first coined by Joseph McHugh, a New York furniture manufacturer, to describe his line of straight line rustic style furniture that he began producing about 1895. The mission style furniture design was based on a chair that had been designed for a church in San Francisco circa 1894-1895. The mission chair was a simple chair, the design of which was influenced by the Spanish missions of the area, thus the term “mission furniture”.

Mission furniture caught on as a generic term for the style of furniture and also the European term “art & crafts” was used to describe the American craftsman furniture. About the same time, Gustav Stickley (Stickly) was developing his own mission furniture designs. Many of the pieces had transitional designs that combined both Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau styles. But by the 1900’s, the mission designs became more straight lined and developed into the familiar mission style, as we know it.

For the most complete selection of mission style (Arts & Crafts) furniture check out the Amish Workbench Furniture website: www.amishwbf.com where you’ll find collections to satisfy every period preference:

• Classic Mission Collection: clean lines, subtle curves and dramatic height

• Grand Mesa Collection: pub table height for evening cards or afternoon tea

• Liberty Mission Collection: an upscale spin on the American Arts and Crafts movement

• Mission Collection: an American classic of unpretentious grace and simple sophistication

• Santa Cruz Collection: intricate cutouts and sloping angles define these show-stopping pieces

• Santa Fe Collection: instant sophistication confirms the classy Mission style of the southwest

…..so whether you call it Mission or Arts & Crafts this timeless styling is at home in both traditional and contemporary settings.

Who are the Shakers?

…..and why is their furniture, styled in the late 1700’s, still popular today? Shaker furniture, elegant in simplicity, functional and durable, is a timeless style at home in both traditional and contemporary settings.

Like the fine antiques produced a century ago by diligent Shaker craftsmen, today’s classic designs are hand crafted one at a time in solid cherry, maple and oak.

The Shakers are a small Protestant religious denomination founded in Manchester, England in the mid-1700’s as a dissident group of the Society of Friends (Quakers). Derisively called “Shaking Quakers” because their meetings included both singing and dancing. Their manner of worship stirred up “rage and enmity” and they decided to leave England.

The first group arrived in a small hamlet near Albany, New York in 1774. By 1824 the Shakers had 19 self-sufficient communities from Maine to Indiana. The essential principles of the Shaker faith, as it developed in America, included celibacy, equality of sexes, community of goods and withdrawal into their own communities from the “World” (their term for all non-believers).

Shaker furniture evolved as simple, functional pieces of solid hardwood hand selected by the craftsman for color and figure. For the most complete selection of shaker style furniture, check out the Amish Workbench Furniture website: www.amishwbf.com where you’ll find collections to satisfy every period preference:

• Dutch Creek Collection: solid construction and clean lines to make a statement in any décor

• Heritage Collection: efficient design with two-tone highlights

• Modern Shaker Collection: softened rustic features for a versatile interior design

• Valley Shaker Collection: rustic and homey reminds of a simpler time

• Warren Collection: simplicity with a twist provides some unique design variations

…..you don’t have to be a Shaker to enjoy furniture that will last a lifetime in both traditional and contemporary settings.

Most Comprehensive Amish Furniture Site on the Web

Tualatin, OR- For generations Amish craftsmen, principally in Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio, have custom made heirloom-quality 100% solid wood furniture generally considered among the finest in the industry. But since the Amish restrain from the use of modern technology, such as phones and computers, they are limited in their ability to convey information about their furniture to consumers. Until now.

On July 22nd, a Tualatin-based company, Amish Workbench Furniture, launched a new website, amishwbf.com, that is by far the most comprehensive resource devoted to Amish made furniture in cyberspace or print. Consumers can currently view thousands of items from 14 of the largest Amish furniture manufacturers. 35 Amish companies are expected to be included by the end of the year.

The easy to navigate site allows customers to search by product type, room or manufacturer. Although the Amish are famous for Mission and Shaker pieces, they also handcraft furniture in a wide array of other styles including French Provincial, Early American, Queen Anne, Tuscan, Santa Fe, Victorian, Traditional, Craftsman, Windsor and Aspen among others. After deciding on a style, amishwbf.com customers may also view swatches of woods, stains, fabrics and leathers.

As convenient as it is for consumers, amishwbf.com isn’t intended to reduce old fashion customer contact. Visitors to the site are encouraged to call a toll-free number to speak directly with Amish Workbench Furniture staff 12-hours per day, 7 days per week. That’s because purchasing custom-made furniture requires a dizzying array of decisions that are far easier to make when talking to an expert. Customers can discuss the merits of different woods, finishes, edges and options. They can also have their furniture made in custom sizes.

Although pricing varies by craftsman, furniture purchased through amishwbf.com is always sold at prices significantly below MSRP (manufacturer’s suggested retail prices). The furniture is then made to order and delivered directly to the customer’s home, typically in four to six weeks. All furniture is constructed from sustainable reforested lumber and customers can learn about Amish environmental practices while visiting amishwbf.com.

Launching a major national website was certainly not the plan when Carol and Jay Titsworth first visited the Amish countryside more than 20 years ago. The couple fell in love with the simplicity of the Amish life style and began collecting Amish furniture and art for their own home. Returning several times each year, they forged long-term friendships with Amish craftsmen and artisans. In (year), they opened their first retail outlet offering Amish furniture and handicrafts. Today, Amish Workbench Furniture has stores in Tualatin, Salem and Troutdale and has helped thousands of families obtain custom built heirloom-quality furniture from the Amish craftsmen the Titsworths represent.

Planning and constructing amishwbf.com took almost a full year. After extensively studying all online competitors, the site was designed by Lutes Advertising, a Newberg based agency which has served a diverse client base of northwest companies for 27 years. Brian Cox of 4threalm.com was the web developer. Prior to going live with the new site, Amish Workbench Furniture extensively retrained their veteran staff so that they could recreate the in-store experience of buying custom-made furniture for online customers. Results to this point have been exceedingly positive and the company expects to be adding additional infrastructure to keep up with the increased demand.