Today’s Amish communities are as entrepreneurial as the Shakers, helping to support and build their communities using their gifts as honest artisans. The world appreciates the unique custom designs that contrast so obviously from the mass produced disposable furniture offered in most showrooms today. These solid wood designs are premium heirlooms that showcase the integrity of a community very much like their brothers and sisters in the Shaker villages.

Like the Shakers the Amish live every part of their life based on religious principles. This includes the quality of their work, whether at home or in the workshop. Today the Amish wood worker in Northern Indiana crafts the same designs with the same quality of materials and skill as their ancestors. The same principles and beliefs held by the earliest Shaker furniture designer and builder are still honored by the Amish woodworker. With traditional designs like the traditional Burlington table or the neatly lined Bungalow chifferobe, chest, bed, dresser and nightstand you can bring the same warm style to your home.

The Shakers were always a small group whose self-imposed abstinence insured their demise. At their zenith the group held about 4000 members spread among nineteen self-sustaining communities. The Shakers lived the example set forth in the Holy Bible about living in the world without being a part of it. The community’s business sense was astonishing, especially for a small nineteenth century religious organization.

Although not part of the world it is obvious that Ann Lee, the group’s founder who had arrived the New World pre-American Revolution, was influenced by the Federal design style of that era. The Shakers had taken the Federal template and created a less formal and more rural design based on the needs and ideals of the farming communities they settled in. The influence of their religious beliefs and their country settings brought forth functional furniture with clean and simple lines. This was especially appealing to those who were suffocating under the opulence and gilding that was the Victorians.

The Shakers not only opened the door for the Arts and Crafts Movement in America but actually inspired some of its founders. The cousin of Arts and Crafts, American Mission and its father, Gustav Stickley, were quite possibly more warmly welcomed because of the influence of the Shaker ideals and products.

The years surrounding Civil War was not just a separation of tastes politically but one in interior décor. The last part of the 19^th century in North America saw the blending of many very strong interior design tastes within one home. Many consider this to be the Eclectic period in American history. This eclectic collecting may have resulted from the easier access to more thanks to the Industrial Revolution. Machine made products kept products flowing at a much less expensive rate. Large scale manufacturers in Grand Rapids, Michigan were pumping out furniture to the common man at easy to pay for levels.

BRIEF INTERESTING FACTS FROM THE LATTER 19TH CENTURY ECLECTIC ERA-

• In rapid sequence designers birthed first Gothic then Elizabethan and finally rococo. While these co-existed in popularity in the mid-century they did not co-exist under the same roof. All three were used and admired but not blended.  
• The latter half of this century saw even more design styles, like the Renaissance style, emerge but none truly retire.
• This was the era of the kings; from France to England and from Louis to Henri.
• The big English furniture designers Chippendale, Sheraton and Hepplewhite shined brightly in the Victorian days. Colonial, Centennial Revival and Empire became common by the turn of the century.
• In large part thanks to William Morris and his Arts and Crafts philosophy and followers furniture was being influenced by far away lands like Turkey, Japan and Persia.
• Charles Eastlake agreed with Morris and Lewis Day on their discrimination against mass produced furniture and wrote a book touting the belief that home furnishings should be made by hand or machine workers that truly took artisan pride in their work.
• During these decades many felt a prejudice towards keeping it American and a cry went out to create a style distinctly American.
• Very distinct designs and designers emerged during this time and many published books that became hard and fast bibles used by designers, cabinetmakers and other furniture builders.
• Almost always if a design style became popular the wallpapers, rugs and accessories  appropriate to that style became available.
• No matter how modest the home it was believed that there should be a library, a sort of retreat for the family.

The 20^th century saw less desire for homes to be so eclectic. A yearning for something more simple in American homes was emerging. The birth of styles like Modernism had brought a sense of more efficient and less cluttered designs like the contemporary designs found from Amish-Furniture-Home.com.

• Create unity by grouping like items with like items. By grouping items by theme, color, shape, texture or material you get the biggest visual bang. You can create the illusion of hiring a curator who has organized your shelves to feel like treasures. You can create a visual pop by grouping like colors, such as white pottery, together. Placed against the dark wood of your custom stained shelving these items stand out. Grouping boxes, spheres, etc. create instant emphasis that cannot be duplicated when spread apart.
• Instead of placing a few smaller knick-knacks on the shelf try to choose big, bold accessories. Select items that you can see it from across the room. Smaller items achieve more visual presence when you gather them containers. An old jar filled with vintage marbles, seashells collected at the beach or even a basket of loose family photos create interest.
• Go for asymmetrical arrangements of three, five or seven objects. Also remember not to center them but place them off-center. Odd numbers are visually most interesting in interior design. Balance is good but if not done right can be boring. Use combinations of short, medium and tall objects to make the eye fall at various levels.
• A very powerful statement can be created when there is nothing but art or photos on display. Try leaning your collection or overlapping edges. Mix up frame sizes, shapes and styles.
• Shiny items add interest, too. Add glass, crystal and silver objects to make shelf arrangements literally twinkle. A mirror placed at the back or bottom of a shelf will also impact the visual effect of the objects placed in front or on it.
• In modern or contemporary settings always keep it simple. A more streamlined approach is the best fit for contemporary and modern spaces. Minimalism does not mean any decorations of collections, just well thought out ones. Modern contemporary is based on form following function and it is best to go with shelves decorated in an uncluttered look. 
• A little light on the subject is good. Illuminate your shelves by spotlighting the arrangements. If you did not opt for pre-installed lighting with your custom solid wood Amish bookcases or shelves, then add track lighting in the ceiling. A professional touch can be gained by discreetly tucking tiny up-lights behind a vase or other items, creating a backlight to the arrangement.

ANALYZE YOUR ENVIRONMENT- By reviewing your space and determining what design style and function you need for each room of the home you have begun your plan. Take in to consideration each member, including pets, guests both long term and short, along with future addition to your family when determining best usage and style for your space.

Ask yourself honest questions about yourself and fellow house mates. Are you really going to need a formal living room or is your lifestyle more of comfortable casualness? Are you private sort and creating a very personal home environment or are you a social family creating a home theater and game center for friends to pop in and relax? By asking these questions you can develop an accurate plan for investing in your personal atmosphere.

INVENTORY YOURSELF- While buying furnishings and accessories will be necessary, one cost effective tool is working with what you may already have, or what friends or family may be willing to donate to your home. By carefully documenting every piece of furniture and accessories you have to work with you have effectively warehoused your collection like a designer inventorying their stock for the client.

INVENTORY YOUR WANTS- Next list the reasonable wants that fit in to your newly analyzed design plan. While many people believe they must buy more furniture for cheaper prices, in fact the opposite is true. The bulk of your furniture should be considered an investment. Are you investing in furniture that can grow and change with your life? A well furnished home is one that can grow and change as you and the family do.

Remember that wise home design means choosing a few high quality pieces that will last rather than disposable furnishings that must be replaced in a few years. By carefully choosing pieces that you can live with and that will last your investment will pay for itself. Quite simply, as your tastes change over the years you can change out paint schemes, accessories, rugs, art, lamps, etc and effectively and inexpensively create an entirely new back drop to your high end investments like hand crafted Amish furniture.

Anyone can “make a bed” but to truly make your bed into an elegant, comfortable place on which to lie down actually takes quite a bit of thought, design and craftsmanship. The pier bed crafted by the Amish has all that combined with the common sense of plentiful storage, solid native hardwood beauty and the good looks of well thought out design. Sizes range from double to queen to the much coveted king-size beds and these large and graciously proportioned bedroom suites are everything a well appointed boudoir needs.

The Pier Bedroom Suite literally includes everything you need for your bedroom. Each side of the bed has a “pier”, which, in fact, are actually side armoires that are 22 1/2″w x 22 1/2″d x 81″h. Each pier comes with a set of three dovetailed, full extension, drawers for books, writing implements, socks, underclothes, etc. Above each of these roomy and well-constructed drawers is a pull-out shelf to be used as a night table, desk, or even a snack table. There are two more adjustable shelves behind the door of the side armoires.

Centered above the bed as a sort of headboard, is a beveled mirror highlighted by two touch lights placed strategically in the bridge of the pier. There is even more storage in the headboard for books, glasses, laptops, etc. Unbelievably, there is even the well thought-out option of adding additional under the bed storage drawers for winter clothing, shoes or whatever you treasure.

The pier bed wall unit has the Amish collection’s signature form and construction. With more option than the famous Murphy bed any apartment dweller could benefit for a lifetime by a single purchase of a pier bed wall unit, especially with the additional under bed storage options. This bed can be disassembled and moved, if needed, yet give any room the appearance of a custom built bedroom. Hotels, motels, efficiency long term stay dwellings, assisted living facilities could also benefit by the durable bedroom choice of a pier bed wall unit built ingeniously by the Amish.

Bedrooms are wondrous rooms that hold many functions and events – many more functions than just sleep. Statistically we spend the majority of our days – perhaps actually nights – inside the bed chamber. We  not only hope that it will provide us a safe and comfortable place to sleep and rejuvenate for the next day but the bedroom holds our clothing, shoes, jewelry and other accessories. In the humble bedroom we begin our day – whether at a walk-in closet door or a sit-down vanity table. The room most likely holds dirty laundry and dry cleaning, at least for a time.

Many of us grace our rooms with a quiet reading spot or even a television for late night movies or early bits of news shows. Perhaps our rooms are even mini-libraries, for reading books, magazines and newspapers. Some of us have even placed a writing desk for home organization or correspondence on our laptops. Pet owners allow visits from pets and parents have visits from offspring.  The bedroom may even hold storage for linens for the bed. Lastly, the bedroom may be you last refuge for privacy. Indeed, if you were to stop and evaluate your bedroom it is evident that it is in fact the command center of your life.

THE BED:

Perhaps only the sofa or couch competes for the amount of time we spend on a bed. This amount of time justifies the purchase of a great mattress and bed. With a solid wood frame, hand-built by Amish designers and craftsmen guarantee a life time of solidly built attractiveness. Elegant but practical, these beds are built to cradle you in comfort and then pass down as an heirloom investment. From Mission style to Modern these bedroom suite designs are endless in style and design.

It is recommended to buy the biggest and the best bed and mattress you can afford and house.

CLOTHNG STORAGE:

While it would be great to live in world where minimal possessions, especially clothing, were practical, even the Amish realize in the contemporary world it is not. While it is recommended to streamline your clothing in order to function more efficiently each morning the total elimination of excess can be impossible, so we must have furniture to help organize.

Wardrobes, closets, armoires, chests of drawers, lingerie chests, dressers all are built to match your high end solid wood bed. All are available in oaks, maple, cherry, hickory and a variety of stain options. After you ruthlessly scale down your wardrobe from a messy assemblage of chaos know that there is upscale storage available that incorporates different sized drawers, various folding shelves and hanging options.

MIRRORS:

Cheval mirrors are the best friend you always wanted. A solid wood framed swinging, full-length looking glass that makes a great accountability partner – one who will always let you know the truth about your appearance, good or bad.

DRESSING OR VANITY TABLES:

Having a central spot to focus on you as you begin your day can make or break your look. Dressing for success is more than buying the right outfit. It is stopping to survey the details and to polish the surface. Solid wood, easy care, ARESISTOVAR protected surfaces make the Amish vanity ideal.

NIGHTSTANDS:

The most personal piece of bedroom furniture may not be the bed. The most individualized storage facility is the bedside stand or night table. Inside the nightstands is things that only you know why you need, from books and spare change to mints and reading glasses, the nightstand is a private world of odds and ends just for you. The finish on the native hardwoods by Northern Indiana artisans will even forgive a late night cup of tea spill.  

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