Sadly, the passing of Mike Tyson’s young daughter has brought to the forefront home safety issues.  Home can be one of the most dangerous places for a small child or infant and it is of major concern to safety and health officials. By following a few simple steps you can help to eliminate commonly overlooked areas in your home and increase your comfort and your family’s safety.

USED BABY FURNITURE - It is not just a sales gimmick crafted by the baby furniture industry to part you with your money. Used baby furniture may save you money but cost you injuries or even a baby’s life. A good rule is no furniture later than 1978.

1. The first step in insuring the safety of your infant is to check with the manufacturer or online to be certain that the item has not been recalled.

2. Obtain current guidelines for measurement such as distance between side rail bars. Currently they are 2 3/8 inches apart, with no large cut-outs on head and foot boards.

3. Is the paint loose or chipping and most of all child safe and lead free?

4. Cedar chests or toy chests should have hinge support to prevent the lid from slamming down on little fingers or heads.

Choosing solid wood handcrafted furniture protects your investment and your child. Solid hardwoods withstand generations of children and their teething episodes.

KITCHEN -

1. Kitchen chairs and stools should be positioned far enough away from stoves that if a toddler mounted them they could not reach hot burners or pots.

2. Have you put child locks on your pantries and custom made cupboards or cabinets?

3. Move all knives and sharp objects farther back in the drawers and cabinets.

LIVINGROOM -

1. Move all glass objects to the back of your Amish built tables. A heavy vase, object d’art or picture frame can be a deadly weapon when it’s pulled down on to a curious child’s head.

2. Cable all window shades cords and electrical cords up and away.

3. Be sure your big plasma or HDTV television is securely mounted to your custom built television stand or entertainment center. Home injuries to children have increased by a record 41% because of oversized televisions.

4. Are your bookcases secured? Solid wood bookcases are well built and steady but on carpet or uneven flooring an accident can happen. Simple wall brackets can secure any cabinet or book case.

5. Have you applied protective padding or rubber corners to your solid wood living room tables? The corners are sharp and can cause injury to a small child.

6. Have you protected your child from entering your fireplace area? Whether electric, wood or gas it is an obvious area that should never given easy access to.

BATHROOMS -

1. Amish crafted corner cabinets and bookcases make beautiful and functional bathroom furnishings to store prescriptions and toiletries in. Be sure to secure these items to prevent ingestion by a child. This includes prescriptions, mouthwashes, hair sprays, perfumes, etc.

HOME OFFICE -

1. Check for cords, whether from electrical or telephones. It is wise to unplug when not in use and wind up those cords. Dangling cords attract and easily go from playful toy to noose.

OUTDOOR FURNITURE-

1. Check for splinters that may have occurred with use and changes in the wood. While Amish outdoor furniture is finished by hand regular care and maintenance will prevent accidents.

GUN CABINETS -

1. Amish craftsmen build handsome gun cabinets complete with locking features. Remember -KEEP THE KEY HIDDEN AND AMMUNITION STORED SEPERATELY

William Morris was a writer, orator, artist, textile designer, wallpaper artisan and poet. Morris held strong beliefs that in an age of modern machines and gilded homes that men truly should have equal access to a quality of life and articles around them should be of artisan, rather than mass, production. In turn-of-the-century Great Britain Morris was not just involved with designing furniture, wallpapers and textiles. William Morris carried his political beliefs into his work life, believing that these beliefs and ideals would eventually produce equal opportunities for everyone to own his works.

Politically William Morris was an involved in early English Social Democracy. He joined the Social Democratic Federation 1883. After a fight with Henry Hyndman, the founder of the SDF group, Morris founded his own group, called the Socialist League. When asked to explain how he fell into Socialism, Morris delivered an explanation in “How I Became a Socialist” that read in part -

“Well, what I mean by Socialism is a condition of society in which there should be neither rich nor poor, neither master nor master’s man, neither idle nor overworked, neither brain­slack brain workers, nor heart­sick hand workers, in a word, in which all men would be living in equality of condition, and would manage their affairs unwastefully, and with the full consciousness that harm to one would mean harm to all-the realisation at last of the meaning of the word COMMONWEALTH .”

Morris, a student of medieval times, was himself a natural educator, writing and lecturing on street-corners in England and Scotland. Supposedly after delving into Marx’s Das Kapital in a French translation, he declared himself a Marxist. Morris was a man of awe inspiring energy, who possessed huge talents and ideals. Morris dreamt enormous dreams of a Socialist Revolution in England. He saw his world, his Victorian Britain, as physically ravaged and spiritually drained by the Industrial Revolution. He longed for a more artist-centric, communal, mediaeval agrarian society that was filled with happy, healthy people, all enjoying the work they did by hand.

Although Morris himself did not quite succeed in his selfless attempts to encourage a relationship between industry and craft, his ideas were not a failure. American Gustav Stickley brought the ideas of Morris’s Arts and Crafts Movement to the new country and was able to merge mass production with handmade craftsmanship. Stickley’s German-American Yankee ingenuity coupled with the Morris’s politics, ideals and gifts created some of the most sought after designs in history.

While, William Morris was indeed a man who was not in love with the world he had been born into, he seemed to see socialism as a means to an end. That end was supposed to transform the ugliness he saw in late century Britain into the beauty that he hoped it once was and could be. In his “News From Nowhere” he would write:

The earth and the growth of it and the life of it! If I could but say or show how I love it!

In a very real sense his entire life, especially his organic designs in home décor, was a successful attempt to share the meaning of those lines with others. While some believe he was an eccentric utopian, his life’s work lives on in print, in the organization called the William Morris Society and in home decors worldwide.

The unusual events in the world economy have many people looking for new ways to earn money and one idea is to convert one or more rooms of your home into a Bed and Breakfast. American homes that welcomed weary travelers date back to the earliest days of Colonial America. The country was young so comfortable and safe lodging options were few and far between in the rough and wild 1700s. Relying on word of mouth and the kindness of strangers, early American travelers in need of a bed for the night often sought out rooms in private homes.

As transportation went from man power to horse power and then to rails, hotels became more common. The Great Depression created the opportunity for less than wealthy travelers to save money while creating an income for home owners. With non-existent interstates travelers were forced to drive through towns, passed homes that provided safe haven for the night for as little as a few dollars. These homes were often a type of boarding house for transients as well as long term residents. The modern Bed and Breakfast is a specific form of boarding house where the guests normally stay only on a bed-and-breakfast or half-board basis (bed, breakfast and dinner only), and where long-stay residence is unheard of.

European influence, spawned by world travel post-WWII, created the romantic idea of the more refined and often historic homes being converted to upscale bed and breakfasts. From farm homes to historic mansions American were converting residences to accommodate paying strangers for the night. The 1980s-90s saw a rapid growth of B&Bs ranging from down home themes with shared bathrooms and simple homey furnishings to chic renovated historic mansions with plush furniture and wine tasting.

Regulations and laws vary from area to area but the most common regulations B&Bs must follow pertain to safety issues like fire resistance, fire escape plans, and smoke detectors in each guest room. Of course kitchens and food preparation are monitored for hygienic operation.

While regulations vary quality never should. Investing in Amish built hardwood furniture is a wise business decision. Not only is it available in every design from traditional to modern it is durable and made to last for generations. No one will ever care for your belongings like you do and the well constructed design of native hardwood beds, tables, chairs and desks can withstand the ever changing flood of guests that your B&B will see over the years. From full bedrooms with whimsical four poster canopies, clocks and fireplaces the unmistakable quality of Amish designed and hand built furnishings will undoubtedly earn you high marks and recognition from your B&B guests.

In theory, CFLs use up to 75 per cent less electricity than the ‘light equivalent’ incandescent bulb, although many experts believe that even used in the correct manner, the direct energy saving may be more like 25-30 per cent than 75 per cent. Also CFLs may last up to 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs. Whether you decide to switch out a few bulbs or the entire household, indoors and out, here are a few points to consider about the new green bulbs.

LIGHT LEVELS – A CFL bulb that uses 13-18 watts supposedly produces the same amount of light as a 60-watt incandescent bulb, but this is in controversy. In practice, to replace a 60-watt incandescent you need a 20-watt CFL to achieve about the same lighting level.

LIGHT QUALITY – the illumination quality from a CFL is truly a judgment call. The light is different than that of an incandescent. CFLs may appear gloomy, yellowed or dull to some people while to others it is described as soft, warm and even.

HEAT SOURCE – When considering removing all incandescent bulbs remember that incandescents actually contribute a very noticeable amount to the ambient warmth of your home. A surprisingly high 85-90 per cent of an incandescent bulb’s energy is converted into heat. Consider how many bulbs you have in your home and you can quickly deduce that a very high amount of heating is produced in the evenings when everyone is home. This additional heat can affect the air conditioning costs negatively and the heating costs positively.

ACCURATE LIFE SPAN – Since a number of factors can drastically reduce the life of your CFL bulb, thus reducing any cost advantage, it is advantageous to educate yourself on the nature of the bulb. Some things that reduce its life expectancy are:

• Turning the bulb on and off too frequently
• Using the bulb upside down because the light rises and overheats it.
• Using it in a recessed or enclosed position because of the overheating issue.
• The cold (they also take a few minutes to warm up so may not be optimal if you need quick access to a garage, chilly basement or stairwell.
• Using an incompatible incandescent dimmer system, electronic timer, motion detector or light detector
• Using them anywhere that vibration affects them

TOXICITY VS. GOING GREEN – Ironically, some of the controversy over these “greener” alternatives is caused by the fact that they contain environmentally dangerous toxins. Some people even believe they cause headaches. Because of the toxic elements they must be disposed of properly and with some inconvenience. CFL bulbs contain 5mg of mercury or approximately a pin head‘s worth of mercury. Old thermometers contained 500 mg. The instructions for clean up if you should break a CFL bulb seems ominous when you read you must open the windows and leave the room for 15 minutes, don rubber gloves and not vacuum a hard surface because it will spread the fumes. It also advises that you pick the pieces up with duct tape then wipe everything with wet towels, followed by a double-bagging ceremony. You must then drive them to a specialist recycling center.

UV RAYS – CFLs emit a small amount of ultraviolet light that should be considered when using around people with medical conditions that make them highly sensitive to UV light.

Rustic style furniture doesn’t have to be old, but it has to have that natural or handmade type of look. This can sometimes be difficult to find in new furniture, but fortunately Amish Furniture Home now sells rustic style furniture that you can incorporate into any room of the home. Of course, this rustic furniture is still made with the high quality standards and attention to detail that Amish builders are known for and the pieces are eye-catching and really works of art rather than just furniture pieces.

As with all the Amish Home Furniture styles, you can choose the type of wood you like best, such as red oak, cherry, walnut, white oak, or hickory, but each piece is also beautifully embellished with hickory twig accents to give it that authentic, rustic look. So, check out their new rustic furniture collection and enjoy the look of the great outdoors inside your home throughout the year.

We are proud to announce the brand new blog for Amish-Furniture-Home.com and AmishTables.com. Whether you are a professional interior designer, a lover of all things Amish, or interested in decorating your home with fine, handmade, hardwood furnishings, you will want to visit our new blog for great new design and decorating ideas.

Everyone knows that the Amish are known for their skills in carpentry and handmade craftsmanship. The techniques used in making genuine Amish furniture have been handed down from generation to generation resulting in the highest quality, handmade furniture you can buy in the market today. However, many people do not know that Amish furniture goes with just about every type of decorating style from traditional to contemporary or French Country to vintage retro!

Our goal is to spread the word of Amish Furniture to the masses and really help decorators and non-decorators alike understand what Amish furniture is all about and how you can incorporate Amish style into any home, apartment, office, or business setting. Our blog is loaded with lots of great decorating tips, ideas, suggestions, and information that will help you with all of your decorating needs. In addition, you will also find plenty of great stories and interesting tidbits about the Amish, their lifestyle, their traditions, and of course, their furniture. So, make sure to check us out and come back often as we will be updating the blog daily with new and exciting Amish Furniture Home news. Wilkum to Amish design!