furniture
American Shaker Bedroom Set: The Week’s Best Seller
Robin's luxurious, natural cherry, American Shaker Furniture Collection was last week's best seller at Vermont Woods Studios. Design features include straight and curved Shaker lines, perfect proportions, carefully-selected extra-wide boards, 2-sided tapered posts and legs, eased edges, beveleled tops and traditional, mushroom-shaped Shaker knobs.
Pieces are available in natural solid cherry, walnut or maple wood and they are 100% USA made, Vermont made actually.
Robin also offers a sister collection to this one called the Vermont Made Shaker Collection. There are a couple subtle differences between the two collections. The American Shaker Furniture has arched curves along the bottom of the bed headboard and foot board and matching arched aprons along the bottom of the dressers and chests, whereas the Vermont Made Shaker Furniture has no curves or arches– all the lines are pure, traditional straight Shaker lines.
Another subtle difference is in the detail on the tops of dressers, chests and tables. The Vermont Made Shaker Collection features straight lines and edges along the tops of these pieces, whereas the tops of American Shaker Furniture pieces have cove moldings.
When shopping, purists will typically choose the straight lines of the Vermont Made Shaker Collection while customers wanting to imbue a slightly modern flair are more apt to go for the American Shaker Style. Last week the modernists came out ahead.
Which Shaker style do you like best: traditional or modern?
King Arthur Flour’s Flagship Store in Norwich VT
I've been researching Vermont's flagship stores as we get closer to the possibility of opening up one of our own at Vermont Woods Studios.
A few weeks ago Kendall and I drove up to see the brand new King Arthur Flour campus in Norwich, Vermont, just north of (White River Junction). It's a gorgeous facility with hundreds of baking ingredients, gadgets & classes, a cafe & deli and a baking education center where you can attend classes to become the best baker in your network.
But the best part of the new store is the wonderful smell of fresh baked bread that greets you when you enter.
If you love baking and you're traveling through central Vermont, I should think King Arthur would be a must-see. Try to visit on a nice day and you'll be able to enjoy lunch with freshly baked croissants (and cakes, breads, chiffons, mousse…) in a splendid courtyard in the middle of the campus.
Enjoy!
Copeland’s Astrid Bedroom Furniture: Mid Century Modern Design
Manjula has made Copeland's mid-century modern Astrid bedroom furniture our featured collection this week. It's been a best seller, especially amongst city-dwellers looking for a clean, simple look that's also luxurious and stunning.
The Astrid collection is made right here in Vermont of solid wood throughout. It's available in solid cherry, walnut and maple. Manjula has made it easy to shop for and price out dozens of combinations of the collection with these Astrid Walnut Bedroom Furniture Set and Astrid Maple or Cherry Bedroom Set pages. You can use drop down menus to price out any number of options for you choice of chests, dressers, nightstands, beds and mirrors.
Using these sets to purchase Astrid furniture will save you hundreds of dollars (or even thousands, depending on how many pieces you're purchasing) on shipping. If you're serious about purchasing Astrid pieces or any of Copeland's furniture, check out our Top 10 Reasons to Buy Copeland Furniture at Vermont Woods Studios or just give us a call. We'll look forward to helping you transform your bedroom into the sophisticated retreat you've always dreamed of!
Cherry Veneers: Six Furniture Collections That Bring Out Their Best
Yesterday I wrote about our solid cherry furniture so today I wanted to follow up with a post about the furniture we carry that incorporates cherry veneers.
Sometimes customers come to us, initially averse to veneer but once they take a closer look they often change their minds. I realize veneers have been given a negative connotation by companies that stick them on particle board to make cheap furniture.
But did you know that premium quality, high end veneers are used by some of the world's most skilled furniture makers to add artistic flair and style to their work?
This is the case with the following six high end furniture collections:
Copeland Sarah Shaker Furniture
These furniture collections are made with all solid cherry wood except for the sides and backs of case goods. Real wood veneer is used for case goods (chests, dressers, cabinets, night stands) sides and backs for esthetic and structural design reasons. The pieces are made with frame and panel type construction and the use of solid wood in this design might cause the panels to warp in conditions of changing humidity.
As solid wood furniture specialists at Vermont Woods Studios, we spend a lot of time discussing the specifics of solid wood versus veneered construction methods with our customers. Details for each of our collections are found in our Construction Details pages. We welcome your comments and questions either below, on our Facebook, by phone or in person at our Vernon VT showroom.
Solid Cherry Furniture: 18 American Made Collections From Vermont
At Vermont Woods Studios, solid cherry furniture has always been our specialty. Although most of our craftspeople routinely work in walnut, maple and oak too, cherry continues to be the favorite wood amongst our customers. And many are specifically looking for all solid cherry wood, rather than cherry with veneers.
For those customers I thought it might be helpful to compile a current list of all the furniture collections we offer in solid cherry wood. Here you go– all 18 of them:
Contemporary Craftsman Furniture
Smith Natural Vermont Furniture
Each of these collections is handmade here in VT with solid wood throughout (except the backs of some case goods*). Sometimes our photos show the furniture in walnut or maple, but you can use the drop down menus to select cherry wood. Details regarding how these furniture sets are built can be found on our Construction Details pages where you'll find specifics on joinery, drawer slides, hardware options, premium wood selection, finishing methods, etc.
Tomorrow, I'll post about cherry furniture that incorporates veneers. Got questions? Give us a call or post them on our Facebook.
* The backs of case goods in some of these collections are made of furniture grade plywood. This choice is based on the stability of plywood, versus solid woods which expand and contract with varying humidity levels. There are many structural and design details involved in a craftsman's decision to use solid wood versus plywood. Please check our Construction Details pages for specifics.
American Made Bedroom Furniture Sale Starts Today
At Vermont Woods Studios beds and bedroom furniture pieces are some of the most popular pieces we offer.
Now during our bedroom sale is a great time to furnish or update your bedroom with our 100% American Made, real wood Bedroom Furniture. You'll save 10% off any single piece, 15% off two pieces or 20% off 3 or more pieces (plus Free Delivery).
Create your own bedroom set with over 40 bed style options, plus dozens of nightstand, chest and dresser options.
Classic and timeless Vermont styling, handmade with uncompromised craftsmanship, and solidly built for generations of use. Real wood bedroom furniture you will appreciate and enjoy forever. And you can sleep tight knowing your new bedroom furniture investment is backed by a lifetime warranty.
Check out our bedroom sale and get started shopping for your new bed, nightstands, chests, dressers, and mirrors securely, easily, and conveniently directly from our online store.
* Excludes Copeland, Artisan, Barnwood & Polywood furniture. This Sale ends at midnight on August 21st.
PolyWood Outdoor Patio Furniture: Finding The Best Deal
If you've discovered Polywood all weather, recycled plastic outdoor furniture you love it, right? It's available in dozens of modern and traditional styles including Adirondack chairs, rocking chairs, chaise lounges, outdoor dining tables, patio bar and counter height tables and more.
Plus polywood pool and patio furniture comes in white, black and 11 colors: blue, teak, tangerine, red, sand, mahogany, lime, lemon, green, aruba and slate grey. And it's made in America of recycled plastic drink containers, so while you're outside enjoying nature you can feel good about helping to preserve it through your purchase.
So now that you've decided to buy polywood, you're looking for the best deal. This kind of high quality furniture isn't cheap. Thus, where to go for the best price?
Well, have you noticed that all the dealers charge the same price? That's because the furniture maker (Polywood Inc) has determined the lowest price that dealers seem to be able to stay in business with, and set that as a required minimum price. Dealers who violate the minimum price policy will likely not be in business for long– either because Polywood refuses to sell to them or they've run themselves into bankruptcy.
As it turns out the best deal on Polywood isn't about the lowest price. It's about the quality of the company you're buying from and the way they stand behind their products. At Vermont Woods Studios we're committed to offering you the best values in Polywood furniture that you will find anywhere and we stand behind all of our furniture (including Polywood) with a lifetime guarantee (we're the only dealer who does this, as far as I know). Check it out along with the Top 10 Reasons to Buy Polywood Furniture at Vermont Woods Studios.
9 Great Furniture Styles: Modern, Traditional, Urban, Classic and More
Customers often come to us at Vermont Woods Studios with photos of their home decor, asking about furniture designs that will fit in with their style. It's fun working with people to help them achieve their vision for a new bedroom, dining room, home office or living room.
We're always looking to America's leading designers for inspiration and Home Portfolio is a great place to do that. It's an online library of high-end home products where interior design professionals show off their latest creations.
Sharon Johnson of Home Portfolio recently put together an interesting article called "Mixing Old With New" illustrating many design styles (Modern, Traditional, Urban, Classic, Transitional, Glamorous, Whimsical and more) and how stunning it can be to mix them up a bit.
Sharon features nine gifted designers and shows us just how right a room can feel when traditional rubs shoulders with contemporary. "It may seem counterintuitive, but combining antique or vintage furnishings with newer pieces is a great way to create an up-to-date and uniquely individual space."
Check out Sharon's photos and articles for more ideas on how to mix up your own home decor.
Fine Furniture Characteristics: Solid Wood vs Veneers
Typically Vermont furniture can be distinguished from other American made furniture or imported furniture by the extensive use of real, solid wood. American Black Cherry is the wood most often used in Vermont furniture although sugar maple, black walnut, oak and other local species are also popular.
At Vermont Woods Studios we represent woodworkers and fine furniture makers from all across the Green Mountain State so our furniture reflects a wide variety of styles, designs and crafting techniques. Some of our furniture makers work exclusively with all solid wood construction and others employ the use of veneers. So customers often ask us about the difference between the two techniques.
Honestly, with all of our handmade furniture, heirloom quality is the bottom line and that can be achieved using all solid wood construction or with the incorporation of premium quality, high end veneers.
Although Vermont is best known for our all solid wood construction, we have several craftsmen who prefer to incorporate high quality veneers into their designs. This is done when veneers are the best choice for a particular design, rather than simply the most economical choice. For instance, the curved back panel of the Copeland Catalina Bed must be a veneer because it would be structurally impossible to build it out of solids. Copeland's framed panels, that is panels surrounded on all four sides, are often made of high grade, veneered plywood because in these instances, a solid panel would have the potential to expand and break the frame apart during periods of high humidity.
Plywood is considerably stronger than solids of equal dimension and some furniture makers choose them for Case Backs and Drawer Bottoms for that reason. On each of our furniture product pages you will find a link to the construction details for that product. We urge you to read through the information presented and give us a call with your questions. For the furniture on our website, you will find that when veneers are used, they are the the best choice for the design.
After all this discussion about veneers however, I can say that most of our furniture is still designed and constructed with all real solid wood, sustainably harvested in Vermont or neighboring states. If this is an important feature for you, give us a all and let us know. We'll help you find the right handmade solid wood furniture for your home.
Vermont Farm Stands: Corn Season’s Here Early
It's been such a hot, dry summer in Vermont this year. I know (from following fellow Vermonter, Bill McKibbon's work at 350.org) there is much to fear with global warming. Bu I can't complain about getting the world's best sweet corn a month early this year.
Stop by this quaint farmstand on Vermont Route 142, at the Massachusetts border if you're looking to grace your dinner table with a fresh, local delicacy. You won't be disappointed.
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