wood furniture
Sale: Create Your Own Fine Wood Furniture Set
What's on sale? Vermont Woods Studios is letting you decide! Most of our sales are based on room or specific style, but this sale is all about you. This is your chance to personalize the sale to your own furnishing needs. Different rooms, different styles, different collections- it's up to you!
For one week only, you can create your own set and save in the process. Just purchase three or more pieces to get 20% off your order, plus free shipping and our lifetime guarantee!
Choose from any room in our online gallery and add variety to your shopping cart! You can buy a Vermont Made Shaker Dresser for the guest room, a Cherry Moon Writing Desk for your home office and a Modern Mission Coffee Table for the living room, saving money while you're at it.
Shop our fine wood furniture in our online furniture gallery now through August 14th. Visit our Sale page for full details on the Create Your Own Furniture Set Sale.
Vermont Woods Studios showcases Vermont's finest wood furniture. Traditionally handcrafted in Vermont using sustainably harvested wood.
Online Furniture Shopping: 2011 Customer Reviews, Complaints and Performance Metrics
If I'm investing a lot of money in something– say a new car, I spend a significant amount of time researching my options. Then when I've made a decision on a particular car I continue to research everything about that model and the company that makes it.
Well, I figure the same is true for people when they're investing in high end, handmade furniture. But unfortunately not much performance data is available from furniture companies. Either they don't do customer satisfaction surveys or they choose not to publish their results. Why is that?
Although we're a small company, we've been surveying our customers since we started our business 6 years ago. I thought I would share some of our results and performance metrics with you over the next couple weeks. These results are taken from a survey of 130 customers who just received their new furniture over the last few months. We received 69 customer responses for a pretty decent response rate of 53%. The questions we asked them included:
Please rate our performance in the following areas
* Quality of furniture
* Ease of ordering
* Shipping and delivery
* Response of customer sevice personnel
* Would you purchase from Vermont Woods Studios Furniture again?
Here's the link to follow the results of our customer reviews, complaints and satisfaction survey as they emerge. Check back in now and then over the next few weeks to see what our customers are saying about their furniture.
Black Friday Plus Fine Wood Furniture Sale, What’s that?
by Dennis Shanoff
I feel the unseasonably warm weather this month in Vermont has lulled us into a false sense of distance from the holidays. But low and behold next week is indeed Thanksgiving! And all the chaos that seems to go with that. Traveling, preparing for guests & visitor’s and of course all that cooking… Oh yeah, and not to mention getting up at 5:00 am the next morning to be first in line for all those “Black Friday” deals! Retailers have really created such a sense of urgency and drastic savings around this event that you almost feel silly doing any holiday shopping on any day but “Black Friday”! But we now also have a “Cyber Monday” for those that prefer to skip the lines and traffic and do their bargain hunting online from the comfort of their home or office. So is this our second and final chance at big savings?
Well our idea for this years Black Friday savings event was to give you more time… more time to preview our fine wood furniture and more time to shop. To do this we have created a “Black Friday Plus” sales event and what is different about this event is that we are giving our customers 4 days to preview and 6 days to shop! The actual sale kicks off Wednesday November 23rd at 8:00 am and runs through midnight on Cyber Monday, November 28th. So that’s 6 days for you to save 20% on furniture storewide, plus free delivery!*
So you can take your time the next few days to browse our online fine furniture gallery and preview at your convenience (remember to bookmark your favorite pieces). Of course our online gallery is available 24/7 so when there’s a break in your potentially hectic schedule you can still easily catch the sale! If you happen to have questions and want to speak to our team, the only days the office will be closed will be Thanksgiving Day and the following Sunday– otherwise we are open 9am-5pm. But knowing our team I am sure someone will give at least a quick check into our emails those days! So welcome to our fine wood furniture store and Black Friday Plus event.
Here's wishing you and your family a relaxing Happy Holiday (to the extent that's possible)!
* Excludes our one of a kind custom artisan furniture and Everwood outdoor furniture which is always on sale with a low price guarantee
American Wood Furniture and Global Forest Conservation
Have you ever thought about where your wood furniture comes from? Over the past few decades, the organic food movement has made us ask questions about the origin of our food. Now the fundamental concerns voiced in that movement are being extrapolated to the furniture and flooring industries. People want to know where their furniture comes from and what they're finding out is often more disturbing than the facts that were uncovered regarding the origins of our food.
For facts about the origin of your furniture, check out Vermont Woods Studios' latest article on American Wood Furniture and Global Forest Conservation at Ezine.
Natural Cherry Wood Furniture Characteristics: Mineral Deposits
On the last post we talked about natural cherry wood furniture with regard to grain variations in the wood. Today I wanted to provide some detail about naturally occuring mineral deposits that are characteristic of cherry.
In cherry wood small black flecks occur in the grain where tiny amounts of sap were stored in the cherry tree. If you click on the photos for a larger view, you may be able to see them (or you may have to enlarge the photos: hold down your CTRL key and press the [+] key at the same time).
Mineral deposits (or pitch pockets) are natural and randomly occurring. They do not diminish the strength or quality of your furniture. As we say: they add to its uniqueness.
The frequency of mineral deposits in our furniture varies with each tree utilized but it is largely reflected in the product photos here and throughout our website. Like any other fine furniture maker we cannot guarantee the absence of mineral deposits in our cherry wood furniture and we cannot consider the presence of mineral deposits a reason for furniture returns, per our lifetime guarantee policy.
Looking for Cherry Furniture with Virtually No Mineral Deposits?
Most of our furniture makers are reluctant to offer cherry furniture without mineral deposits for a couple reasons. First, it is against our sustainable forestry principles. Up to five times the number of trees need to be harvested to produce furniture with virtually no mineral deposits. Second, the presence of mineral deposits in cherry wood can be a matter of opinion. What one customer might feel was mineral-deposit free furniture may not be the same for another customer.
If mineral deposits are an issue for you, give us a call. We'll work something out… although I should mention that the price of a "virtually mineral deposit-free" piece is generally about twice that of the regular piece.
Tigers Are Endangered – Your Furniture Choice Impacts Them
2010 is the Year of the Tiger. Did you know there are only about 3200 tigers left in the wild? This tiger subspecies, the Siberian Tiger– the world's largest cat is literally on the brink of extinction with only about 400 individuals remaining in their natural habitat. I can't stand the idea of letting these magnificient creatures disappear forever on our watch. Can you?
If not, here's something you need to know and it has to do with where you and your friends, family and neighbors buy your furniture.
Siberian tigers live mainly in Russian forests which are now under assault by global timber conglomerates. Tiger habitat is being systematically decimated to provide illegal timber that's used to make cheap furniture which is marketed mainly in the USA. In fact, up to 90% of the furniture you see for sale in our country is made of illegally harvested wood that is clear cut from ecologically sensitive habitats like this.
You can help save the tiger by avoiding the purchase of imported wood furniture. Buy American made furniture instead. There are still many companies in the USA that specialize in furniture made from sustainably harvested wood that grows and is replanted right here in the USA. America has some of the world's best quality hardwoods and our forest conservation laws are working to keep it that way. One of our Vermont foresters told me the other day that in VT, our forests are growing at a rate that is faster than the harvest rate– certainly an important part of the definition of sustainability.
If you want to learn more about the connection between tigers, forest conservation and wood furniture, give us a call at Vermont Woods Studios.
Forest Conservation: More Than Trees At Stake
Forest conservation is one of the two missions that Vermont Woods Studios is built on. We are trying to help raise awareness about the importance of sustainable use of the world's forests, particularly the rainforests. Sustainable use means that when we harvest trees we do so in such a way that the forest regenerates in a healthy fashion. We want the forest to have the same richness and biodiversity in 100 years as it does today. And in the case of forests that have already been damaged (most of them) we want to help restore the original character and biodiversity of the forest.
Did you know that 1.5 acres (about 1 football field) of rainforest are being lost every second due in part, to illegal harvesting of timber for the imported wood furniture and flooring industries? This clear-cutting of the world's rainforests is responsible for a greater portion of global warming than the entire transportation sector!
But as we lose the rainforests we're not only exacerbating global warming, we're also losing all of the amazing diversity of life that has evolved there for millions of years. Scientists estimate we're losing over 130 species per day due to rainforest destruction. All the great apes and great cats are at the forefront of this issue with each of these species being critically endangered. You can make a difference in the future of these species by the choices you make in the furniture store–look for American made furniture built with sustainably harvested American wood.
Read more about our rainforest conservation efforts.
Vermont Fine Furniture Festival- Mark Your Calendar
It's hard to believe September is here already. The kids are back in school and even though it's a beautiful sunny 90F day here at Vermont Woods Studios, our minds are turning to Vermont's Autumn season and our many Fall fairs and festivals.
My favorite is the Vermont Fine Furniture Festival in Woodstock, VT. This year the dates are September 25-56, 2010 and it's in the Union Arena in Woodstock, VT. Many of Vermont's finest furniture makers will be displaying their work and giving you an insider's view of how authentic handmade wood furniture is crafted. You'll be able to meet the furniture makers and purchase handmade wood furniture off the floor or order affordable custom furniture to be crafted just for you and delivered directly to your home.
If you've ever been inclined to visit Vermont to enjoy the Fall weather and take in some leaf peeping, consider combining your trip with a visit to the Furniture Festival. While you're there, let the craftspeople know if you believe as I do, that Vermont is truly the Fine Furniture Capitol of America.
Vermont’s Handmade Wood Furniture: Catching On in California
I chatted today with a couple from California who came to Vermont this Fall to attend the Vermont Fine Furniture Festival in Woodstock, VT. June and Bob had found our website online this summer and when we told them about the festival, they decided to plan their vacation around it.
They were able to narrow down their selection of handmade wood furniture to three of our collections before their trip:
- The American Shaker Furniture Collection
- The Vermont-Made Shaker Furniture Collection
- The Cherry Moon Furniture Collection
Then after spending a week in VT, taking in several days of sight-seeing, leaf peeping and touring of furniture studios they made a final decision and placed their order. Now we are working with them to arrange shipping and delivery of their furniture. I can't wait to see how it will look in their house. Send photos, June!
Custom Wood Furniture: Top 10 Ways to get What You Want – Continued
Continued from yesterday.
- Select the furniture maker who has crafted pieces most similar to
what you're looking for. This is critical. It's much easier and more
affordable for them to customize something they've already designed and
built than to start from scratch.
- Ask the furniture maker about customizing existing pieces with your
choice of wood, finish, hardware, dimensions, molding, leg style and so
on. Note: there is a big difference between commissioning an original, unique custom work of art and customizing an existing piece of furniture.
- Discuss wood choices and characteristics with your furniture
maker. Are you trying to match this new piece with existing pieces in
the same room? If so, you may want to bring in that furniture or
photos of those pieces to the workshop.
- Discuss furniture finish with your furniture maker. Do you want a
natural oil finish or one that provides more protection against
moisture and perhaps small hand-prints and such. Or something in between. There are many choices to consider.
- Spend the time upfront to discuss the details of your furniture
order up-front with your furniture maker. Remember the old saying,
"measure twice, cut once". You don't want to have any surprises when it's time to install your furniture.
- Have fun and enjoy the process. Get to know your furniture maker.
His or her personality will be a significant part of the meaning of
your new heirloom!
- Looking for ideas? Check out the custom wood furniture at Vermont Woods Studios.
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