Most people get a sort of vague idea about wooden furniture, but beyond that-how can you tell which furniture is Amish and which furniture is not?
Mission Furniture
Mission is one of the most popular styles of Amish furniture. Often mission style furniture will have doors that are arched. Sometimes mission style furniture has crown molding on the top of it to help complete the furniture's "look."
Contemporary Furniture
The most noticeable characteristic of contemporary furniture by Amish carpenters is the cleanliness of the design. Some furniture designers have also been developing a style of contemporary furniture that involves both wood and metal.
Shaker Furniture
The most obvious characteristic of Shaker Amish furniture is the overall feeling of the furniture being box shaped. Shaker furniture doesn't bother with decorating the legs. Like contemporary furniture, the shaker style is also filled with clean and straight lines.
Queen Anne
The Queen Anne style of Amish furniture is most easily identified in the table pieces.
Amish Furniture In The Modern Home?
I sat out on my porch one night, thinking of articles to write about and mentioned to a friend how the popularity of Amish furniture had seemed to be growing. “Especially if they sell Amish furniture over the internet,” he added. “The Amish don’t even believe in the internet!”
If it is a small, independent seller they may trade with actual Amish craftsman on a regular basis for their wares – but certainly not warehouses full of “vast selections at great prices!”
“No,” I told my friend “authentic Amish furniture would likely be sold on a much smaller scale. “THIS, I explained, could account for some actual, traditional Amish furniture available in retail for corporate gain.
If the Amish furniture were made by men trained in Amish carpentry, by Amish fathers, uncles, brothers, grandfathers, or other members of the community – it would thus be authentic. There are, as I mentioned, few Amish teens who explore the world outside the haven of all they have ever known and decide to remain there. This article is all based on a conversation and speculation based on what I know of the Amish people and their traditions.