Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010
Continuing from Monday…
Stickley’s furniture featured rectangular lines and was usually made of oak that was lightly stained to showcase the wood’s grain. Leather and canvas was used instead of heavy tapestry on seat cushions. Stickley took pride in the fact that he never used nails or glue as fasteners in his furniture pieces. Instead he had visible tenon-and-key joints, exposed tenons, and visible dowels as fasteners. Using these intricate techniques dated back to medieval times and made the Stickley Mission furniture extremely unique and in high demand.
Gustav Stickley considered himself a “craftsman” and published his own magazine called “The Craftsman” from 1901 to 1916. In it he promoted his principles of furniture design, mostly that pieces should be comfortable and well made, and practical too. Always supporting the Arts and Crafts movement, he often stressed the importance of choosing furniture that was more cost effective rather than luxurious.
Despite his many successes in furniture design, Stickley’s creations were subjected to unauthorized knock-off’s which eventually helped put him out of business. In 1915, Gustav Stickley filed for bankruptcy and closed his factory for good. The great news is, that despite his demise, the Mission style furniture still lives on today!
At Grand Furniture Gallery you will find a wide selection of Mission style furniture for every room of your home. Stop by today to see the beautiful bedroom sets, dining sets, office furniture, entertainment centers, armoire/TV Console, occasional tables and pub table and chairs that are available. We offer a variety of sizes and colors to choose from so it is easy to create the perfect Mission style room. Stop by our showroom to see what will inspire you with our quality furniture that is made in North Carolina!
Tags: Arm Chairs, Bed, Bedroom, Chair, Chest, Coffee Table, Computer Desk, Den Furniture, Dining Room, Dresser, Family Room, Grand Furniture Gallery, Living Room, Night Stand, Occasional Furniture, Pub Table, Side Chair
Posted in Bedroom, Bedroom Furniture, Dining Room, Family Room, Home Entertainment, Home Office, Home Theatre, Living Room, Master Bedroom, Occasional Furniture | No Comments »
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010
Like many other styles of furniture, the wicker and rattan furniture style has a varied past. It has been reported that wicker furniture first arrived in America along with the pilgrims aboard the Mayflower. The American wicker furniture industry can be traced back to one American in particular. Back in the 1850’s, a grocer named Cyrus Wakefield found large amounts of rattan while visiting the shipping docks at Boston harbor. The strips of rattan were used as straps to hold cargo in place in ships traveling out of Asia. Although he had never seen this material before, he was fascinated by it. He soon decided to sell his grocery store and instead form the Wakefield Rattan Company, which made hand-made baskets and furniture out of this new type of material that he had discovered. It did not take long for Wakefield to have entire cargo ships of rattan being shipped from Asia for his new business adventure. By the 1860’s, with virtually no competition, the Wakefield Rattan Company grew tremendously and was the leading manufacturer of rattan furniture in America.
After the Civil War, the largest wood chair manufacturer in the United States wanted to try their hand at creating rattan furniture. The Heywood Brothers hired an inventor who created a machine that was able to weave the rattan into beautiful furniture pieces. This new invention allowed the Heywood Brothers to offer their furniture at low prices to consumers. After years of competition, the two furniture giants merged in 1897 and were then called the Heywood Brother and Wakefield Company. This powerhouse company remained the leading manufacturer of quality wicker furniture until the late 1920’s.
Please check back Friday for the conclusion.
Tags: Accent Furniture, Chair, Coffee Table, Dining Room, Family Room, Grand Furniture Gallery, Kitchen, Living Room, Loveseat, Ottoman, Pub Table, Rattan, Side Chair, wicker
Posted in Accent Furniture, Dining Room, Family Room, Kitchen, Living Room, Patio & Garden Furniture, Wicker & Rattan | No Comments »
Monday, January 11th, 2010
Decorating a small living room, whether it is in a house or an apartment, can be a challenge for some people. It is easy to overcrowd a room with bulky furniture that can make the room look small and cluttered. By making a few simply design compromises; it is easy to make a small living space feel like you are living in a larger living space so you don’t feel cramped.
Here are a few tips to help you…
A room will always look smaller when you cannot see the majority of the floor space that is available. Consider moving furniture out and away from all walkways. Shorter pieces of furniture such as an ottoman, low table or armless chairs will also make the room appear larger than it is. Tall pieces of furniture should always take their place alongside a wall as well. When considering the paint that you will use on your walls, try to keep it within the same color family as any upholstered furniture that you have in the room.
Using mirrors in interior decorating is a trade secret. The days of having a wall of mirrors in the room are long past; but you can make any room look larger by placing a large framed decorative mirror at most any location within the room. Mirrors are not only functional; they also serve as a great way to reflect both natural and artificial light within a room. All rooms will look larger if they are well-lit. It does not matter the light source, so if the lack of windows are a problem, no worries, artificial lighting can still do the trick!
Please check back on Wednesday for the conclusion.
Tags: Arm Chairs, Chair, Coffee Table, Grand Furniture Gallery, Living Room, Mirror, Ottoman, Sofa
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Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009
Deciding what type of coffee table to put in front of your sofa can be an interesting decorating challenge. There are several factors to take into consideration. In most living rooms or dens, the sofa is likely the largest piece of furniture in the room. Coffee tables provide a perfect place for you to place items that you want to keep within reach, or even a place to rest your weary feet at the end of a long day.
Coffee tables come in a wide variety of sizes, heights, and materials. You can find them made from natural wood finishes, veneers, metal, and glass top varieties.
There are a few things to consider when picking out the perfect coffee table though. You should take into consideration the size of the room and the size of the sofa when you are purchasing a coffee table. You would not want a small dainty circular glass top table sitting in front of a large chunky leather sofa set. In contrast, a small room would look cramped if you had a large dark square coffee table dominating the center of the room as well. The right size coffee table should fit nicely in front of the sofa as an accent piece and not dominate the entire room. The great news is that when you are making your decorating choices, you don’t need to exactly match your coffee table to the fabrics or even the style of your sofa.
The Cantata Burnished Cherry 2 Drawer Cocktail table would make a beautiful addition to any living room group. It is nicely priced at $390 and is made of Poplar hardwood solids and Birch veneers. This delightful table has two drawers that are lined in felt which add additional storage to a room.
Grand Furniture Gallery has a wonderful selection of occasional furniture that will add elegance to any home environment. We offer a wide variety of quality North Carolina furniture pieces at prices that cannot be beat!
Tags: Accent Furniture, Coffee Table, Grand Furniture Gallery, Occasional Furniture
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