Rustic Furniture: History and Popular Styles
Posted By admin on November 18, 2010
Plainly stated, rustic furniture has the ability to making us happy by providing the joy of having beautiful furniture, as well as the joy of knowing that we have made a good investment.
The wide variety of rustic furniture available today lets you to select between the various popular styles such as Southwest, Mexican, Adirondack and twig using the style that best matches your current décor. After the willow, the woods that are most used for twig rustic furniture, are pine and log. Though cleaning and care and maintenance of your Rustic Furniture is not difficult and does not require special products cleaning, you do need to follow some basic instructions below.
If you have bought, inherited or received your rustic furniture as a gift and want to ascertain its value, special appraisers are available who can provide you with approximate values and appraisal documentation.
What Exactly Is Rustic Furniture?
In late 1800′s America, wealthy families like the Rockefellers, Vanderbilts, Morgans kept second homes in the country and the mountains. In these rural homes, some of the furniture was very simple and rough in comparison to the expensive pieces of furniture found in their city homes.
“Rusticating became a popular expression in the mid to late eighteen-hundreds. Well-heeled city folks developed elaborate country retreats and cabins (many were called “camps”) and “rusticated” during the summer.” (log furniture directory .com)
Today, rustic furniture is understood to be furniture that is both hand-made and untreated. “”Rustic furniture is… furniture with a soul. Rustic furniture pulls together elements of nature – while craftsmen using special tools and inventive designs, create functional furniture that is as appropriate in a backwoods cabin as it is in a contemporary home or office…It evokes a memory of an earlier era when people fashioned their furniture from nature to serve their needs. A distressed appearance of some rustic pieces adds character, charm and a individuality not found in other furniture styles. Rustic furniture is warm, creative, and practical and it speaks to our appreciation of human genius and resourcefulness.” (log furniture directory .com)
Why Choose Rustic Furniture?
The statement “Rustic furniture is not for everybody”, is just not true. You simply need to learn to how the different styles fit and practice mixing and matching with your current furniture.
What is “beauty” in rustic furniture? First is the richness of the natural, unpolished wood. Rustic furniture is composed of a certain roughness which brings to mind the Old West. There is also “the sense of strength and power, which furniture with delicate legs and refined designs do not offer you.” (moms rustic furniture .com) Rustic Furniture is that it is practical. Every piece has a use while at the same time is beautiful, bold, elegant and simple.
Finally, Rustic Furniture owners are able to appreciate the workmanship that went into each individual piece and be sure that there isn’t another piece of furniture exactly like theirs anywhere else in the world. “As most log furniture pieces are hand-made, each one is a unique piece that cannot be exactly replicated. Another thing that leads to the uniqueness of each piece is the distinct characteristics of each individual log that is used in the piece. Hand-made rustic log furniture really is a work of art.” (moms rustic furniture .com)
Types of Rustic Furniture
Rustic Furniture comes in a wide variety of styles. Some of the most popular styles are Adirondack , Mexican, Southwest and Twig. The kinds of woods most frequently used in the manufacture of rustic furniture are log and pine. The kind of wood used for twig furniture us usually willow or bentwood – not from the Weeping Willow tree, which is a rather popular misconception.
Original Mexican rustic furniture comes from the towns of Durango and Chihuahua. The furniture is a mix of a Spanish, Mayan, Indian and even some Arab influence, and is made from soft Mexican pine. “Mexican furniture is a blend of formal Spanish colonial styling and native Mayan design. The rich ornamentation and iron scrollwork of the Spanish adorns simply constructed, straight-lined cabinets and tables reflecting the designs of the Mayans.” (furniture style .net)
The Adirondack Mountains, located in up-state New York, are considered the birthplace of this type of rustic furniture. It was in these mountains where the wealthy of the Northeast retreated to get away from it all. Their homes were furnished with pieces from local artisans. “Native artisans used the materials of the region -stones, logs, twigs, and roots – to create simple, rustic designs for chairs and gliders. Teak, birch, cedar, hickory, and oak-the woods indigenous to New York — were frequently used, often in combination to create a multi-hued design. Although many pieces looked basic, they were actually quite intricate. Ingenious inlaid designs and natural accents made each piece a work of art in itself. Many such pieces have survived and are highly collectible.” (furniture styles .net) The most popular rustic piece of furniture is the Adirondack chair, which is still found in homes today.
Southwest rustic furniture has its origins in the region of the United States from which it gets its name. Similar to its Mexican cousin, this type of furniture was built with functionality in mind. Southwest rustic furniture design is a mixture of Spanish and Indian influences. “The appeal of Southwest design furniture is its contrast between the rough materials and finish, and the truly beautiful and elegant lines of the design…Southwestern furniture is a unique blend of the rustic and the ornate, combining the elegant traditions of Old Spain with the “make do” tradition of the pioneers of Early American history.” (furniture styles .net) From the Southwestern style we have derived rustic furniture styles known as Mission, Ranch and Prairie.
Furniture made from twig and willow is very long lived. When the natural color of the wood dulls, you can paint or stain it to make it look brand new again. The willow is grown specifically for furniture making in France, Italy, Sicily, Madeira, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Austria, Russia and the United States. “The best willow furniture is the lightest in weight because the least wood is used in the making of it. Almost no nails are used as the plaiting of the willow holds the wooden braces in the legs and under the seats.” (furniture styles .net)
Maintenance, Care and Cleaning
Don’t be fooled into thinking that because you own rustic furniture, it does not need maintenance, care and cleaning. Taking care of this type of furniture is rather simple. NEVER use soap and water for this causes the grain to rise. “Always dust with a polish moistened cloth. Polish cushions the cloth, eliminating the scratching that occurs with dry dusting. Dust will scratch the furniture surface if not removed properly. Use a soft, clean cloth that won’t scratch the surface. Avoid coarse or scratchy materials or fabrics. Be sure to use the same type of polish consistently. Your furniture will appear cloudy or streaky if oil-based and wax-based polishes are interchanged. Always use a fine furniture polish when dusting. Never dry dust, as it could case microscopic scratches on your furniture surface. Remember to change dusting cloths frequently since a dirty cloth may scratch your furniture’s surface. Spray your furniture surface evenly, but not too generously. Wipe in a circular motion with a soft, clean cloth to clean and loosen the old polish. Then, buff until completely dry for a beautiful shine and a smudge-resistant finish. For wood trim, spray polish on the cloth first, then dust. ” (rustic furniture plus .com)
Appraising Rustic Furniture
You may have purchased a piece of rustic furniture at a flea market or was left some as an inheritance. How do you know if it is worth any money? Usually, there will be appraisers in your area to contact to come and see your piece of rustic furniture and provide you with its value. “In the Midwest the only company to provide appraising services is Chicago Appraisers (www.chicagoappraisers.com)… If you would like chicagoappraisers.com to appraise antique furniture for you, $695.00 – $895.00 minimum house call for the greater Chicago area. This can include numerous items. For out of state clients where a home visit is impractical or those that have just one or two pieces of antique furniture, chicagoappraisers.com can often work from photos. Minimum fee is $195.00 – $295.00 per item.” (moms rustic furniture .com)
About the Author
Jodie Barr and the OrderStorm, Inc. team write rustic furniture content marketing articles and press releases on behalf of La Fuente Imports, http://www.lafuente.com. La Fuente is a large online importer of Southwest rustic furniture.
For more information on Mexican furniture, rustic furniture, and prices on rustic furniture, please visit our rustic Mexican furniture informational site.
For more information on Mexican furniture, rustic furnitures, and prices on rustic furniture, please visit our rustic Mexican pine furniture informational site.
For more information on Southwest furniture, Southwest rustic furniture, and prices on rustic furniture, please visit our Southwest rustic furniture informational site.
For more information on Southwest furniture, Southwest rustic furniture, and prices on rustic furniture, please visit our Southwest furniture informational site.
Comments
Leave a Reply