Modern Amish Furniture Styles: Something for Every Furniture Lover

Modern Amish Furniture Styles: Something for Every Furniture Lover 

Is Amish solid hardwood furniture limited to traditional styles like Mission and Shaker? There was a time when this may have been the case. But those days are long gone. Today, Amish furniture designers and cabinetmakers are creating modern designs that will look great in just about every trendy house or apartment.  Amish cabinetmakers build modern pieces of furniture with the same superior craftsmanship, solid woods, and other quality materials as they do with traditional furniture. Presenting Modern Amish Furniture Styles: Something for Every Furniture Lover. And you can shop for Modern Amish furniture plus other styles online.

What is modern furniture?

Modern furniture is a style of furniture that originated in the early 20th century. Its characteristics include the prominence of natural wood, a clean, minimalist look, non-traditional shapes, and the novel use of materials. This means you should be able to find modern furniture pieces that will fulfill your needs and desires. Also, you can get modern furniture for every room in your home.

Who is Modern furniture designed for?

With its clean lines, modest look, and focus on functionality, modern furniture is designed for homeowners who love simplicity, practicality, and a trendy flair. Modern furniture designs place emphasis on simple lines, geometric shapes, and the lack of excessive ornamentation. Also, this type of furniture incorporates neutral colors, natural materials, and even industrial-looking metals. These features make Modern furniture a natural choice for a wide variety of interior designs and lifestyles. In addition, because Modern furniture places a lot of attention on functionality and practical use it tends to make good use of space. So, Modern furniture is great for townhomes, plus smaller homes and apartments. What’s more, Modern furniture appeals to homeowners who like a highly organized, uncluttered look and feel. No wonder so many traditional and trendy homeowners are choosing Modern furniture!

Is Mid-Century furniture considered Modern?

Yes. The Mid-century – with its clean lines, organic shapes, functional look, and lack of decorative embellishments – is widely considered to be a subset of the Modern style. The style emerged in the middle of the 20^th century and reached its peak in the early 1960s. Mid-Century furniture often incorporates natural materials such as wood, metal, and glass. Most often, the style utilizes neutral colors, but sometimes incorporates touches of vibrant colors. Today, Mid-century enjoys the distinction of being contemporary with a retro feel.

Does modern Amish furniture use solid wood?

It certainly does in the Amish Furniture space. Amish builders create modern furniture using solid hardwoods like oak, maple, cherry, hickory, and walnut. Amish craftsmen showcase the beauty of natural hardwood through the furniture pieces they construct. This includes furniture that’s stained and polished with excellence. Conversely, some pieces are built to show off the ruggedness of reclaimed wood. These pieces are complete with visible saw marks, nicks, knots, and live edges.

Is a clean, minimalist look part of modern furniture design?

Absolutely. Modern furniture typically features a clean, plain look that emphasizes straight or flowing lines; a sleek, uncluttered appearance; a lack of embellishments or intricate details. Stated differently, modern furniture embodies a ‘less is more’ approach to design, one that emphasizes function and practicality over ornamentation and complexity.

Are non-traditional shapes part of modern furniture design?

Yes. Non-traditional shapes such as squares, rectangles, and circles are often incorporated into modern Amish furniture designs. For example, Mid-Century cabinets feature a bold, rectangular shape and splayed legs. Some Amish-designed coffee tables are pear-shaped, while the accompanying end tables are triangular with rounded corners. And not to be outdone, one table, called the S End Table, has an S-shaped profile. Amish furniture dealers offer a plethora of furniture options representing a variety of non-traditional shapes.

Does modern furniture design include novel use of materials?

Yes. Amish cabinetmakers create some modern furniture pieces by integrating new materials and also by using old materials in new ways. For example, many new furniture designs feature chests, dining tabletops, and occasional tables made of solid hardwood fused to a metal base. Similarly, some office computers and reading desks now come with a solid hardwood top and a metal base. This gives the pieces an industrial look. In addition, you can order Amish-fabricated dining tables with a tabletop made of solid hardwood that has gaps filled with epoxy in a variety of shades. The epoxy fusion makes each table unique and enhances its eye appeal. What’s more, many items – such as occasional tables and TV cabinets – integrate wicker, plastic, and other materials into their designs.

Are modern furniture themes incorporated into traditional styles?

Yes. Modern furniture styles are frequently incorporated into traditional styles, giving furniture owners the freedom to buy trendy furniture, yet retain the timeless look of many traditional pieces. This fusion of styles manifests itself in two ways:

First, furniture designers modernize traditional furniture by incorporating simple themes with traditional furniture. For example, in creating the Tersigne Mission Collection, designers retained the clean lines and stately, ‘hefty’ look of the Mission style and infused modern, minimalist features like flat drawer fronts, long, thin chrome hardware, and a dark stain. Similarly, Amish furniture designers created the Berwick Mountain style by retaining the simple, unembellished elegance of the Shaker style, along with round wood knob hardware and splayed feet. However, they spruced up the look by giving the piece a tapered profile and splayed feet, as shown in the Berwick Mountain Master Chest.

Second, Amish designers add a modern flair to some pieces by incorporating materials like leather, metal, and wicker. For example, in the Mission Slat Bench with Baskets, woven wood baskets add a casual, modern touch.

Bottom line: If you like a traditional style of furniture and would like it to have a modern touch, you should be able to find it among the wide selection of choices.

Will Modern furniture get out of style soon?

Not very likely. Individual trends in furniture design might come and go, but core elements of modern furniture, such as a clean, minimalist look, non-traditional shapes, and the novel use of materials, are likely to remain. This means the pieces of Modern furniture you own are likely to be in vogue for the foreseeable future.

Can you find modern Amish furniture online?

Yes. Several Amish furniture retailers sell modern furniture pieces representing a variety of designs. One of these retailers is e-Amish Furniture. E-Amish offers finished heirloom-quality Amish furniture from their vast inventory. Or, you can order pieces with customization. And e-Amish delivers your furniture fast through their Quick Ship program. Also, for more information on heirloom-quality Amish furniture, check out Why Amish Furniture? Your Grandkids Will Thank You!. And to find out more about buying furniture online, visit How to Buy Amish Furniture Online.

Is modern Amish furniture heirloom quality?

Yes. Due to a number of reasons, including superior craftsmanship, use of solid hardwood and other quality materials, timeless designs, and uniqueness, most deem modern Amish furniture heirloom quality, built with higher standards. This means the pieces of modern furniture you buy now should, with proper care, be around long enough that several generations will enjoy them.