Looking for authentic handmade wood furniture, made in the good 'ol USA? It's not so easy to find it anymore, is it? Most Americans think of North Carolina as the fine furniture capitol of the USA, but over the past 30 years, that has changed. The furniture companies we think of as being quintessentially American -- for example Thomasville, Broyhill, Ethan Allen and Lane -- no longer make much, if any furniture in the USA. Instead they outsource their furniture to factories in China, Vietnam and other third world countries.
So where does one go to find authentic, high quality, handmade wood furniture? It turns out that Vermont is now considered by many to be the fine furniture capitol of the country. By unofficial count, some 2000 small wood furniture makers dot the rural Vermont countryside, taking advantage of the heavily forested nature of our state for supply of natural, eco-friendly raw materials.
Vermont has traditionally been home to a vibrant cottage industry of artisans, working in all types of media, including native hardwoods. Wood furniture makers from all around the globe flock to Vermont to practice their craft in the Green Mountain state. A thriving community of woodworkers has developed, bringing together Vermont families who have practiced woodworking for many generations and newcomers who have brought new and different aspects of the craft to the area. Shoppers come from around the world to shop in the small furniture studios and showrooms belonging to these craftsmen and women.
Furniture aficionados will find Vermont furniture shopping to be quite a different experience than the routine trip to a neighborhood big box furniture store. Savvy customers are combining their furniture shopping with travel and tourism throughout Vermont's rural countryside. The autumn leaf-peeping season has become the time of choice to shop although visitors are welcomed year-round. To learn more about Vermont's handmade wood furniture shopping, check out the Vermont Fine Furniture Festival, held in the Union Arena, 496 Woodstock Rd # 3 (Route 4) in Woodstock, VT every year during the last week of September. This year the dates are September 25-56, 2010. Over 100 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 made. 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. While you're there, be sure to let the craftsmen and women know your opinion: is Vermont truly the Fine Furniture Capitol of America?
Find options and tips for buying handmade wood furniture, built to order in America, at Vermont Woods Studios.
Visit Peggy Farabaugh's Furniture Blog for consumer advice on buying American made eco-friendly, natural hardwood furniture.
