Field Trip

About a month ago, on one of those gloomy weekends I mentioned, Chris and I took a Sunday drive up north to Loudonville, Ohio. We were in search of a furniture store that we'd read about that carries handmade Amish furniture. So off we went, not knowing what to expect but in the end, very impressed with what we found. Loudonville is a very typical small town, not near any major cities and surrounded by rolling hills and farmland. The best part of the trip was after we exited I-71 and hit the back roads.

We spent a lot of time browsing through the store, upstairs and down in an old rambling building that reminded me of many of the antique stores we've visited. The sales staff left us alone until we needed help (it's always nice not to be dogged by an overly zealous sales person) and we finally decided on a roomy dresser. They call it a Mule Chest, which I tried to research - where does that term come from? Couldn't find an answer. It will be custom made for us since they don't keep anything in stock. They take an order from a customer, notify the particular craftsman that makes that piece to begin work to our specs (I requested a different stain on the trim) and call when ready to be picked up, anywhere from 8 -12 weeks depending on which pieces of furniture have been ordered. So somewhere in central Ohio, an Amish woodworker is making our new mule chest! We should be able to pick it up at the end of June.

The style is simple, sort of Arts and Crafts style. We've just bought the bottom half, not the top part. Both pieces together are enormous - much more than we needed, especially since our bedroom is small. The knobs and the trim around the top edge were stained (painted?) black on the dispaly piece and I've asked that it all be natual medium oak. This will be by far the nicest furniture that we've ever bought and it should last a lifetime. Beautiful! And made in the USA!