Reminiscent of turn of the Centruy Craftsman Style furniture, the "Mission Oak" collection combines characteristic Craftsman construction detailing with a warm "Mission Oak" finish.

Today's furniture requirements are different than those of the early 1900's and, as Mission furniture gains popularity in America, pieces become increasingly expensive and hard to find. That's why quality reproductions that combine skilled woodworking and authentic materials true to the era are of great value.

Mission furniture is usually solid oak, peg construction, straight line style and dark finish. Gustav Stickley developed this style of furniture. Barbara Streisand and Louie Anderson are famous collectors of mission furniture.
Particularly prized are the pieces created by the Stickley Brothers in the early part of this century
Gustav Stickley developed the style of antique furniture referred to as Mission. It is most often oak, simple, squarish and often of peg construction.
Gustav was the oldest of five Stickley brothers (Gustav, Leipold, Charles, Albert and John). This brother's work shows adaptations of Gustav's style. Gustav's pieces are highly prized.

His factory was the Craftsman Workshop at Eastwood, N.Y. from the 1890s to 1915. Some of his marks were a very early red decal with joiners compass and "Als Ik Kan", paper labels and a branded mark.

Stickley's first entry into Mission (a term he despised) furniture production was with the Tobey Furniture Co. As the new style debuted at furniture trade shows Gustav Stickley realized that he wanted to run this as his own venture. The new style embracing simple lines and honest construction he first fell in love with in England, was far more than just a new design trend to him. It was a awakening of his rural background and entrepreneurial business spirit. This drive eventually thrust him to the forefront of the American Arts & Crafts Movement.

Going, going gone. Saturday in December 9, 1989 the gavel hit the block at Christie's Auction house 23 times in New York City, dispersing the furniture which had remained with Gustav Stickley’s Craftsman Farms for seventy-nine years.

Enthusiastic collectors bid on these lots fully aware that this was Gustav Stickley’s furniture. At the front a detailed floor plan pinpointed each pieces location within Craftsman Farms walls. Lots 4 and 5 were each titled, "An Important Oak Corner China Cabinet." And the pieces were noted to have been "produced by the firm of Gustav Stickley for the interior of his Craftsman Farms Home, Morris Plains, New Jersey, circa 1909." The cabinets, triangular in shape and with four static interior shelves and beautiful hand wrought copper pulls, were custom built for Gustav Stickley’s dining room.

But, in 1989 the recently incorporated Stickley museum -- The Craftsman Farms Foundation, Inc. -- was unable to bid on these cabinets. And so the corner cabinets slipped into Barbara Streisand’s Arts and Crafts collection.

Ten years later the corner cupboards have come full circle. On November 29, 1999 they were once again in a Chrisite's auction. The Foundation marked its tenth anniversary as an institution by returning the pieces to their original location in the dining room of Craftsman Farms.

The corner cupboards anchored Gustav Stickley’s dining room and provided both a central focal point and useful storage and serving space. The cabinets contained a mixture of the family’s glassware, dishes, linens, silverware, and trays. Some pieces are of Gustav Stickley’s manufacture, such as the 20" #346 tray tucked on the bottom shelf, but many pieces simply reflect the family’s taste. The cabinets also provided decorative space, adorned with two ceramic two handled vases, a Russian kettle, and a chafing dish among other small pieces.

A November 1905 article in The Craftsman, "The Dining Room As a Center of Hospitality and Good Cheer," outlines the philosophy Gustav Stickley brought to life at Craftsman Farms "A well-arranged dining room, more than almost any other room in the house, rejects any but the absolutely necessary furnishings....the shining array of silver, glass, and china on sideboard, shelves or plate-rack leaves nothing lacking in the way of appropriate ornamentation." Each of the details is critical to the room’s composition and to the interpretation of Craftsman Farms. Stickley’s philosophy as put forth in Craftsman Homes put the dining room next in line to the living room, as "the center of hospitality and good cheer, the place that should hold a special welcome for guests and home folk alike." (portions of an article at www.the Gustav Stickley Museum)