Mission style furniture was inspired by the simplicity of Spanish missions.
Mission style is a design of furniture that became popular in the late 1900s that featured clean, simple lines with a utilitarian feel. The style was inspired by the elemental, rustic furnishings of the early Spanish missions in California, with the term "Mission Style" coined by Joseph McHugh, a San Francisco furniture maker, according to Mission Style Furniture Online. The style is associated with certain types of wood, as well as particular construction methods. Does this Spark an idea?
About Mission Style
The hallmark of Mission styling is its functionality and simplicity. It developed as reaction to the ornate styling of the Victorian period that preceded it. Clean vertical and horizontal lines, the showcasing of the wood grain and the use of elemental brass or wrought iron hardware make Mission style furniture versatile in both traditional and contemporary decors. Woods are varnished, never painted, and upholstery is always a natural material such as canvas or dyed leather. Wood colors may be dark or light. Gustav Stickley is one of the early premier names in the building of Mission style furniture in the United States. Stickley and his brothers produced furniture from the early 1900s until 1940.
Traditional Wood for Mission Styling
Oak furniture was most often used in the construction of Mission style furniture. Its sturdiness and attractive grain patterns made it a natural for this type of styling, which highlighted the intrinsic pattern of the material, enhanced by simple lines. Quartersawn grain is generally used for traditional Mission style furniture because of its straight, tight grain appearance. This type of graining is very stable in terms of the expansion and contraction of the grain in moist or humid conditions. Plainsawn grain is wider and more open, attracting the eye to the graining instead of the artistic quality of the piece itself. It is also subject to more cracking than Quartersawn grain, according to the Black Timber Furniture. Quartersawn grain costs about twice the price of Plainsawn lumber.
Other Woods for Mission Furniture
Though white oak is the traditional material for Mission style furniture, as seen in Stickley's work, contemporary artisans often use other woods, such as black walnut or black cherry wood. These woods have graceful grain patterns and good natural color, as well as textures that lend themselves to working into Mission styling. Mass-produced Mission style furniture may be made from any type of wood.
Antique Mission Style Furniture
True Mission style furniture is recognized by its rectangular shape, sturdy construction and exposed mortise and tenon joints. The look of the furniture is often severe, with no ornamentation, and a functional appearance, consisting of top-grade white oak that would be too expensive to make today.
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