Practical Wedding Registry Tips and Ideas

Practical Wedding Registry Tips and Ideas

by | May 10, 2019 | Customization, George's Furniture, Gifts, Tables, Wedding Registry

Wedding Registry

Wedding season is almost here! The months of June through September are the peak of this exciting event. You probably received an invitation or two to an upcoming wedding celebration. Tucked neatly inside the invitation, is a meaningful piece of information—the wedding registry.keepsake box wooden handcrafted furniture lancaster york wedding registry

The wedding registry is a very exciting endeavor for the bride and groom alike. However, many couples only think about registering for items they need right now. The truth is, over time, the household needs change and the items on a registry should be just as practical today as they are in the future. Many couples opt to have children, and open their home for the holidays. Perhaps, an aging parent or family member will need to move in.

Ultimately, couples find they entertain more and more in the years to come. So, the items on the wedding registry should recognize the changes life brings and accommodate those changes. Therefore, a balanced wedding registry is crucial. Include plenty of options reflecting a wide-range of prices. A good rule of thumb is to register for more gifts than guests. Guests want to choose the gift they like to give.

Furniture Overlooked

When preparing a wedding registry, you think of things like measuring cups and spoons, flatware, dinnerware, a Kitchen-Aid mixer, laundry baskets, and other necessary household items. Although these items are important and certainly necessary, a crucial, overlooked category on the wedding registry is furniture.

Many couples hesitate to ask for larger-ticket items such as a bed, a desk, bookshelves, sideboard, or a dining room table.custom made Walnut blend extension table They don’t realize that friends and family want to “pool” their funds to provide the newlyweds with a larger, long-lasting and more exciting gift. While bowls break and spoons are lost, furniture typically stays with a couple for many, many years. High quality furniture built right, will become a heirloom!

Register at George’s

Did you know that George’s Furniture offers wedding registries? Brides and grooms can create their registry together at George’s! Couples design their own piece of solid wood furniture while creating their dream living space for their new home! George’s offers a variety of pieces and sets in various styles and stain colors.

Imagine a specially-designed piece of furniture!

When you inform the guests of your registry about George’s, they can call in or mail their gift and the gifts will be placed on your account. Come and create your own unique piece of furniture made your way!

shaker pencil post bed handcrafted bedroom furniture lancasterAt George’s Furniture, we believe in crafting handcrafted solid wood furniture that will stand the test of time. Please contact us to set up your registry.

Also, remember that registries are not to be limited to weddings! A new baby coming or a special anniversary? Contact George’s to set up a registry to bless the new arrival (think rocking chairs, dressers, and twin beds) or to celebrate landmark anniversary!

Amish Furniture

Amish Furniture

by | Apr 19, 2019 | Customization, George's Furniture

Amish Communities

Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Indiana are home to the largest Amish Communities in the United States. The Amish lifestyle consists of plain clothes, horse and buggy, no electricity, one-room schoolhouses, and farming. Over the years they developed a reputation for their quality quilts, furniture, baked goods, and produce. In fact, in 2015, about 8.34 million visitors to Lancaster County directly spent $1.97 billion, creating a total tourism impact of $2.64 billion in the county.

Quality Compromised

Over time, marketing replaced craftsmanship. While a few Amish craftsmen are still producing quality furniture, many stores market Amish furniture devoid of the quality buyers expect. As the perception of the quality  Amish furniture increases, the natural result is an increase in demand.  This increase brought new systems and processes which dropped the quality of the product.  They compromised when materials such as cheaper stains, protective coatings, glue, or hardware.  They left the old process of construction behind while newer methods of cheap assembly take over.  These newer methods, which use assembly lines and computerized machines, compromise excellence for the convenience of efficiency.  Consequently, the quality of hardwood furniture is lost along with the buyers ability to customize their product.

Furniture Experts

Furniture experts pinpoint pieces displaying true quality, handmade Amish furniture. The untrained eye, however, sees little or no distinction.  While Amish craftsmen are talented, rarely is the resulting piece considered by furniture experts as constructed by a Master Craftsman. Why does this matter? Furniture crafted by a Master Craftsman ultimately become heirlooms.

Master Craftsmen

Heirlooms are pieces constructed to withstand the test of time and passed down to the next generation. mission raised panel bed custom made furniture store in lancasterFurniture designed, crafted, and assembled by master craftsmen endure the normal wear and tear of daily life. While George’s craftsmen are not Amish furniture makers, we are Master Craftsmen. George’s master craftsmen build each piece to suit the needs of the buyer now and in the future.  Forever cherished assets.

George’s Difference

each custom furniture is signed by craftsman who made it from start to finish craftsman's signature constructed in lancaster county furniture storeAt George’s Furniture, one craftsman uniquely crafted each piece – signed and dated.  100% Pennsylvania hardwood construction—no plywood here!  Each item is built-to-order, custom made to your specifications.  Visit our showrooms and see the furniture manufacturing! Time-tested construction for over 50 years…that’s the George’s difference.

Top Furniture Trends in 2019

Top Furniture Trends in 2019

by | Mar 15, 2019 | George's Furniture

In an ever-changing world with ever-changing styles, how do you create a space in your home that reflects your personality, your likes and interests, and captures the essence of who you are? It’s not an easy thing for most of us to do, but furniture trends and buying trends are leaning toward one thing: buyers prefer products that have a story behind them.

Many people today are gravitating toward the unique, one-of-a-kind specialty items that no one else has. Custom design and design your own are often searched in the world of online shopping. It seems we no longer crave the off-the-shelf, in-the-box options. We are looking for handcrafted authenticity.

Handcrafted authenticity is a growing trend in furniture in 2019. Designer Andria Mitsakos states in this Elle Decor article that, “A return to handcrafted authenticity, especially when it comes to furniture and decorative arts versus buying mass produced pieces will be much more popular in 2019.” In the same article, Joy Cho, founder and creative director of Oh Joy! states, “A trend I see in furniture is a move towards handmade, custom pieces. People want to know the stories of where their pieces came from. They want to know who made it and what process was involved.”

In addition, Architectural Digest reports that, “In what might come as little surprise to those designers who have watched their clients (and, likely, themselves) grow weary of the array of easily accessible offerings presented by e-commerce over the past few years and instead yearn for more unique finds, a desire for custom and one-of-a-kind items topped the survey results. Nearly half of designers polled (49 percent) plan to source artisan-made, one-of-a-kind pieces in 2019, up from 42 percent last year. Meanwhile, 58 percent say they customize the pieces they source for clients, up from 44 percent last year.” (You can read the full report here.)

Not surprisingly, in an interview with Carla Aston of Carla Aston design, HGTV found that “Darker woods are getting more attention and being used in ways that are clean and simple, yet refined.”

For almost 50 years, George’s Furniture has been bringing to life our client’s furniture dreams using solid wood with time-tested assembly methods. This ensures our clients get their perfect piece. Each piece of George’s custom-made furniture is handcrafted right in our workshop then signed by its maker. There is no factory assembly line – just skilled craftsmen who lovingly follow each piece from the selection of the lumber to the final detail.

See for yourself the handcrafted authenticity of George’s Furniture. We offers tours of our woodshop and showrooms Monday through Friday. Come visit, hear our story, meet our craftsmen, and design a custom piece of solid wood furniture just for you.

 

Cherished Heirlooms

Cherished Heirlooms

by | Feb 16, 2019 | Customization, George's Furniture

Cherished Heirlooms

In a day of instant access to anything we want, we forget the timeless characteristics such as craftsmanship, detail, quality, and durability. Sometimes, the best gifts, cherished heirlooms, are not bought from a franchise, or added to an online shopping cart.

Cherish – Hold Dear

To hold as dear, to treat with tenderness and affection is the meaning of the word cherish. When we cherish something, it is important to us, special and irreplaceable. Often, the things we cherish cannot be bought from a store. We cherish family, friends, and the memories we make together. Similarly, heirlooms are cherished because they remind us of the good times.

Common Thread – Well made

An heirloom is a piece of furniture, an article of jewelry, a special dish, or other movable item. Heirlooms, passed down from generation to generation typically share a common thread — they are well-made, designed by craftsmen to withstand the test of time. Heirlooms, that are passed on were used regularly by their original owners. As a result of the quality and skill craftsmanship, Heirlooms survived hard use and are still able to be passed from generation to generation.

Adjusts to moisture changes

At George’s, we design custom made pieces to become cherished heirlooms. That’s why we give so much individual attention to each project. It’s the small important details that make a piece last for generations. For example, each piece is constructed to adjust to moisture changes — between seasons and different climates. Because each piece is constructed with solid hardwood and uses time-tested joinery methods, the wood furniture adjusts as the seasons change, even if you decide to move to a different climate! George’s furniture is assembled to allow adjustment to moisture changes without affecting the construction of the piece.

Lasts to long

For more than 47 years, our owners and craftsmen have watched as our furniture pass from one generation to the next. A common question is how it is possible for the furniture to last so long! The answer is by working with the natural characteristics of solid wood.  Solid hardwood moves naturally.  Construct furniture with the ability to move and you have a piece of furniture that will endure for many years.  A great example is our dining tables. A young families purchased their dining room table from us. When the children grew up, the table passed to the next generation. This new generation carries on the legacy of gathering around the table, just as they did when they were young!

It’s our hope that the same excellence, beauty, and craftsmanship that inspired the initial generation to purchase from George’s Furniture will result in a gift given to the next generation as a cherished heirloom—a keepsake for generations to come.

Conserving Forests through Draft Horse Logging

Conserving Forests through Draft Horse Logging

by | Jan 19, 2019 | Forestry Management

To continue our series on conservation, George’s Furniture takes a look at Draft Horse Logging, which has made a resurgence in the logging industry.

With the cost of new, modern forestry equipment landing in the triple digits, it’s no wonder that forestry workers have taken a second look at the draft horse as a means to operate a low-overhead, lucrative logging operation. While most horse-pulled logging still requires at least one piece of heavy equipment, scaling back on machines and logging with horses has been successful for many loggers worldwide.

Draft work horse

The draft workhorse, be it a Belgian, Percheron, or other draft breed, can cost around $3,000-$5,000. This is compared to the staggering $25,000- $500,000 cost needed for logging machinery. This workhorse will typically have a 6-year career, and has a perk that a machine never will—it can be bred. In fact, according to the Small Horse Journal, draft horse power costs just $3-$17 per horse hour. While the horse comes with its own expenses (food, veterinary care, stable/pasture, harness, etc.), the lower cost of the draft horse means that the logger does not have to produce near the output that heavy logging equipment must just to cover overhead expenses. And, obviously, horses don’t break down.

Benefits

 

A Percheron demonstrates his logging skills at the 2019 Pennsylvania Farm Show.

But it’s not just the cost that loggers benefit from, it’s the technical benefits of horse logging that many have fallen in love with. Logging with heavy machinery requires clearance, level ground, and hundreds of acres to be profitable. Many times, historic or preserved forests, research areas, and the topography around steams are closed to heavy machinery, but they are not closed to horses. Horses can easily climb steep hills and log on uneven ground. Unlike heavy machines, they don’t damage fragile waterways. Horses also do not disturb the forest’s topsoil. In short, the draft horse can reach areas that machines cannot.

Environmentally friendly

The other obvious benefit of draft horse logging is that it is environmentally friendly. The draft horse does not burn fossil fuels, emitting fumes and toxins into the air. With rising gas prices, draft horse owners are spared the expense of fuel and the inconvenience of running out of fuel on the job. Rather, the manure of the horse benefits the forest by replenishing nutrients in the soil which feeds the forest’s flora. The weight of the draft horse does not damage the fragile root systems of the forest as a heavy machine would.

Logging with horses also has another benefit that stands apart—the strongest trees of the forest are left standing, which results in a healthier forest for both the landowner and logger. While draft horse logging still leaves a skid trail, instead of the trail being the width of a machine (often 10 feet wide or more), the skid trail is the width of the horse and the log it is pulling, as little as 3 feet wide. In short, the draft horse logger leaves very little trace that he was even there.

Economic Benefits

The economic benefits for both landowner and logger are indisputable. Often, the landowner saves thousands of dollars by using draft horse logging simply because of the difference in overhead expenses. However, draft horse logging is typically relegated to logging forests that are less than 200 acres.

Another unique benefit of using draft horses for logging is that recreational trails can be created by using them. For landowners allowing visitors to use their land for hiking or cross-country skiing, using the draft horse to create paths allows for variety that machinery can’t provide—crossing streams, going up and down steep terrain, navigating through thick vegetation and around rocks.

Downsides

There are downsides to equine power versus machine power. For one, efficiency drops. A single horse must pull the logs out of the forest one at a time, while a machine can pull as many as 20. Horses also require a truck to transport it’s logs to the mill which means the forest must have road access somewhere. The horse logger must be selective about the trees he logs to be sure that he remains profitable, where machinery does not have to be as selective.

However, all of these potential downsides have a counterbalance—horse logging is sustainable, allowing high quality trees to grow which results in a healthy forest and a healthier long-term profit. The trees that would be cut down by machinery just so the machinery can “get through” is able to remain standing and to grow with draft horse logging. These extra years of growing produce extra profit since the trees are stronger, larger, and thus more valuable when sold. This extra value and extra profit can be seen especially when a landowner has a special tree, such as a birds-eye maple or hardy walnut (which are often used for furniture). The cost of logging and moving the unusual tree to sale is significantly cheaper with the draft then it would be with the machine. These high-quality trees go from a tree to a finished product sustainability and profitability, benefiting all parties involved in the transaction.

Conserving natural resources

Just as the draft horse logger helps to conserve our natural resources, George’s Furniture is committed to doing our part in caring for our environment. Using hardwoods native to our region such as Cherry, Red Oak, Maple, and Black Walnut goes a long way in ensuring both quality for our customers and low environmental impact. We take extra measures to ensure that our wood is harvested at the right time and to rigid specifications. When you design your furniture with George’s, you can be assured that our craftsmen are conscious of minimizing waste. The wood for your furniture is carefully selected, processed with care, hand-turned where possible, and meticulously assembled for proper fit and finish.

Works Cited:

https://www.mylittlesalesman.com/news/horse-logging-advantages-over-forestry-equipment Accessed 1/12/19

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/horse-logging-central-newbrunswick-1.4228945 Accessed 1/12/19

https://www.treefarmsystem.org/bulletin-bring-some-horsepower-to-your-logging

Accessed 1/12/19

https://smallfarmersjournal.com/the-cost-of-working-horses/ Accessed 1/12/19

https://www.thebalance.com/why-are-gas-prices-so-high-3305653 Accessed 1/12/19