Shaker Bedroom Furniture

The Shaker style is probably one of the most well-known of furniture styles. Original antique Shaker furniture is, of course, highly collectible and unafordable for most of us. However the general approach and design principles have influenced many manufactures and many people like to buy modern "Shaker style" furniture.

The Shakers

The Shakers were a Christian movement that evolved from the English Quakers in the 18th century. Their official name was the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing.

They were known for celibacy, an ascetic approach to life and for their work ethic. Their acts of worship were accompanied by dancing and sometimes extreme trembling and shaking that led to their nickname.

The Shakers arrived in America - New York - in 1774 under the leadership of Ann Lee.

Their work ethic meant that they were prolific and skillful builders. Their designs - from the smallest piece of furniture to the largest building - followed the basic principles of simplicity and utility.

What Is Shaker Furniture?

In keeping with their general aseticism, the Shakers rejected the concept of beauty for its own sake. A thing was beautiful if it did its job and where it was "fit for purpose". This approach was encapsulated in the phrase beauty through utility.

In many ways this Shaker philosophy can be seen as a forerunner of the "form follows function" approach popularised by Louis Sullivan and later adopted by Modernists such as Le Corbusier.

Shaker furniture - whether in the bedroom or elsewhere - is thus simple and functional, free from any excess adornment. Clean lines and simple materials are standard.

For the Shakers, making furniture was in essence an act of worship, a physical expression of their faith, ideals and beliefs.

The Shaker style of furniture remains popular today, even though the Shakers themselves now number a mere handful.

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