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Furniture Style Guide

Jacobean (1600-1690)An English style of furniture, which is medieval in appearance with straight lines, rigid designs, sturdy construction, ornatecarvings and a dark finish. Much of the early American furniture was patterned after this style.

Early American (1640-1700)Rudimentary utilitarian furniture made from local woods. It was brought from or modeled after European furniture styles,particularly from England, France, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and Spain.

William and Mary (1690-1725)Named after William and Mary of England (1689-1694). It has Dutch and Chinese influences and is characterized by trumpetturned legs terminating in a ball or Spanish foot, padded or caned chair seats, and Oriental lacquer-work.

Queen Anne (1700-1755)Named after Queen Anne of England who reigned from 1702-1714. The Queen Anne style is a refinement of the William andMary style with a moderately proportioned, graceful appearance. It is characterized by cabriole legs terminating in a pad ordrake foot, fiddle-back chair back, and bat wing shaped drawer pulls.

Colonial (1700-1780)Combined the furniture style characteristics of William and Mary, Queen Anne, and Chippendale. Colonial furniture tended to bemore conservative and less ornate than English and European furniture of the same style period.

Georgian (1714-1760)Named after George I and George II who reigned England from 1714-1760. Georgian furniture is a more ornate version ofQueen Anne. It is characterized by heavier proportions, elaborately carved cabriole legs terminating in a pad or ball-and-clawfoot, ornate carvings, pierced back splats, and the use of gilding.

Pennsylvania Dutch (1720-1830)A simple, utilitarian American country style of furniture with Germanic influences. It is characterized by colorful folk painting oncase pieces.

Chippendale (1750-1790)Named after British designer and cabinet maker Thomas Chippendale, who published his furniture designs in "The Gentlemanand Cabinet Maker's Director" in 1754. The Chippendale style can be classified into three types: French influence, Chineseinfluence, and Gothic influence. In the United States, the Chippendale style was a more elaborate development of the QueenAnne style with cabriole legs, ball-and-claw foot, and broken pediment scroll top on tall case pieces.

Robert Adam (1760-1795)Named for architect Robert Adam who studied ancient architecture in Italy. While in England, he designed furniture withclassical details that would fit the character of his classically designed homes. The Adam style was limitedly reproduced bycabinetmakers in the United States. Adam interior millwork and woodwork was reproduced in South Carolina.

Hepplewhite (1765-1800)Named after English designer and cabinetmaker George Hepplewhite whose designs in "The Cabinet Maker and UpholsterersGuide" were published posthumously in 1788. The Hepplewhite style is neoclassic and was reproduced in the United Statesparticularly in the Carolinas, Maryland, New England, New York and Virginia. It is characterized by a delicate appearance,

tapered legs and the use of contrasting veneers and inlay.

Federal (1780-1820)Combined the neoclassic furniture style characteristics of Hepplewhite and Sheraton. It is characterized by graceful straightlines, light construction, tapered legs, and the use of inlay, and contrasting veneers.

Sheraton (1780-1820)Named for English designer Thomas Sheraton who published his designs in "The Cabinet Makers and Upholsterers Drawing Book" in1791. It is a neoclassical style characterized by delicate straight lines, light construction, contrasting veneers and neoclassical motifsand ornamentation. The Sheraton style was the most reproduced style in the United States during the Federal period.

Duncan Phyfe (1795-1848)Named after American cabinetmaker Duncan Phyfe. The Duncan Phyfe style is considered by some art historians as more of anadaptation and refinement of Adam, Sheraton, Hepplewhite, and Empire than a style in itself. It is characterized by carved or reeded

legs and neoclassic motifs.

American Empire (1800-1840)Patterned after French Empire with classical influences. It is moderate in proportion with classical ornamentation, coarsecarving, and a dark finish.

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Shaker (1820-1860)A simple and utilitarian style produced by the religious group, the United Society of Believers, in self-contained communitieswithin the United States. It is characterized by straight tapered legs, woven square chair seats and mushroom shaped woodenknobs.

Victorian (1840-1910)Named for Queen Victoria of England who reigned from 1837-1901. The Victorian style draws its influence from gothic formswith heavy proportions, dark finish, elaborate carving, and ornamentation. The Victorian period was the first furniture style ofmass production.

Arts and Craft (1880-1910)The Arts and Craft is characterized by simple utilitarian design and construction. Arts and Craft style furniture is also referred toas Mission.

Art Nouveau (1890-1910)A naturalistic style characterized by intricately detailed patterns and curving lines.

Scandinavian Contemporary (1930-1950)A simple utilitarian design style in natural wood popularized by Danish and Swedish designers.

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Pennsylvania Dutch (1720-1830)

Pennsylvania Dutch is a simple, utilitarian American country style of furniture with Germanic influences. It is characterized bycolorful folk painting on case furniture.

Appearance

Simple - Straight lines, simple design, and littleornamentation.

(Contemporary style shown)

Chair Arms

Simple turning or flat - Arms are straight with asimple turning or are flat.

Straight - Arms are straight and perpendicularto the chair.

Chair Back Material

Wood - Solid wood, horizontal slats, verticalslats, or vertical splats.

Chair Back Shape

Ladderback or Slatback - Equally spacedhorizontal flat slats, either straight or curved.

Solid - One piece or solid panel chair back.

Chair Leg

Cabriole - Curved leg in the shape of ananimal's leg. The cabriole leg increased thestability of seating pieces and reduced theneed for underbracing.

Round - Round, usually shaped or turned leg.

Simple turning - turned leg with a few types ofturnings.

Square - Flat surfaced leg on all sides.

Straight - Straight leg, vertical to chair seat.

Tapered - Straight leg gradually decreasing in

width.

Chair Seat Material

Leather - Animal hide.

Rush - Woven rush.

Upholstered - Cushioned and covered withfabric.

Wood - Various types of wood.

Chair Seat Shape

Square - Square shaped seat.

Drawer Pull

Loop Handle - Bail handle without a backplate, 3.5 to 4.5 inches wide.

Turned Wooden Knob - Elongated, turnedwooden knob, often 3 inches long and 1.25inches in diameter.

Wooden Mushroom-Shaped Knob -Mushroom-shaped wooden knob, often 1 inch

high and 1.5 to 2.5 inches in diameter.

Fabric

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Leather - Material made from the tanning ofanimal hides.

Finish

Paint - Opaque, pigmented finish thatobscures the grain of the wood.

Wax - Paste finish over a sealer, stain, or barewood.

Foot

Ball - Rounded ball-shaped foot.

Bun - Rounded foot, flatter than a ball foot.

Continuation of leg - Leg does not terminateinto a foot.

Pad - Simple, rounded carved foot.

Hardware Material

Iron - Grayish-brown metal with a dull finish.

Wood - Various types of wood, carved orturned.

Joint

Dovetail - An interlocking wood joint in which aseries of wedge-shaped projections fits into aseries of alternating grooves.

Mortise and tenon - Wood joint in which aprojecting tenon of one board is fitted into amortise or hole of another board.

Line

Cyma or S-Curve - S-shaped curve, partlyconcave and partly convex.

Straight - Straight lines.

Motif

Floral - Flowers, such as roses, sunflowers,and tulips.

Sunflower - Daisy-like flower.

Tulip - Cup-shaped flower.

Ornamentation

Carving - Cutting or chipping the surface ofwood to create a shape or design.

Paneling - Raised, recessed, and framed

panels.

Spindle - Turned pieces, split vertically oftenaffixed to the front of case furniture.

Stenciling - Painting through a template tocreate a shape or design on the underlyingwood surface.

Proportion

Medium - Moderate dimensions.

(Queen Anne style shown)

Underbracing

Moderate - Moderately proportionedstretchers.

(William and Mary style shown)

Wood

Black Walnut - Dark brown American

hardwood with a wide range of figures.

Oak - Gray-brown American hardwood.

Pine - Yellow to pink-brown Americansoftwood.

Tulipwood - Pink-yellow hardwood with red

striping used in inlays; also known aspinkwood.

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