Thanksgiving

We’re approaching Thanksgiving. For many, it’s a time of celebration with family and friends. Which may mean for you supplying not only food, but also the means to stretch your space to accommodate company.

Here at Manchester Wood we have a few items we think would make great purchases this holiday season as the family visits for Thanksgiving.

Our always-popular TV Tray Tables make great additional space for dining, as well as our Gourmet Kitchen Island and Mission Carts, which make a great buffet or beverage station.

Regardless of these listed products and the over 100 more items we produce, our honest best wishes extend to you and yours this holiday season.

As always, Manchester Wood exclusively uses American produced solid hardwood lumber and craft our solid wood furniture in a small manufacturing plant at the foothills of the Adirondacks in upstate New York.

Living in your Rooms: Designing for the 21st Century

The objects we possess that hold special and important memories are the most natural and spiritual expressions of your unique “lifestyle.” Whether in art, pictures, or furniture, we hope the presence of our Manchester Wood pieces spark the same sense of positive creation in your day. After all, everything we showcase and use in our homes should accent and excite our life.

Some feel when designing rooms that a luxurious feel may mean not ideal comfort for the sake of artistic expression, but that’s not necessarily true. Luxury is found in making yourself and others completely comfortable, no desire felt by anyone to leave this oasis you created.

We believe through our coffee tables, end tables, slate-top or solid wood, tray tables, and bookcases, you’ll find the key ingredients to create a successful living space.

Your Living Room is in fact that, a room you live and share in. It’s important to think of all your rooms like that when designing and furnishing spaces. The exciting part is recognizing the change and growth you make as your rooms evolve to match the present you!

As we enter the cold months of the season here on the east coast, our outdoor interests in furnishings turn towards indoor, working on the scenery we hide in away from the cold. We hope you find what you’re looking for at Manchester Wood when designing your living spaces with quality products that will last generations.

All our furniture is proudly still made in America from solid hardwood in the Adirondack foothills of Upstate New York and the Green Mountain valleys of Vermont.

Entertainment Consoles: Introducing our 21st Century Living

Furniture changes as we do.

Our culture constantly moves and transitions to new popular ideas.

Contemporary Media Stand (shown with Chestnut finish)

Technology has greatly evolved in our living rooms, from once large and bulky television sets to now sleek, thin, lightweight flat screens. Our entertainment products are rapidly changing. Less has become more, and that includes the huge, clunky entertainment consoles finding their way out the door.

Shaker Entertainment Stand (shown with Golden Oak finish)

At Manchester Wood we’ve been designing and prototyping several versions of new entertainment furniture pieces, finalizing with three prized items for any living room.

First, our Shaker Entertainment Console, a shaker inspired conception, but with more flare and creative design, including a center cabinet with open storage space on either side to display your music or film collection.

Farmhouse Media Center (shown with Golden Oak finish)

We continue the country living theme with our next piece, the Farmhouse Media Center. It finds similarity to the Shaker Entertainment Console, but features two cabinets for your collections as well as convenient shelving for your cable box, DVD player, and surround sound controls.

Our Contemporary Media Stand is the most elegant piece of our new installments to entertainment furniture. It’s smooth and lustrous appearance finds appeal far beyond the country living theme. The simplicity and fine detail in design makes this a very alluring item in any room of entertainment.

As three items enter the market, we continue to strive for more in future collection work, but we find pleasure in discussing and providing you the fruit of our labor.

All of our products are proudly made in America with local solid hardwood to boot.
We hope you find what you’re looking for.

To view this collection, click here.

Our Anniversary Celebration

President Ed Eriksen with Grandson Levi listening as he makes opening remarks

Last week we celebrated 34 years of business at Manchester Wood.

A milestone we hold with great pride, but not as close as the individuals who have dedicated their time to its success.

Our celebration of years in service was highlighted by the recognition of our new 10-year and 20-year employees, an accomplishment and loyalty worth admiration.

Our President, Ed Eriksen, led the ceremony with stories of these highlighted employees, presenting gifts of thanks, stories, and roasting humor of memories past.

The first to be recognized were those beyond the years of the newly inducted.

Mike, Beverly, and Ed have been here since the inception, 34 years ago in Manchester, Vermont.

Carl, Tracy, Garnet, and Richard follow close behind with over 20 years of dedication. Accomplishments that were met with gratitude from fellow workers in the lunchroom festivities.

10-year employees L-R, Mark, Darcie, Ashley, and Laurie G.

Next up in the ceremony were our 10-year employees, Darcie, Mark, Ashley, and Laurie G. Memories were shared on their years in the business as Ed presented and acknowledged their service.

20-year employees pictured L-R, Virginia, Judy, and Jim

The spotlight now turned to our 20-year employees, with flowers on and wood block planes bearing their names, Virginia, Jim, Pat, Judy, Margaret, and Laurie joined a growing family of dedicated workers.

“There has been a lot of good times and challenging times, but it’s the dedication of all our employees that enable us to continue to move forward.” Mr. Eriksen explained.

Laughs shared during the roast, L-R, Jim, Pat, Margaret, and Laurie B.

After the stories and laughs, the ceremony came to a close, but a feeling remained throughout the day. There was a thankfulness that permeated around the office and plant, an overwhelming understanding of how far we’ve come as a company with much of our existence in tough economic times. The dedication of our workers is the catalyst for survival through the storms.

We continue to strive to make the finest solid wood furniture in America, we not only thank our employees, but you, our customers for your unwavering support.

It’s a thankful time in the history of Manchester Wood.

Shaker Furniture

A.J. Macdonald once commented Shaker furniture was originally designed in heaven and that the patterns had been transmitted to the Shaker people by angels. +

I can imagine that feeling Macdonald once had regarding early pilgrims of America started their new lives in a world open to possibility. This furniture line shows the religious order and simplicity of the time.

Shaker styled furniture has craft traditions rooted heavily in colonial New York and New England. Farmers, Mechanics, Small Tradesmen made up most of the consumer base for Shaker Furniture in early America. A humble, basic product, with a thoughtful development of design and craftsmanship is the essential character.

At Manchester Wood, our Shaker Collection touches on the history of its lineage in design adding contemporary appeal for the 21^st Century.

We hope you find the basic needs in life, especially in furniture, as much fun as we do!

+John Humphrey Noyes. History of American Socialisms, pp. 602-603.

Home Office

There is nothing too exciting for most to talk about when discussing the “Home Office.”

It has become a huge part of our existence though. A necessary step as we continue to grow with technology and work at a near constant. For better or worse.

Our Shaker Desk

As folks that do work at home from time to time, we understand how important the proper setting is for you.

From our Desks to Printer Carts, Bookcases and Stands for further space and inspiration; our items cover a great assortment of the essential fixtures.

Our Home Office Collection features Shaker and Mission furniture styles, a more natural and country accent allowing for a tranquil, peaceful setting in a sometimes hectic work mode.

All our products are solid wood with handcrafted quality at a reasonable price.

We hope this collection reminds you of what’s most important while giving you the proper tools for your ongoing masterpiece in life and work.

Our Console Bookcase

The Slate Valley

We recently visited The Slate Valley Museum in Granville, NY to further understand the fascinating history on one of the World’s richest slate deposits. The photos shown in this article, and much of the below information can be kindly found at the Museum. Please visit their website for more information.

His Grandfather is top row, 4th in from right, arm around friend (Courtesy of The Slate Valley Museum)

In preparing this article, one of Manchester Wood’s great friends and hardworking mechanics took a look at a picture from The Slate Valley Museum. It was a picture from the early 20^th century, dating back to the 20’s.

Upon looking it over, he cracked a smile and said:

“I don’t know if you’d believe me, but that’s my Grandfather right there.”

Drawing his finger down on the image, pointing in delight to a smiling young man.

Many peers and colleagues in our community work or once worked in the slate mines. We love the material they produce, not just for our products, but also for its countless other uses.

“The Slate Valley” as it’s called, is a region over twenty miles long and extends six miles wide along the New York/Vermont border from Granville, NY to Rupert, VT, and north to Fair Haven, VT.

In the early-to-mid 1800’s, slate was discovered in the area.

“The roof of a barn one mile south of Fair Haven was the first to be covered with slate in 1848. It was feared the barn would not withstand the weight of the stone. The barn is still standing today and the same slate roof is intact.” (The Slate Valley Museum Website)

Slate quarry strikes were riddling Wales, so in 1850, the first Welsh immigrants arrived. They came with experience in the art of mining. Slate companies began forming.

(Courtesy of The Slate Valley Museum)

The immigration of workers increased as the industry boomed through the early 1900’s.

From Poland, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Italy, Ireland, Hungary, and later Canada. Hardworking families arrived from all over the World, seeking the abundance of American life.

We’re happy to have known some of them, and even prouder to have their lineage working under our roof.

At Manchester Wood, we’d like to thank The Slate Valley Museum and join them in “paying tribute to these workers and their families and to preserve their way of life and their many contributions to the fabric of human history.” (The Slate Valley Museum Website)

To view our Slate Top Collection (using locally mined slate), click here.

To visit or learn more about The Slate Valley Museum, click here.

(Courtesy of The Slate Valley Museum)

Solid Wood Cherry Furniture

We mentioned earlier in a previous article how we produce much of our furniture with White ash, but we’ve recently stretched further into North American Hardwoods with the use of Cherry.

Although White ash is the “premier species” for strong, durable wood, Cherry has similar attributes, but also carries a beautiful natural finish that White ash has a hard time competing with.

The beauty in finish is not all that makes this wood so remarkable.

Cherry is a prolific seeder.

Not only does it seed well in its current habitat, but it continues to spread in North America as well as into Mexico, even now, Brazil.

It’s a highly prized wood, but only represents a very small percentage of total lumber production.

In fact, its amazing growth in America points to several reasons.

Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers, Inc. has cited one interesting reason.

They mention that birds help in assuring the fast spreading seeds of future Cherry trees.

The tree provides many birds with a steady diet, but those seeds that drop from the sky tend to find a new home to grow in.

Take a look at our Solid Cherry Collection, and see how beautiful this wood is.

We also thank the birds and other natural cycles that have allowed this tree to grow to our present use and continuing prevalence.

Kids Furniture!

Children tend to be the forefront of most lives, and for good reason.

They’re our future, reflected beings of us, carrying on the ancient tradition.

We need them, and they need us.

Sometimes I wonder if we need them more.

Encouraging active participation from our kids is extremely important. Whether it’s to build their budding confidence, engaging in something with elders, or preparing them for the unexpected.

At Manchester Wood we started a Kids line not just because we love them, but also because they wanted to sit in an Adirondack Chair like Mom and Dad!

So after popular kid demand, we’ve introduced the Kid’s Adirondack Chair and Kid’s Morris Chair, partnered products to the grown-up pieces.

The line has continued to grow, and will over the next years to come.

Check out our Kids section by clicking here, I hope they find what they need!

A Manchester Wood Collection: Jelly Cabinets

The land in America is abundant, no doubt about that.

Early in the 19^th century the United States started to find it’s identity.

Immigrants, stragglers, hustlers, and revelers looking to answer this thing we call Life.

Ready to grab it by the horns, and ride it   to death, laughing in victory.

Jelly Cupboards and Cabinets became a household staple to our early pilgrimage.

The popularity of the item grew from New England, spreading as far West it could.

It wasn’t a hard sales pitch.

By 1830, everyone seemed to be eating jelly.

Grape, Mint, even Jalapeno jelly in the Southwest would find storage in the kitchen.

At Manchester Wood we participate in the tradition of Jelly Cabinets, and are proud to offer these pieces, a part of early American culture.

Click here to see our collection.