Author Christian Becksvoort, a contributing editor of Fine Woodworkingmagazine and an experienced custom furniture maker and restorer, examines the Shakers' faith in relation to their furniture. Becksvoort believes that "understanding Shaker furniture requires understanding the faith of the people who created it." In addition to covering the classic Shaker pieces - the ladder-back chair, trestle table, and built-ins, Becksvoort points out subtle variations in design that existed from community to community. The author's intelligent account of the Shakers and their furniture, combined with hundreds of full-color photographs make The Shaker Legacy a beautiful tribute to these talented craftsmen and their enduring designs.
Ejner's first volume in a series of three fine books includes 90 detailed drawings and the professional advice you may need to execute these Shaker designs. Along with the other three volumes, your shop library will be complete. Over 100,000 copies are in print over 20 years and three volumes. See our info on volumes two and three below!
This is Ejner Handberg's second volume in a series of three authoritative books on Shaker furniture and woodenware. You will enjoy the clear, concise drawings, and informative descriptions of Shaker designs. Handberg, a native of Denmark, was a cabinetmaker in Massachusetts for many years. This book serves as a unique manual that any woodshop, or furniture collector should have at their side.
This is Ejner Handberg's third volume in a series of three authoritative books on Shaker furniture and woodenware. You will enjoy the clear, concise drawings for clocks, sewing tables, desks, racks, mirrors, shelves, and more. Ejner gives his typically informative descriptions of Shaker designs. Handberg, a native of Denmark, was a cabinetmaker in Massachusetts for many years. This book serves as a unique manual that any woodshop, or furniture collector should have at their side.
Thomas Moser supplies his unique philosophical approach to classic Shaker designs in this handy, inexpensive volume about how to build Shaker furniture. Accompanied by the hand-drawn illustrations by Christian Becksvoort, Moser's techniques help you realize an authentic wood shop product. Highly reccommended.
This is my personal favorite on the subject, with over 400 illustrations and beautiful photographs. This book should be used in any furniture history course. Covering over 150 years of Shaker furniture history, the book's major strength is in determining from where a piece originates, and who made it. Especially unique are the discussions about wood joinery, special mouldings, and finishes. Shakercrafts.com Shaker Book of the Month!
This book is a must-have for any craftsperson interested in producing accurate, and historically relevant Shaker style basketry. McGuire's introduction to the tradition behind Shaker basketry will have you making traditional baskets of high quality and artistic merit.
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Published in 1995, The Architecture of the Shakersis an authoritative book on Shaker architecture. The author avoids complicated discourses in favor of clear, and concise descriptions of Shaker design principles, and how the buildings fit into their respective spiritual and social context. Morgan's photography reveals interesting views of classic Shaker buildings. This book makes a great addition to a library or den, as well as a great gift.
"Here are effective and practical ideas on how to re-create the simple elegance and harmony of Shaker style, whether you want to create a whole new look, or simply apply some typical Shaker touches to an existing room. The book offers suggestions for choosing colors, fabrics, woodwork, furniture, and accessories and provides practical step-by-step projects for each room of your house." amazon.com
This beautiful museum publication covers the famous exhibition curated by William Thrasher. Kindred Spirits ties together the Shaker and Japanese cultures by revealing the amazing similarities in how each fabricated objects of functional intent with a pure, clean, and simple aesthetic. The book features approximately 200 objects of furniture, tools, basketry, textiles, and utensils. If you missed the exhibition, you must have this book. It's quite a unique profile of these distant, yet related cultures.
Due to popularity, this title has been reprinted and is available in paperback. Sprigg is a recognized expert on Shaker art and design. Her insightful and comprehensive book is complimented by the clean, well-illuminated photography of Michael Freeman. A must have for anyone interested in getting a solid introduction to Shaker design.
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When True Simplicity is Gained: . . .takes the reader on a quest for the spiritual and Christian side of the Shakers. The author is a famous theologian, whose writing opens a new dimension to the traditional silver print photographs of Michah Marty. The pictures are some of the finest to date on the subject of the Shakers. Most are taken at the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill in Kentucky, perhaps the finest restoration of a Shaker site. The book makes an excellent gift, as well as present to yourself.
This is a delightful little book with an informative foreward and rare photographs. The "Guide" is essentially a facsimile of the 1844 original, which was published in Canterbury, New Hampshire. Given that the Shakers accepted orphans, and other disadvantaged characters from all backgrounds, this manual for teaching proper manners reveals the etiquette for worship, dining, cleanliness, and other aspects of educating a young Shaker.
"This is a simple story that means the world to me," June Sprigg writes by way of preface to Simple Gifts, her memoir of a summer spent with the last seven residents of a New Hampshire Shaker community. It is a fitting motto for the serene, unadorned lives of these women - "members of an endangered species," as one of the elderly sisters wryly says, referring to Sprigg - a girl who at 19 was "half in and half out of the egg." As Sprigg spends the summer guiding tours, working alongside the sisters, and poring over old journals, a portrait emerges of a community that remains vital even during its twilight years. More than just a profile of a historical curiosity, this memoir tells the stories of seven remarkable but very different women, and in the process offeres an invaluable testimony to the life of the spirit put into joyous practice. Through her lively text and drawings and her intimate connection with the community, Sprigg brings us close to its people with a book that both enlightens and inspires.
These revealing photographs show a unique view of Shakers at work, at play, and at worship. The high quality photographs are reproduced faithfully.
Maps of the Shaker West . . .received the Educational Excellence Award from the Ohio Association of Historical Societies and Museums in November of 1998. The book is a one-of-a-kind documentation of Shaker sites, which, in their day, were considered "western". The influence of the Shakers in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan is cited in this excellent book.
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Discover the folklore and science behind the Shakers' use of herbs as medicine. Their respect for the body and mind is reflected in this recently published book.
The Shakers developed a wide reputation for marketing their seeds and medicinal herbs. Many Elders traveled out into "the World" to sell Shaker products thousands of miles from their villages. Only with a keen respect for organization, neatness, and quality tools could the Shakers accomplish their goals in gardening and food production. This book is not only packed with color photographs, it also includes quotations from actual Shaker gardening manuals and journals. Rita Buchanan is a recognized expert on herbs and their uses, and she provides an in-depth view of contemporary Shaker gardens.
An important cookbook on Shaker dishes, Seasoned With Grace is packed with recipes from Eldress Bertha Lindsay. Her personal notes give rise to the many wonderful breads, pastries, soups, sauces, beverages, and more. Archival photographs of Shaker cooks, and dining arrangements convey a particular sense of joy.
The Earth Shall Blossom is a multi-purpose book which profiles the Shaker seed industry and herbal medicinal applications. Shaker garden designs and theory are accompanied by color photographs of contemporary herb gardens. It is little-known that the Shakers were accomplished healers, and actually produced various extracts, pills, ointments, wines, and waters. You will be forever astounded at the recipes and instructions for domestic herbal uses. Also included are over 60 illustrations and photos, and a list of resources for creating your own gardens for growing beneficial herbs.
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The author, Etta Madden, is an Assistant Professor of English at Southwest Missouri State University. Books of Lifeinvestigates the harmony the Shakers "invented" between the religious or spiritual side of human existence, and the unique place of equality between the sexes in utility and duty. This fine book is a must for the informed reader.
Stein's book gives the most comprehensive account of the Shakers, and "Shakerisms" available on the market. Through 554 pages and 57 illustrations, the book spans the founding of Shaker principles by Mother Ann Lee to the closing of most societies. His discourse on the future of the "world of Shaker" is most interesting now with the oncoming millenium. This book is a curator's reccommendation.
Flo Morse provides a concise historical overview of the Shakers suitable for the beginning learner, or for those who are already familiar with the society. Wonderful drawings and photographs accompany this compact book. The Story of the Shakers is a must-have for anyone considering researching the Shakers, or for those who wish to simply gain an understanding of this important religious society.
Measured Drawings of Shaker Furniture and Woodenware v. 1by Ejner Handberg
Shop Drawings of Shaker Furniture and Woodenware: Measured Drawings v. 2by Ejner Handberg
Shop Drawings of Shaker Furniture and Woodenware: v. 3by Ejner Handberg
How to Build Shaker Furnitureby Thomas Moser
The Complete Book of Shaker Furnitureby Timothy D. Rieman, and Jean M. Burks
Basketry: The Shaker Tradition: History, Techniques, Projectsby Henry Peach (Photographer), John E. McGuire
Architecture, Art, and Design
The Architecture of the Shakersby Julie Nicoletta, Bret Morgan (Photographer)
Essential Shaker Styleby Tessa Evelegh
Kindred Spirits: The Eloquence of Function in American Shaker and Japanese Arts of Daily Lifeby Martha W. Longenecker, William Thrasher, June Sprigg
Shaker: Life, Work, and Artby June Sprigg, David Larkin (Contributor), Michael Freeman (Photographer)
Photography, Memoirs, and Maps
When True Simpicity is Gained: Finding Spiritual Clarity in a Complex Worldby Martin E. Marty, Micah Marty (Photographer)
A Young Shaker's Guide to Good Manners: A Facsimile of a Juvenile Guide, or Manual of Good Mannersby Flo Morse (Editor) and Vincent Newton (Editor)
Simple Gifts: A Memoir of a Shaker Villageby June Sprigg
A Shaker Family Album: Photographs from the Collection of Canterbury Shaker Villageby David R. Starbuck, Scott T. Swank, Inc Shaker Village
Maps of the Shaker West: A Journey of Discoveryby Matha H. Boice, Dale Covington, & Richard Spence
Cooking and Herbs
Shaker Medicinal Herbs: A Compendium of History, Lore, and Usesby Amy Bess Williams Miller
The Shaker Herb and Garden Bookby Rita Buchanan
Seasoned With Grace: My Generation of Shaker Cookingby Eldress Bertha Lindsay, Mary Rose Boswell (Editor)
The Earth Shall Blossom: Shaker Herbs and Gardeningby Galen Beale and Mary Rose Boswell
Historical and Religious Studies
Bodies of Life: Shaker Literature and Literacies (Contributions to the Study of Religion, No. 52)by Etta M. Madden
The Shaker Experience in America: A History of the United Society of Believersby Stephen J. Stein
The Story of the Shakersby Flo Morse
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