AMISH FURNITURE DEFINITIONS
You may find confusing or strange terms in our product descriptions or blog posts. Below you can find some common furniture and Amish Furniture phrases or terms used to describe our Amish Furniture products and their features.
- Mullion: Wood strips that divide the panes of a window or a glass door.
- Shiplap: Boards with tongue and groove edges that when put together provide a strong interlocking piece (for example the back of a piece of furniture like a hutch or cabinet).
- Table Leaf: A matching piece of wood that allows a table top to be extended typically by 12 inches. Certain tables are designed to store the leaves inside the table right under the table top (self-storing leaves).
- Table Skirt: A piece of wood trim that is placed under the table top around the outer edge and serves to cover up some of the underside of the table. Table leaves may come with or without a skirt.
- Knife Hinges: A type of hinge that looks like two blades of a knife. This hinge is hidden and allows the door to open all the way.
- Mortise and Tenon Construction: The mortise and tenon construction is a type of tongue (tenon) and groove or hole (mortise) where tenon (tongue) is cut at the end of a rail and a mortise (hole) is cut into and all the way through the other joining piece of wood. These joints add strength to the construction of furniture.
- Corbels: Bracket of wood used as a support (usually supports table top extending beyond table legs).
- Cheval: A Cheval mirror is a full length mirror supported by a frame and four feet.
- Quarter-sawn compared to plain or regular oak: The two terms refer to the way the oak wood is cut. Quarter-sawn cuts are made at a 90 degree angle to the growth rings in the tree which results in a more uniform grain pattern. Typically, this type of cut expands and contracts less with humidity changes than does the regular oak cut. The quarter-sawn cut is less efficient (less wood can be harvested from each tree) and therefore is more expensive than the regular cut. The regular or plain oak is cut with the growth rings of the wood instead of at a 90 degree angle to the rings. This cut produces the familiar wavy cathedral look in many oak products.
- Grommets: A metal ring or cover with an opening that fits into and protects the hole used to put wires through furniture (such as a desk top or in the back of a desk).
- Handcrafted: Something that is built by and with hand and hand-held tools rather than an assembly line process (i.e. mass produced).
- Foam Information: IFD -The defined measurement of firmness of a polyurethane foam cushion is measured by a physical property called the indentation force deflection (IFD). This measurement is evaluated through an industry test and should just be one comfort consideration when selecting the right cushions for your purpose. Density – Foam density is a specific measurement of how much weight in pounds polyurethane foam can handle per cubic foot. This density rating tells you the strength of the foam. It should not be used exclusively as a sign of durability or comfort, because firmness and lifespan of foam products like mattresses and cushions, depend on many factors.
