Mission Furniture: How to Make It

I recently bought this book because I was intrigued by its old-time style. It is a reproduction of three old how-to manuals from the early 1900's. The preface states that the writing was left alone, but that the indexes and page numbering were altered to make sense in this volume. I am well pleased with this purchase because of what it is and what it is not:IT IS - a great collection of Mission Style furniture plans, complete with materials lists and drawings to give a modern furniture maker plenty of ideas for design.IT IS NOT - a basic how-to manual which spends half of the book explaining the basics of tools and workshop safety. It is also not a step-by-step cookbook for building the furniture listed. In many places, this book states that you should save time by having the lumber dealer surface and cut all of your stock to size to save time and effort! (apparently this was cheaper in 1910!)The real value of this book is as an idea generator and an aid to someone trying to design their own furniture. It also provides some interesting insights into finishing practices common to this furniture in the good old days. Check it out, its worth a look.

I purchased this book expecting to find plans for various types of Mission-style furniture and that is exactly what I found. In addition, information on finishing wood in the authentic style is included.