Craftsman Style
Rooted in the ideals of the Arts and Crafts movement—simplicity, integrity of materials, and respect for hand craftsmanship—the Craftsman style emerged in the early twentieth century as a distinctly American response to industrial excess. Furniture maker, publisher, and architect Gustav Stickley was its most influential champion, promoting a preindustrial aesthetic that celebrated honest construction and functional beauty. The style took its name from the influential magazine he published between 1901 and 1916, The Craftsman, which became both a design manifesto and a practical guide for American homeowners.
Craftsman Style
Beginning in 1904, The Craftsman featured a new house plan nearly every month, each grounded in Arts and Crafts philosophy. These homes typically displayed deep, overhanging eaves, broad groupings of casement windows, open and flowing floor plans, and a generous use of natural materials such as wood and stone. More than a style, Craftsman design represented an idea—that thoughtful architecture and well-made furnishings should be accessible to ordinary Americans, not reserved for the wealthy.
Like the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and the Pasadena architects Greene & Greene—whose commissions often served a more affluent clientele—Craftsman homes were intended to be built with local materials and carefully sited within their natural surroundings. The goal was harmony between structure and landscape, allowing a house to feel as though it had grown organically from its setting. Through publications, pattern books, and eventually mail-order Sears “kit” homes, the principles of Craftsman design spread widely, shaping neighborhoods across the country.
Rustic Style Classic Elegance
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Inside the Craftsman home, form followed function. Structural elements were not concealed but celebrated, and lighting was treated as both a practical necessity and a decorative opportunity. Built-in cabinetry, benches, and bookcases brought order and efficiency to living spaces while enhancing their architectural character. Wide sleeping porches and substantial fireplaces became defining features, with the hearth often constructed of stone and flanked by built-in bookcases to form a welcoming “inglenook.”
Stickley’s furniture designs were inspired by the ideals of William Morris, yet their honest, restrained aesthetic is unmistakably American. Typically crafted from quarter-sawn oak and expressed in rectilinear forms, Craftsman furniture ranges from sturdy, slatted Mission-style desks to bed frames with long, gracefully tapered posts. Armchairs and rockers were upholstered in straightforward, natural materials such as canvas or leather. Like English Arts and Crafts furniture, these pieces relied on traditional cabinetry techniques—mortise-and-tenon joinery, exposed pegs, and hammered metal hinges and handles—to express their structural integrity.
Authenticity, however, does not require strict adherence to early twentieth-century antiques. Craftsman interiors remain remarkably flexible. Any wooden furniture that exhibits sound construction, simple lines, and respect for material will feel at home—especially when the natural beauty of the wood is allowed to take center stage. Accessories play an important role, both in evoking the period and in softening the darker wood tones common to Craftsman interiors.
Against a backdrop of simple plaster walls, hardwood floors, oak-beamed ceilings, and built-in cabinetry, accents of stained glass, Tiffany-style lamps, pewter objects, or brass candlesticks introduce warmth and subtle sparkle. These foundational elements can be personalized to suit individual taste—whether through contemporary touches like sisal floor coverings, period pieces such as Lalique glass or Pre-Raphaelite art, or global accents including Mexican textiles and pottery. The result is an interior that feels both grounded and deeply human.
Elements of Craftsman Style
Balance and harmony within a Craftsman interior are achieved through careful attention to proportion and scale, along with the interplay between strong horizontal and vertical lines and the generous use of natural light. Together, these elements create spaces that feel calm, grounded, and enduring.
Rustic earth tones
Warm, natural colors—browns, ochres, muted greens, and soft blues—form the foundation of the Craftsman palette. These tones are often enriched with vibrant yet controlled patterns drawn from nature and historic sources.
Craftsman Inspirations
Hand painted wall paper adds a custom element.
This exterior lamp exemplifies the classic Craftsman form.
Mica lamp shade with Tiffany base.
Carved wood features add character to furniture, objects and molding details
Hand glazed tiles with rich color and patterns.
Design motifs often pull from other geographic or historic influences.
Craftsman Inspirations
Doors:
As the primary point of entry and welcome, doors and porches held special significance in the Craftsman movement. Doors were commonly constructed from solid planks and fitted with expressive hinges and latches rather than conventional knobs, often drawing inspiration from medieval forms. As the style evolved, painted and stenciled motifs became popular, frequently complemented by the inclusion of stained glass.
Windows:
An emphasis on light and fresh air is reflected in the generous use of windows. Sash windows were common, often incorporating leaded glass as a decorative feature. Elongated proportions became characteristic, with upper sashes divided into small rectangular panes paired with tall, single-paned lower sashes.
Lighting:
Lighting plays a central role in Craftsman interiors. Fixtures were designed to be visually substantial, often combining glass and metal to create warm, diffused illumination that reinforced the room’s architectural character.
Walls:
Color and surface treatment were essential components of the decorator’s approach. Walls were typically divided into three horizontal sections—dado, field, and frieze. Full wood paneling was sometimes employed, while stenciled friezes added decorative interest. Wallpaper was also widely accepted, particularly designs by Morris & Company of London and Warren, Fuller & Co. of New York. Early wallpapers featured floral and medieval motifs, while later examples reflected Japanese influences. Tapestry hangings became increasingly popular in later interiors.
Special Feature
Painted Inlay Floor Border
This process imitates the appearance of individual pieces of wood inlayed as a border to a wooden floor. A variety of patterns can be created, often imitating an assortment of wood types such as mahogany, oak, pine, ebony and maple. I’ve found this treatment to be a successful method of creating a period feel within a range of styles. And since there are very few design limitations you can create wonderfully unique floors to fit your style.
Ceilings:
Early Craftsman ceilings remained closely aligned with medieval precedents, featuring chamfered beams and carefully designed plaster surfaces, occasionally accented with painted or gilded decoration. Where cost was a concern, embossed ceiling papers offered a more economical alternative. In later periods, prefabricated decorative plaster elements became more common.
Floors:
True to the movement’s principles, floors were generally limited to wood or stone. Indigenous American woods—most often oak or maple—were favored. Area rugs were widely used, and while authentic Indian, Turkish, and Persian carpets were prized, machine-made versions were frequently employed.
Furniture:
Built-in furniture was a defining feature of the Craftsman home, valued for both its practicality and its ability to reduce clutter associated with Victorian interiors. Window seats beneath bay windows, dining room sideboards, and integrated benches were commonly incorporated directly into the architecture.
Details:
A desire for openness and light encouraged the widespread use of stained glass throughout Craftsman interiors—from doors and windows to room dividers and lamp shades. With the advent of electric lighting, glass and finely worked metal were combined in innovative ways, allowing fixtures to function as both sources of illumination and decorative focal points.
Stencilling:
Stenciled mosaic patterns and hand painted scrolls embellish this Craftsman powder room.
The Decorative effect Stenciling traces its roots as far back as Egyptian times, and has surged in popularity during various periods of history. In the Early American period we find stenciled patterns on a variety of surfaces. Easy to learn stenciling effects. Folk artists enlisted stencil techniques in a multitude of applications, both on furniture and walls. As tastes changed over time, artists have transformed stenciling from a simple pattern repeat process, to a sophisticated and colorful design tool, rich with story lines and decorative symbolism.
Early American Style
Colonial Amercians drew inspriation from their European heritage. Curent design styles would filter across the ocean and become reinventedin early America. Proportion and scale took reign over ornementation, A neutral color palette of grey blue, greens and rose pinks is readily apparent.
Stucco Rustico - Aged Plaster
Stucco Rustico is a Traditional interior and exterior textured plaster that epitomizes the rustic old world charm commonly associated with Tuscan environments. I love this treatment for its ease of application and the natural, organic glazed appearance that results when using mineral based plasters and glazes. Whether a rough application or a smooth finish, this treatment holds true to the test of time and, in fact, feels as if time itself stopped to wash the walls personally.
The Rustic Color Palette
The Rustic Style color palette falls within a distinct range of color tones and is essential in creating a successful Rustic interior. By using the appropriate color tones you can create a variety of design styles ranging from Period and Historic, regional or thematic. Color helps define our experiences within an interior and exterior environment. It affects us on a physical, emotional, and spiritual level and can be calming and passive, expressive and vital.
Painted Floral Details
Floral patterns used as accents in fabrics and furniture are common place details in the English Country home. These graceful and organic patterns complement the cozy interior of this style and work particularly well with lace window treatments, an heirloom tea service set and the natural and rustic charm of wooden ceiling beams and slightly irregularly textured walls.