Last updated on October 4th, 2022 at 10:12 am

New flash: the stock market’s volatile and the price of gold just took another tumble. Here’s an idea… invest a portion of your money in something you can literally appreciate every day: handmade Craftsman Furniture! I was looking on the Stickley Museum website this morning and noticed that a “Columbus Ave Sideboard” by Gustav Stickley, which he crafted in 1900 for his own home was sold by Stickley’s heirs to Barbara Streisand in 1988 for $363,000. Eleven years later, Barbara re-sold the sideboard to an un-named buyer at a Christie’s auction for $596,500. $233,500 in appreciation just over 10 years– that’s not a bad rate of appreciation is it?

The Stickley museum website highlights other antique arts & crafts, mission and craftsman furniture pieces that have shown tremendous appreciation in value, including:
- The Ellis inlaid shoe foot arm chair which recently sold for $206,500 and
- This mission craftsman style china cabinet, which recently sold for $242,500
Now… original antique furniture is not for everyone. Most of us would probably prefer to have beautiful, high quality furniture that we’re not afraid to use. Which brings me to Vermont. It is America’s last great bastion of consummate craftsmanship. The Green Mountain state boasts over 2000 small furniture making companies. Several of the best are members of an elite association of master level furniture makers, The Guild of Vermont Furniture Makers. Tomorrow’s antiques can be commissioned from Guild members today, with a good bit of certainty that their value will increase over time. Check out The Guild’s website and visit one of their shows or tour their workshops for an up close and personal view of truly fine craftsmanship.

We have a selection of craftsman furniture for sale at Stonehurst, our furniture and home decor showroom and we can also help you map out a tour of Guild members studios, focusing on those best suited to the type of furniture you’re looking for.
When you invest your money in tomorrow’s Vermont made antiques, you are also investing in American jobs and in the future of American craft. What other kind of investment could give you this kind of appreciation?
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This blog is written by your friends at Vermont Woods Studios. Check out our Vermont made furniture and home decor online and visit our showroom and art gallery at Stonehurst, the newly restored 1800s farmhouse nestled in the foothills of the Green Mountains.