Craftsman Homes

A breath of fresh air was blown into the stuffy, overdone interiors of Victorian houses when the Arts & Crafts movement swept through Europe and the United States in the 1880s. Gustav Stickley, who published The Craftsman magazine and sold house designs, was one of the strongest proponents of this philosophy of simplicity. In Stickley's own words, Craftsman Home plans were designed "to substitute the luxury of taste for the luxury of costliness; to teach that beauty does not imply elaboration or ornament; to employ only those forms and materials which make for simplicity, individuality, and dignity of effect."

Craftsman Homesis Stickley's own compilation of the best of these designs. Here you will find plans for more than 40 cottages, cabins, and bungalows-complete with illustrated interior layouts and decorating ideas, as well as suggestions for garden and outdoor treatments. All incorporate a sense of space and openness to rooms, and feature bold, rustic styling based on regional building traditions such as colonial log cabins or Spanish missions of the Southwest. Relying on nature and local materials, and integrating traditional craft techniques, these homes still look as fresh, modern, and ultimately livable today as they did when they were built in the early twentieth century. This is a must-have book for lovers of good design, students of architecture, history buffs, or those who want to put the Arts & Crafts philosophy to practical use.