Amish Furniture Of Austin

Nice people! Did not laugh at me when I asked in earnest for an Amish computer desk. Unilocal says if I don’t throw more words at the screen then my review isn’t worth anything. Well, «Yelp», if that’s even your real name… What do you know about words? You’re just a machine. Or a collection of machines. Maybe a networked set of hard drives which marketing dorks refer to as a «cloud.» Anyway. I won’t be using you from the Amish computer desk. No one will. Because the Amish don’t use computers.

Amish Furniture of Austin is one of those businesses that is a jewel and stands out from the pack for quality, customer service and selection for sure. I state selection specifically because I have seen some on here state there was limited selection. While that may be true for what’s on the showroom floor for immediate sale the real selection comes from hundreds of pages in multiple binders of different models the Amish custom build the way you want with the finish you want with or without modifications
My wife and I started buying there in our late 20’s are now in our mid 30’s. We didn’t want the now normal retail big box crap furniture that breaks after a few years, we wanted something that would last longer than us we could hand down. We have now purchased a king size solid oak bed (even the slats are dove tailed and solid wood), dining room table and chairs, night stands, lazy susan, wooden train set, cutting board, and even candles.
The bed we picked the wood, the stain, the style of legs, and had them alter the foot board to be just below our mattress height so we don’t kick the wood in the middle of the night. We also made the board flat across the front instead of rounded like a rainbow. On the dining room table and chairs we also picked the wood like everything there, stain, leg type (which we wanted slightly thinner), and I also had them make the edges more rounded so it didn’t dig into your forearms at the table while eating or playing poker/​games. We also specified the thickness and how long the table should be with and without the leaves. The nightstands we again picked the same oak, stain, features such as which way the doors opened, number of drawers, and a couple of facet changes. What’s awesome coming here is that they keep all the stains on file, design changes, models, etc. What’s more awesome is that the styles go way back with he Amish so it won’t be like Rooms to Go or some place like that that the next year the model will be gone. I can come back in many years from now and get two more chairs made and have them look exactly the same as the others I bought years prior. You won’t get these types of things almost anywhere else and at many other places you’d be lucky to even get solid wood and not something made out of particle board. Is it more expensive this way, sure, but not by much when you consider that you’re paying for junk from other places and something that won’t last, can’t be taken back apart or transported easily. Do yourself a favor and buy quality and you’ll have them for life but don’t pay half or two thirds and replace it after several years.
Finally, Roy and Jason and others have always treated us and others in my family well. The service is great and the products are the top quality of anything made, anywhere. It’s worth the wait to have it custom built by hand, believe me.

UPDATED: I purchased a simple bed frame from this store back in October or November 2011 and it was delivered in early January. The frame we picked was identical to the model they had in stores and we joked with the salesperson about how we pretty much wanted to take home the one they had on the floor. It had a headboard and a mattress height footboard (so not tall, but not nonexistent). However, through a misunderstanding (on our part, mostly), they thought we wanted the «low profile» footboard, which means no footboard at all, just a plank that connects the two sides. We contacted the store to find out what happened and they said we ordered and paid for the «low profile» version, but they offered to contact the builder and find out if he could make the footboard we wanted at no additional cost. We now have the new footboard and it looks great!
Overall, the furniture here is beautiful, but definitely pricey, as I assume the case is for all hardwood, hand-​built furniture. Make sure to double check your order to get exactly what you want, though customer service is very good if something does happen.

SHORT VERSION:
My wife and I purchased a kitchen table and chairs from the Amish Furniture Of Austin store. We were very pleased with the quality and appearance of the set.
The quality of the furniture is excellent.
The local sales staff is very helpful and friendly.
The selection and variety of styles is limited. Simple and understated but beautiful.
The delivery staff were courteous and diligent.
The cost is costly.
The wait for the furniture is epic for this day and age (3 months).
Its a five start experience minus a star for limited selection and long wait.
LONG VERSION:
In this day and age of mass produced furniture with modular components that come from sweat factories overseas its pleasant to discover that there are still craftsmen that build high quality solid wood furniture. The show room contains a sampling of a variety of furniture sets for living, dining, and bedrooms. The style is very simple with a lot of straight lines and practical beauty. If you are looking for something very ornate this isn’t the place to find it. If you are looking for real solid wood furniture that is assembled with dowels and other permanent hardware instead of hex bolts you might find what you are looking for here.
Our salesman was very attentive and patient. He took time to explain the ordering process to us and reviewed many catalogs and color selections with my wife. My wife saw a floor sample that she really liked that consisted of a table and chairs with brown maple horizontal surfaces and black legs. He advised her that the black legs were painted and that the paint is apt to chip over time. He recommended to us that we select the darkest possible stain as an alternative to the black paint to create a similar two tone effect. The stain he explained was more permanent. We followed his advice and we are quite pleased with the outcome.
Be prepared to wait a long time if you order from them. They quoted us a 3 month schedule to manufacture and ship the furniture and they did exactly what they would do. I give them credit for keeping their word. They required us to pay ¹⁄₃ the quoted price of the furniture up front to order the material and construct the furniture. The balance was due at delivery which they made to our house.
The furniture is high quality and labor intensive and the cost reflects it. You can find less expensive furniture at Ikea or even local furniture retailers but I doubt you can find better quality. We love our kitchen table and chairs. I wish we could buy more furniture from them but the wife is interested in some styles they simply don’t offer.

We visited this store several times over a few months while decided what furniture to buy for a new house. We have not yet taken delivery of the furniture, but have ordered several pieces. I will obviously update if there are problems with delivery. We have close friends who have gotten furniture there and loved it.
For now, my direct comments are focused on the people/​service and options. They have a lot of pieces in the show room, plus many books and photographs showing other items that are available in all types of combinations and options. The staff — seemingly all family members of the owners — really know the offerings and were very friendly and knowledgeable. They have a representative working in the Amish country to help answer questions. I highly recommend giving this store a look if you want quality furniture.
Edit: 3÷28÷2012 We received the furniture a while back and are very satisfied. There was one problem with a piece of hardware which they fixed with no argument. Yes, you have to wait a while to get it delivered which is frustrating these days. Compared to an internet order, at least when there is a problem, you have people that you can contact and that are willing to make things right. The quality of the construction is excellent – for example, the bed we bought is the same price as a Macy’s particle board bed but is solid wood with proper joints. The staining was not 100% perfect, but the flaws are mostly inside drawers, etc. where they aren’t seen. Not substantial enough to lower the star rating.