Morrison’s Amish furniture store to celebrate 35th anniversary

MORRISON — Tegeler’s Amish Furniture, on state Route 78 south of Morrison, is celebrating its 35th anniversary.

The store, which opened in August 1989, specializes in hand-finished Amish-made furniture, including dining sets, bedroom sets, outdoor furniture and more. The premium quality of its products and of their service is what’s grown the store into the popular destination spot it is today, owner Arlyn Tegeler said in an interview with Shaw Local.

Back in 1989, Tegeler was running a farming equipment store at the same location selling grain bins and metal buildings. It was a typical day at the warehouse when somebody stopped by his store with some equipment options for Tegeler to sell. While they were talking, Tegeler noticed the wooden furniture that he had in his van. Impressed by the quality, Tegeler asked if the furniture was for sale, he said.

It turned out that the seller was Amish and he, along with his family, were craftsmen who were looking for a dealer in the area, Tegeler said.

Tegeler decided to give it a test run and brought some furniture to sell at the Whiteside County Fair that year. Based on his success at the fair, Tegeler got set up as a dealer for the family. Since then, the warehouse has been slowly remodeled to become a showroom for the pieces and Tegeler’s Amish Furniture has become a dealer for over 50 Amish craftsmen, he said.

Most of the craftsmen come from Arthur and Arcola, two of the oldest Amish communities in Illinois, Sales Associate Sonia Schroeder said in an interview with Shaw Local.

Within the store’s nearly 2-inch-thick catalog, shoppers have a lot of options to choose from and can even customize their own pieces by choosing from 16 different stain colors, six colors of varnish, seven types of wood, fabrics and hardware options.

Overall, oak – either red oak or quarter-sawn white oak - has been the most popular wood, Schroeder said.

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At the showroom, Tegeler’s Amish Furniture has devoted the most space to the bedroom and dining sets as they’re the most popular, Sales Associate Sonia Schroeder said in an interview with Shaw Local. (Payton Felix)

All of the pieces carry a lifetime warranty, so if something happens to the piece of furniture, customers can bring it back into the store to be fixed, Tegeler said.

At the showroom, they’ve devoted the most space to the bedroom and dining sets as they’re the most popular. Over the summer, outdoor furniture has also been a big hit, Schroeder said.

Located “in the middle of the cornfields,” it’s “definitely a destination store,” Schroeder said. “Our quality is what sets us apart.”

To mark the milestone of 35 years, Tegeler’s will host a storewide sale up to 35% off during the last two weeks of September.

The sale will be set up like a game where people can come in and pick a paper leaf off a tree. That leaf will a have a percentage written on it – anywhere from 20% to 35% – which indicates the amount discounted from their purchase.

“We’re looking forward to a good week,” Tegeler said.

The showroom is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

For information, visit Tegeler’s Amish Furniture online at https://tegeleramishfurniture.com/.

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