The Arts & Crafts Garden

"The Arts & Crafts Garden" a talk by Paul Duchscherer, this Thursday at the Roycroft Inn 7:30 p.m. Only $10. Call 716-652-5552 to reserve a spot.

I never even really thought about it. There's an Arts & Crafts style of garden? I guess that just makes sense. The Arts & Crafts style of home is very distinctive, and the whole philosophy of the Arts & Crafts movement was toward hand-crafted, artisan-created wares with a nod toward nature -- and away from mechanization and industrialization.

Well, Paul Duchscherer, an expert in all things Arts & Crafts (and a Buffalo native), will be here this week from San Francisco, to talk about what happens OUTSIDE the Arts & Crafts (or bungalow) homes.

You can read an interview with Paul by Jana Eisenberg of Buffalo Spree magazine here. He states that an Arts & Craft garden style is influenced by Japanese, European, Mediterranean and English cottage gardens. And when asked if he's surprised that Buffalo has become a hotbed for gardening, he says no and tells why.

Paul has appeared on This Old House, and the HGTV series Curb Appeal. He's written many books, including The Bungalow: America's Arts & Crafts Home (1995), Inside the Bungalow: America's Arts & Crafts Interior (1997), Outside the Bungalow: America's Arts & Crafts Garden (1999), and Victorian Glory in San Francisco and the Bay Area (2001) and a series of small-format books called Bungalow Basics (2003-2004). Paul's most recent books, Beyond the Bungalow: Grand Homes in the Arts & Crafts Tradition (2005) and Along Bungalow Lines: Creating an Arts & Crafts Home (2006) were collaborations with photographer Linda Svendsen.

Before hand, for only $25, the Roycroft Inn is preparing a special menu of all locally-sourced dinner items. For reservations, call 716-652-5552.

The Roycroft Inn on the Roycroft Campus in East Aurora is the epitome of the Arts & Crafts style, being home to the Roycrofters, contemporaries to William Morris, Charles & Henry Greene, and Gustav Stickley.