The Diningroom
The dining-room should be furnished with a view to convenience, richness, and comfort. Choose deep, rich grounds for the walls—bronze-maroon, black, Pompeiian red, and deep olive—and the designs and traceries in old gold, olive or moss-green, with dado and frieze to correspond. Or, the walls may be wainscoted with oak, walnut, maple, etc. Some are finished in plain panels, with different kinds of wood; others, again, are elaborately carved, with fruit, flowers, and emblems of the chase.
The floor is the next point for consideration. It may be of tile or laid in alternate strips of different colored woods, with a border of parquetry. Rugs or carpets may be used on these floors or dispensed with, according to taste. If a carpet is used, the dark, rich shades found in the Persian and Turkish designs should be chosen.
The window drapery should be those deep, rich colors that hold their own despite time and use—the pomegranates, rich crimsons, dark blues, dull Pompeiian reds, and soft olives. These curtains may be hung on poles, and should fall in heavy folds to the floor, then looped back with a wide embroidered dado.
Screens of stained glass are now used in the windows. They are both useful and ornamental, for they exclude the strong rays of the sun, and the light filtering through them beautifies the room with its many mellow hues.
Dark wood should be used for the furniture. The chairs should be chosen in square, solid styles, and upholstered in embossed or plain leather, with an abundance of brass or silver headed nails which are used for upholstering leather and add much to the substantial appearance of the articles.
The dining-table should be low, square or bevel cornered, heavily carved, and when not in use should be covered with a cloth corresponding in shade to the window drapery.
A buffet may stand in one corner for the display of ceramics or decorated china. The sideboard should be of high, massive style, with shelves and racks for glassware and pieces of china.
A few pictures—two or three fruit pieces and one or two plaques of still life—are appropriate.
A case of stuffed birds, a few large pots of tropical plants, and a fernery are in keeping with the dining-room appointments. A three-leaf folding Japanese screen should not be forgotten; also, a lamp shade of antique lace, lined with crimson silk, is very desirable.
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Bed Room Nursery And Play Room
For the bedroom, though other colors such as green and violet, in particular (save red, which is a poor bedroom hue) are not barred, blue is an ideal color, expressive of repose and tranquil ease. In the bedroom, however, as in all other rooms, th... Broken Lines
Broken lines give us a feeling of life and movement. But they should not be used for the permanent decorative lines of a room--the lines of the walls, openings, hangings, draperies, carpets, or large, immovable pieces of furniture which have a fix... Builders' Houses
"Mine own hired house." A large proportion of homes are made in houses which are not owned, but leased, and this prevents each man or family from indicating personal taste in external aspect. A rich man and house-owner may approximate to a true... Ceilings
As ceilings are in reality a part of the wall, they must always be considered in connection with room interiors, but their influence upon the beauty of the average house is so small, that their treatment is a comparatively easy problem. In simp... Chambers
The walls of bedrooms should be decorated in light tints and shadings, with a narrow rail and deep frieze. Most housekeepers prefer rugs and oiled floors to carpets, but this is a matter of individual taste. Rugs are as fashionable as they are wholesom... Character In Houses
"For the created still doth shadow forth the mind and will which made it. "Thou art the very mould of thy creator." It needs the combined personality of the family to make the character of the house. No one could say of a house which has fami... Color
Colors makes decorative shapes easy to see. (For the character of the colors and the principles of their effective combination the reader will find much useful information in the "Color Harmony and Design in Dress" included in this series.) Art, Nat... Colour In Houses
"Heaven gives us of its colour, for our joy, Hues which have words and speak to ye of heaven." Although the very existence of a house is a matter of construction, its general interior effect is almost entirely the result of colour treatment... Colour With Reference To Light
In choosing colour for walls and ceilings, it is most necessary to consider the special laws which govern its application to house interiors. The tint of any particular room should be chosen not only with reference to personal liking, but first... Curved Forms
Curved forms, the circle, the oval and the ellipse, are all agreeable. There is in them "a hint of the mysterious dualism of life." ... Curved Lines
Curved lines in decoration and furniture are of various kinds. The rococo styles (Louis XV and the Regency) are overluxurious and often weak; the curves in Arabic or Celtic ornamentation vague and obscure. The undulating curves of Persian rugs sugge... Decoration As An Art
"Who creates a Home, creates a potent spirit which in turn doth fashion him that fashioned." Probably no art has so few masters as that of decoration. In England, Morris was for many years the great leader, but among his followers in England no... Draperies
Draperies are not always considered as a part of furnishings, yet in truth--as far as decorative necessities are concerned--they should come immediately after wall and floor coverings. The householder who is in haste to complete the arrangement of... Final Tips
Interior Decoration is a very extensive and complicated subject. What we have here attempted to do has been to give an idea of the general principles underlying it, together with as many direct and practical hints and suggestions as has been possi... Floors And Floor-coverings
Although in ordinary sequence the colouring of floors comes after that of walls, the fact that--in important houses--costly and elaborate floors of mosaic or of inlaid wood form part of the architect's plan, makes it necessary to consider the effe... Form And Color Tip
Never overemphasize one of the dimensions of height, width and depth at the expense of one of the others. They must be harmonized. ... Furniture
Although the forms and varieties of furniture are infinite, they can easily be classified first into the two great divisions of good and bad, and after that into kinds and styles; but no matter how good the different specimens may be, or to what s... Home Decoration
The chief features to be observed in house furnishing are color, form, and proportion. All stiffness of design in furniture should be avoided. Do not attempt to match articles, but rather carry out the same idea as to color and form in the whole. It is... Kitchens
The kitchen is an important part of the perfect house and should be a recognised sharer in its quality of beauty; not alone the beauty which consists of a successful adaptation of means to ends, but the kind which is independently and positively a... Lines And Curves
Straight lines in a room call for straight lines in furniture, rugs and hangings. They make a room dignified and serious in appearance. Italian Renaissance chairs and other pieces of that period, and our modern Craftsman and Mission chairs (often ... Living Room Drawing Room And Library
We now return to the rooms where decoration is the rule. While always remembering that connecting rooms must harmonize with one another in color, individual colors may always be appropriately chosen for certain rooms, because they express the domina... Location Of The House
Besides the difference in treatment demanded by different use of rooms--the character of the decoration of the whole house will be influenced by its situation. A house in the country or a house in town; a house by the sea-shore or a house situated... Nursery And Play Room
These children's rooms should always give out a gay and cheerful atmosphere. To obtain this wall papers with colorful friezes with characters from fairy tale, Mother Goose or Noah's Ark, may be used above a simple wainscot. Painted walls with stenci... Oblong
The proportions of any room are best when they make a normal impression on the eye. The oblong is the best decorative art form, as a rule. It can be used in nearly all ornaments, in walls, doors and windows, ceilings and floors, in rugs and furnitur... Proportion
All parts of a furnished room must help express one ideal of balance. The realization of this ideal is proportion. A horizontal room calls for horizontal furniture and lines, a vertical room for vertical ones. Every important decorative featu... Some Hints Anent Period Furniture
Period furniture is a means to a decorative end. It is a part of the decoration of a room, and must be adapted to its lines and proportions. Halls for instance, call for tall chairs and cabinets and long and narrow wall tables. Pictures and bric-a... The Dining Room And Work Rooms
The dining room, with which we were so directly concerned in the preceding portion of this book, offers a natural point of departure for considering the individual rooms of the house with regard to decoration. First, as to a dominant dining ... The Diningroom
The dining-room should be furnished with a view to convenience, richness, and comfort. Choose deep, rich grounds for the walls—bronze-maroon, black, Pompeiian red, and deep olive—and the designs and traceries in old gold, olive or moss-green, with ... The Hall
The hall being the index to the whole house, due care should therefore be given to its furnishing. Light colors and gilding should be avoided. The wall and ceiling decorations now mostly used are in dark, rich colors, shaded in maroons or deep reds. Pl... The Kitchen
It is a remark too often made that this or that “is good enough for a servant.” If all knew that unpleasant surroundings made unpleasant servants and ill-prepared meals, we think more pains would be taken to have pleasant and comfortable kitchens. ... The Law Of Appropriateness
I have laid much stress upon the value of colour in interior decoration, but to complete the beauty of the home something more than happy choice of tints is required. It needs careful and educated selection of furniture and fittings, and money eno... The Library
The walls of the library should be hung with rich, dark colors, the latest style in wall paper being a black ground with old gold and olive-green designs. The carpet comes in Pompeiian red, with moss-green and peacock-blue patterns. Statuary and the... The Sitting-room
The sitting or everyday room should be the brightest and most attractive room in the house. Its beauty of decoration should not be so much in the richness and variety of material as in its comfort, simplicity, and the harmony of its tints—the main fe... The Square
The square form is solid and firm, but tends to be monotonous. Square windows, fireplaces and wall spaces, as well as square rooms in general and pictures, are usually uninteresting, and this applies to cubes as well. The big cubical chair, for inst... The Triangle
The triangular form (in mantel clocks, lampshades, highboys, bookcase foundations, and sometimes where it appears in wall paper or Turcoman rug designs) expresses movement in repose admirably, and has real decorative values. ... Vertical Lines
Vertical lines express aspiration and disquietude; diagonal lines, action. In wall paper designs and rug patterns the diagonal line is not always excellent. Diagonal lines are sometimes effective in rugs; but the feeling of energetic movement they ... Walls Ceilings And Floors
The true principle of wall treatment is to make the boundary stand for colour and beauty, and not alone for division of space. As a rule, the colour treatment of a house interior must begin with the walls, and it is fortunate if these are blank ... Working Rooms Versus Living Rooms
Before passing to the other rooms of the house, we will pause to consider a more purely utilitarian group. The Kitchen.--These rooms which are strictly utilitarian, more or less escape decorative control. The kitchen, aside from the elements of p...