G4-0 BRYSON LIBRARY Teachers College 120th Street, Morningside Heights New York. .b From the collection of the 7 n z _ m o rrelinger i a JUlbrary p San Francisco, California 2006 Ube IRurai EDITED BY L. H. BAILEY A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING ZTbe IRural /IDanuals EDITED BY L. H. MANUAL OF GARDENING Bailey MANUAL OF FARM ANIMALS Harper FARM AND GARDEN RULE-BOOK Bailey MANUAL OF FRUIT INSECTS Slingerland and Crosby MANUAL OF WEEDS Georgia THE PRUNING-MANUAL Bailey MANUAL OF FRUIT DISEASES Hester and Whetzel MANUAL OF MILK PRODUCTS Stocking MANUAL OF VEGETABLE-GARDEN INSECTS Crosby and Leonard MANUAL OF TREE DISEASES Rarilcin MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING Van Rensselaer, Rose, and Canon MANUAL OF AMERICAN GRAPE-GROWING Hedrick PLATE I. Dignified houses, in plaster and shingle, adapted for country homes. A Iff MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING COMPILED BY MARTHA VAN RENSSELAER FLORA ROSE HELEN CANON OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HOME ECONOMICS, NEW YORK COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY N*ro THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 1920 Att rights reserved ,p, COPYRIGHT, 1919 BT THE MACMILLAN COMPANY Set up and electrotyped. Published February, 1919 STATEMENT BY THE EDITOR HEREIN is brought together a collection of precepts and ad- vice on the setting up and management of a home. The book is written and compiled primarily for those women who are managing households, not for those who are teaching or who are students in the class-room. It has been the purpose to bring together from many reliable sources the guiding rules to be followed in making the home a place where the family can live a thrifty and joyous life. It is compiled by those who understand the subject and the situation. Chapters on hygiene and sanitation were prepared by the authors, but space would not allow of their inclusion. This is a source of much regret, but the omission allowed a fuller treatment to be retained in the remaining chapters. The book is intended primarily for rural conditions. The country home should receive as careful and considerate atten- tion as the farm itself. The home is inseparable from the farm. Yet, as the principles and practices of home-making are the same in country and town, the book should actually meet the needs of a wide range of people. The Editor is glad to add a book in his series on the work and welfare of women, and he hopes it will not be the last. The woman's work and the man's work together make the welfare of any people secure. L. H. BAILEY. CONTENTS PART I THE HOUSE AND ITS FURNISHINGS CHAPTER I PAGE THE MODERN HOUSE . . . ; . . >_ . . 1 Arrangement of the house . . . . ,-.-., 2 The farmhouse . . . . . '. -. . : , 7 Farmhouse planning . . . , . . . 8 Exterior design . . ... . . .21 Cost of building . . . v ..... .25 Suggestions for making alterations . . . '..., . 27 CHAPTER II HOME FURNISHING . . . . .- . . . .29 Structural consideration of rooms . ..... 30 Color . . . . ... . . .45 Pattern . ... . . . . .51 Selection of furnishings . . . . 54 Furniture . . .. . . . . . . . 78 Arrangement of furnishings . . '. . . .92 Character of rooms expressed by furnishings .... 95 CHAPTER III PLANNING THE HOME KITCHEN . . . . . . . 100 Use of the kitchen . . . ; . . . . 100 Exposure . . . . ... . . . 102 Size . . ..... . . . . .103 Doors ....'. . . . . .103 Windows . ... . . . . . . .104 Arrangement of equipment . . . . . . . 105 Discussion of plans . . ... . . , 110 vii viii CONTENTS PAGE Pantries and closets Interior finish . . . . ... 118 PART II HOUSEHOLD MANAGEMENT CHAPTER IV CARE OP THE HOUSE . . . ... . . 121 Cellar. ". . , . * v V : . ... . .121 Kitchen . ... v . . . . . .122 Living-room and dining-room . . . ;r:-v ; . 123 Sleeping-rooms . " . . jr i . . 123 Bathroom . . . . . * . - . .- '^ . ' . 123 Suggestions for sweeping and dusting . ..''/. . 124 Repair kit . . . . ... '. . . 124 Some special directions for cleaning . . .' . i- . 125 CHAPTER V HOUSEHOLD MEASUREMENTS AND THEIR USE .... 129 Measurements for commodities . . . . . .,-. . . 129 Temperature \ . . . . .; . . . .; . 131 Time . .... .... . . . . ' . - ] . . . 138 Measuring gas . ,.. .... . . ... . 143 Measuring electricity . . . . . ;' '"i^. .-, -' . 147 Measuring water. ....... . . . 151 Density of liquids . .- . . . >-'-,* 153 Kitchen measures :.. ' : ;- -. ' > ..,..; . 156 CHAPTER VI HOUSEHOLD RECORDS . .. . ... ',,.,.' % , ... . 175 How to keep household records . . . ; , . _ . . , . 176 Household accounts . . . . . . ,. r . . 177 CHAPTER VII HEAT AND LIGHT . . . . -. . . ... . , . 191 Care of fires . . . ^v y i . . 191 Radiation . . . . . 191 CONTENTS ix PAGE Comparative cost of various methods of heating . .192 Factors governing consumption of fuel and convenience of oper- ation 193 Suggestions for firing and cleaning a furnace . - . . . 198 Advantages and disadvantages of various fuels . . . . 200 Lighting . . . . . . ... ; . . 200 CHAPTER VIII STOVES AND COOKERS . . . . . ... . 207 CHAPTER IX METHODS OP KEEPING FOODS COOL '.' " . . . . . 220 CHAPTER X KITCHEN UTENSILS .' .' . . . . . . . . 225 Utensils best adapted to various cooking processes . . . 225 Special utensils and equipment . .- . . . . 228 Arrangement of utensils . . . . . . 230 How to prepare new utensils for use . .... 231 How to protect metals not in use . k . , ; " < " . . 232 Materials and their care . . .' . . . . 232 CHAPTER XI TABLE SETTING AND SERVING . . , -. . ," . . 240 Table setting J ' .'/ , . ' > ' ,. 240 Table service ' \ \ . . ... . . 244 Some table manners and customs ' . . . . . 247 CHAPTER XII THE LAUNDRY ., .. . . .- V . . 249 Fabrics . . . . 249 Water . ^ i . , . . . - . . 250 Soap . , . < V : 253 Starch . . ,,, ...-*. . . .257 Bluing . ... > * . . . 261 Washing . . . <- . % * - : . . . 261 X CONTENTS PAGE Bleaching . . i V . . . , ,, . 273 Ironing . . ... . . . , . 273 Equipment for the laundry ... . . . . 276 CHAPTER XIII STAIN REMOVAL . . . . . . . , . 282 Methods for treatment of stains in general . , . . 284 Specific methods for individual stains . . . . 287 PART III CLOTHING CHAPTER XIV TEXTILES . ... . 307 Cotton . . . , . . . . ... 307 Linen. . . . ^ . 312 Wool .315 Silk . . . . ' ..' . . . . 321 Artificial silk . . . . ' 324 Ramie .......... 325 Jute . 325 Tests for fabrics . . 326 Weave . , . . . . . . . 329 CHAPTER XV THE MAKING OF CLOTHING. . . .... 330 Equipment for the sewing room . . . . . . 334 Preparation of materials ..... . 336 How to take measurements . . . . . . 338 Kinds of patterns , . . . . . 340 How to estimate the amount of material . . . . 342 How to place the pattern on the material .... . 344 How to mark a pattern for basting . . . . 348 How to cut a garment . . . . ... . 352 How to baste a simple garment . . . /. . . 353 Kinds of seams for garments . , . . . ., . . 358 CONTENTS xi PAGE How to make a foundation belt . . '....* . . 359 Fitting garments . ." . . * ' .- * 360 How to make a skirt even at the bottom . .... . . 363 How to keep bias seams from sagging . . '.-',. . 364 Suggestive finishes to be used by the home worker . . . 364 Suitable materials for various types of dresses and waists . . 369 Suggestions for economy in dress .... . 369 Making simple undergarments . . . . " 369 Clothing for children . . . . . i * . 381 Patching . . -. . 388 Cloth darning . . ... . . 389 Stocking darning. . . . . . 391 CHAPTER XVI MILLINERY . . . . . . . . 393 How to select a hat . . . . ' . 393 Renovating materials . . . . . " . 400 Simple handmade trimmings. .... 404 PART IV FOODS AND NUTRITION CHAPTER XVII PLANNING THE DAILY MEALS . . . v . 407 Good foods for supplying the body's needs . ... . . 408 How to estimate the daily need of fuel . . 412 How to estimate the daily need of protein . . 414 How to estimate the daily need of lime, iron and phosphorus . 415 Some rules for planning meals . . 425 Food for the prospective mother . . . . . 433 Food for the nursing mother . ." . . .. 434 Formulas for infant feeding . , . . / 435 The part milk should play in the diet during growth . . 436 CHAPTER XVIII MARKETING FOR THE HOUSEHOLD .... . 438 Buying fresh or staple foodstuffs . . . . . 439 Buying canned foods . , ... . . . . 445 xii CONTENTS CHAPTER XIX PAGE FOOD FOR THE SICK f . . . . , . - . . 455 Fluid diet . . . . . .-. . * - . . . 455 Soft or semi-solid diet . .. . . .> ; *- . 457 Light or convalescent diet . . . < :. . . 458 Care and feeding for incipient colds ^ i . , . 458 Care and feeding for constipation . . , .* . 459 Diet during a condition of intestinal putrefaction . 461 Care and diet for indigestion . . . '.: . 461 Diet in fever ....... . 462 Modified milk diets for typhoid fever . 463 Food for tuberculosis patients . . . .463 CHAPTER XX BEVERAGES ........ . 465 Coffee ........ ., . 465 Tea . , . 468 Cocoa . 470 Fruit juices. ....... . 472 CHAPTER XXI BATTERS AND DOUGHS . ... . 473 Classification ....... . 473 Ingredients . . . . . . 474 Methods of mixing . ' . . . . 478 Utensils for baking . , . 478 Filling the pans . . 'v . 479 Baking 479 CHAPTER XXII CAKES . . . . . .. . ^ 483 Cakes made with yeast -. - , .* '.'.- . 483 Sponge cakes , ... . 483 Butter cakes . ; . . 484 Ingredients used in cakes . .<..... .484 Cake fillings . :. . -..*:,., 4 ... v .. .486 Cake frostings . . . . .. v . , 486 CONTENTS xiii CHAPTER XXIII PAGE PASTRY . . . ., . . . . .- . 490 Ingredients ...... , . . . . . . 490 Characteristics of good pastry . . .- .^1 . . 491 Directions for making plain pastry . . . . 492 Directions for making flaky pastry . . . . ' . 493 Directions for making puff pastry . ... ,. . . . 494 CHAPTER XXIV YEAST BREAD . , . fjjfc .... 495 Ingredients. . **' ".-' '.'' .- . . . 495 Mixing and kneading . . . . *' v . . . 498 Fermentation . . . . . * . . . 499 Shaping dough . . . . . . 499 Proofing . . - . - . . . ,. . . . 499 Baking . v . . . . , .,; j , . - . .500 "Rope "in bread. .. ... '^ ,/ . . . 500 Recipes * . . 501 Salt-rising bread . i-A^L"^.? .!..'-'.- C 505 CHAPTER XXV COOKING OP CEREALS . . . . . : . . . 506 CHAPTER XXVI MEAT AND POULTRY . . . . . , . 510 Selection of meat by appearance . . U*' v . ^^ General rules for cooking . . . . V ' . . . 512 General directions for soup-making . ^. .,..,. ^ ^^ , Care of meat . . . . . ..." , . 516 Keeping meat .' .' . . .' . ; . " . . 519 Use of market trimmings and meat fat in cooking . .' . 519 Chickens and fowls " .'' . vS: ** * ^ CHAPTER XXVII FISH AND OYSTERS . .' .' . ''"''". " . . . . 527 Fish . . . .- . ^ . ... . .527 Oysters . . . '-'^ ' .-' > . -. '^^. . .532 XIV CONTENTS CHAPTER XXVIII PAGE . . .534 Tests for fresh eggs Egg cookery . , . . ; . 534 ..-. . .535 CHAPTER XXIX VEGETABLES . . . . . . Care of vegetables in the home Cooking of vegetables . . "V . . 543 . 543 . 544 CHAPTER XXX SAUCES . . 552 White sauce ...... Butter sauce ...... Brown sauces ...... Sauces thickened with egg .... Sweet sauces ...... . 552 . 553 . ' . .553 . 553 . 561 CHAPTER XXXI SALADS ........ . 563 Salad herbs. ...... Salad dressings ...... . 563 . 564 CHAPTER XXXII DESSERTS ........ Fruits Gelatin desserts ...... Whipped cream . . . Junket ....... Frozen desserts ...... . 570 . 570 . 570 . 571 . 572 . 572 SUGAR COOKERY CHAPTER XXXIII CHAPTER XXXIV FOOD PRESERVATION . . . Preservation of food by low temperatures 576 579 581 CONTENTS xv PAGE Drying fruits and vegetables. . . . .... 588 Salting vegetables . . . . . ' . . . . 592 Canning . .... ' . . . 599 Preservation of meat . . . . . ; -. . 622 Sugar-cured hams, bacons, and tongues . . . . . 624 Brine salt pork . . . . . . . . . 626 Dry-cured pork . . . . . . . . . 626 Pickled pigs' feet. . . . . .'. . . 626 Head-cheese . " . . . . . . .- . 627 Lard . . . . . ... . . .627 Corned beef . . . ... . . 628 Dried beef . . . . . . . . . . 629 Pickled beef tongues . . . . 629 Hamburg steak . . . . . . . v . 630 Mixed sausage . . . . . . . . . . 630 Pork sausage . ~ . . . . . 630 ILLUSTRATIONS PIG. PAGE 1. Floor plans of a small house . . . .. . . . '* 4 2. The first floor plan of a suburban house . . ... 5 3. A typical arrangement of all rooms on one floor . 6 4. A small farmhouse arranged on a single floor. , '. v 7 5. A remodeled farmhouse, to illustrate step-saving . , .10 6. First floor plan, showing living area and working area. ;', : , . 12 7. Second floor plan, showing sleeping area ,..>*. . . 13 8. A farmhouse plan, showing diagonal corners . . ... 14 9. ?lan showing simplicity of living area . . . . . 15 10. Plan showing well-organized arrangement . . . t .17 11. A house planned for farm life and farm conditions . . . 20 12. A modest farm cottage of good design . . . . . 25 13. A typical low room in an old-fashioned cottage .-... . 32 14. The same type of low room as in Fig. 13 , . . . 32 15. A tall room of the late nineteenth-century type . . . 34 16. A typical modern living-room . . . .....' . 34 17. A study of windows in relation to the adjoining wall space . 36 18. Types of windows . . > . . . . . .38 19. A method of hanging two sets of curtains . . , . 56 20. Four methods of curtaining a double-hung window. , . , . 58 21. Two methods of curtaining a group of windows ... 60 22. Three arrangements of valance and curtain . .... . 64 23. Three types of valance and curtain arranged to cover the trim 67 24. A group of typical side chairs . . . . .-. . 79 25. Four good table forms for use in dining-room or library . . 80 26. Types of Colonial chairs . . . . . . . . 82 27. Comfortable arm-chairs for general use . . . , . . . 84 28. Three good forms of couches ... . . 86 29. Typical small tables of good form and finish . . , . 87 30. Good types of lamps . ... . . > .. . . 91 31. Arrangement of rugs in living room . : . . . 93 32. Arrangement of rugs in living rooms . . .. . . 96 33. Arrangement of furniture in a square dining-room ... 98 34. Arrangement of a large kitchen . .... ... 101 xvii xviii ILLUSTRATIONS FIG. PAGE 35. Arrangement of a farmhouse kitchen . . . . . Ill 36. Arrangement of a kitchen for a suburban house ; . .112 37. Plan showing kitchen arrangements . - T . .113 38. A complete and convenient kitchen for any house . . .114 39. The pass-pantry or serving-pantry . . . . .115 40. Comparison of scales for measuring temperature . . . 132 41. The index of a gas meter . . 143 42. Gas meter index reading 79,500 cubic feet .... 144 43. Dial of a watthour meter ....... 147 44. Dial of a watthour meter ....... 148 45. Ordinary form of water-meter dial ..... 151 46. Comparison of amount of light given by different gas lamps . 202 47. Comparison of amount of light given by different electric lamps 203 48. Cost of producing a given amount of light by various illumi- nants at usual prices ....... 204 49. Diagram of a home-made fireless cooker .... 215 50. An iceless refrigerator ........ 222 51. Removable canton flannel cover for the refrigerator . . 223 52. Methods of folding underwear ...... 275 53. A method of folding sheets and tablecloths .... 276 54. Another method of folding sheets. ..... 277 55. A method of folding nightdresses and shirts .... 278 56. A sleeve-board 280 57. Cotton fibers, showing the characteristic twist . . . 308 58. Linen fibers, showing the characteristic nodes and longitudinal striations . . .313 59. Wool fiber, showing the characteristic scales and the serrated surface . . . . . . . . . 316 60. Silk fiber, showing the two minute filaments from the spinnerets of the silk worm ........ 319 61. Method of shrinking fullness out of a garment . . . 336 62. Method of taking measurements ...... 338 63. Method of lengthening shirt-waist pattern .... 342 64. Method of shortening a shirt-waist pattern .... 343 65. Cutting and opening a shirt-waist pattern to throw in fullness . 344 66. Increasing or decreasing bust measure of a shirt-waist pattern . 345 67. Method of decreasing the size of a shirt-waist pattern . . 346 68. Method of lengthening a waist pattern for a very full bust or round shoulders . . . . . . . 347 69. Method used in modeling garments over a flat pattern . . 348 ILLUSTRATIONS xk PIG. PAGE 70. Adjusting pattern to fit shoulders . . ->;-"V' f -V . 349 71. Simple adjustment of sleeve pattern . .. .. .. . . 349 72. Method of cutting collars for flat or rolling effect ... . 350 73. Changing length or width of skirt pattern . > .' . : '... . 351 74. Increasing waist or hip size of a skirt pattern '. r - f . . 351 75. Decreasing the size of the hips of a gored skirt pattern . . 352 76. Adjusting a skirt pattern for a person who has a prominent abdomen or hips . ....... > . . . . 353 77. Another method of adjusting a gored skirt pattern for a figure with prominent abdomen . . . . . . 354 78. Method of adding material to a gored skirt pattern . .- . 355 79. Designing narrow or full circular skirt pattern - ;.. . . 356 80. Method of cutting a pattern for a circular flounce . <.' . 357 81. Method of making a foundation belt for a skirt or a dress . 359 82. Combinations of simple embroidery stitches . . " . . 366 83. Set-in pocket . .368 84. Method of making a bound buttonhole . . . . . 370 85. Method of making an arrow . . . -,'.-. .371 86. Plain seam with edges overcast . . . ' .--. . . 374 87. Plain seams . . .... . .... . 374 88. French seam . . , ,. . . . . . 374 89. Hemmed fell . . . .'.'... .... .374 90. Overhanded or French fell . . , . . . . 374 91. Flannel fell . . . . . . / . . 374 92. Methods of finishing the bottom of drawers . % . " . 377 93. Methods of finishing the bottom of an underskirt . , . r ' . 377 94. Sateen underskirt with cotton-backed satin flounce finished with scalloped facing . . ' . . . . . 377 95. Bound placket . . . . V ... . . 379 96. Bound and faced placket 379 97. Continuous bound and faced placket with fly. , . . 379 98. Two methods of making a hemmed placket . . . . 380 99. Methods of marking positions of buttonholes . . . 380 100. Methods of stranding buttonholes . . . . . 380 101. Buttonhole stitch . '. 380 102. Suitable designs for an infant's dress, slip, and coat . . 383 103. Suitable designs for dresses for children from three to five years 385 104. Suitable designs for dresses for children from six to ten years . 385 105. Suitable designs for dresses for children from ten to twelve years . . . . . . .... 386 XX ILLUSTRATIONS PIG. PAGfi 106. Suitable designs for dresses for children from twelve to sixteen years . . . . . . . . . . . 387 107. Correct size of a crown, shown by the heavy line. . . .394 108. Incorrect size of crown. . . . . . . . 395 109. Correct placing of a hat, shown by the heavy line . . . 395 110. The prominent lines of the hat should harmonize with the lines of the face . V. . . . , . '. . .396 111. Correct placing of a turban . . - . . . ' . . 396 112. The outline or decoration of a hat should not repeat or parallel undesirable lines in the face . .. : . . . . 397 113. Decoration and structural lines of a hat V . . . 399 114. Simple decorations possible in straw trimming '. . . 404 115. Simple use of ribbon to decorate or change a crown slightly . 404 116. Stitches for folds, for sewing down facings, and for decoration . 405 117. French fold, used for decoration around crowns and brims . 406 118. Cuts of beef , .511 119. Cuts of mutton . . . '-. . ': . ; . Y : . 511 120. Cuts of pork . . . . . . . . . 512 121. Cellar ventilation . . . . ... . . 583 122. The storage trench . . 586 123. Sterilizer, showing false bottom as a rack .... 601 124. Commercial hot-water canning outfit for out-of-door work . 602 125. Steam cooker .- . . . ' . . v- . .603 126. Manner of testing a jar . . . . . . 605 127. Position of clamp during sterilization ..... 605 128. Position of clamp after sterilization . . 605 PLATES PLATE I. Dignified houses, in plaster and shingle, adapted for country homes ........ Frontispiece FACING PAGE II. Appropriate types of architecture for a suburban or country home . . . . '..' , . . 24 III. A group of furnishings showing uncrowded arrangement and unobtrusive background. A similar group showing how ob- trusive background and crowded arrangement may obliter- ate effect of even well-selected furnishings . . . 48 IV. Types of rugs with suitable pattern . . . .52 V. Types of textile pattern that may be used for upholstery or hangings . . . . . . . " . . 62 VI. Good types of desks and sideboards . . ... . 70 VII. Types of furniture ugly in proportion, etc. . . . .76 VIII. A few excellent types of mirrors and foot-stools . . - - . 88 IX. Simple and serviceable types of bedroom furniture . . 94 X. A good kitchen arrangement . . . . . .104 XI. Shelves for materials to be stored. Utensils in which foods may be cooked and served . . "... . .110 XII. Use of form in draping dresses before and after fitting . . 336 XIII. Draping a waist; a simple skirt with cascade effect on sides; dress form used in draping ... . . . 344 XIV. Finishes for nightgowns . . ". . . . 376 XV. Simple and effective designs in small hats. Finishes for corset covers . . . . . . . . . 400 XVI. Showing 100-calorie portions of some common foods . . 416 xxi A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING PART I THE HOUSE AND ITS FURNISHINGS CHAPTER I THE MODERN HOUSE BY HELEN BINKERD YOUNG A SOUND house plan is fundamental to the economics of the home. A common impulse toward rational living has made it necessary to simplify the paraphernalia of existence; to eliminate useless tasks and trappings and to arrange the remaining neces- sities into an orderly scheme of household life. The arrange- ment of the modern house is a direct expression of this point of view. The snug, compact dwellings of the present day are eloquent records of the scientific trend in home-making. Theoretically, the administration of a household under con- servation methods implies a perfect dwelling one in which there is an exact adjustment between the worker and the work- place; where there is no friction between the housekeeping and the house structure; where the interior space and equipment fit perfectly the operations of the home. The gap that exists be- tween an effective scheme of work and a poor arrangement of space represents a permanent element of inconvenience or waste; hence the value of a well-considered floor plan. The comfort demanded by modern standards of living has brought into the erection of the house many new materials, many new trades and a great deal of fixed equipment in the way of heating, plumbing, and lighting systems, hardwood 1 2 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING floors, and various types of built-in closets and furniture. The modern house is accordingly a different and a more costly prod- uct than the dwellings of our fathers. This increase in the cost of a cubic foot of the house of to-day, together with the necessity to build, heat, and maintain the home economically, has had a marked effect on the size, shape, and arrangement of dwellings. Small housekeeping units, square floor plans, small halls, con- densed stair arrangements, compact kitchens, grouped chim- neys, and grouped window treatments are the natural results of straightforward planning to meet modern conditions. Intensive housekeeping and intensive house-planning are the tendency of the times. AERANGEMENT OF THE HOUSE The plan of the house must be above all a direct and business- like arrangement. Every foot of space must be made to count, must contribute either to the smoothness of the housework or to the effectiveness of the whole interior. There should be no waste nor stagnant space, no idle nor undefined areas. The organization of the floor plan should fit the organization of home activities. The three phases of daily life work, play, and sleep suggest three divisions of space in the arrangement of a dwelling, the living-rooms forming one group, the working parts another, and the sleeping-rooms> another. Each of these space groups is distinct in use, in arrangement, and in the char- acter of its furnishings. Communication between these parts is provided by means of hall and stairs; in fact the starting point of any plan is a study of its circulation or passage. The hall may, therefore, be con- sidered as the kernel of the plan, the distributing center of space. The arrangement of the living-rooms should be generous in feeling. To this end, wide doorways, groups of windows, and long vistas both indoors and out are essential. One large unit for general family use and two or three smaller ones usually comprise the living area of the modest house. Some variety in the size, shape, and direction of the rooms is desirable in the design of the living space. Combinations of oblong rooms of THE MODERN HOUSE 3 different sizes placed at right angles to each other, or of oblong and square rooms of different dimensions, make a more inter- esting and more furnishable arrangement than a succession of square rooms, which tend to repeat each other in character and use. Generous window groups on long or important walls and arrangements of single windows or pairs on short or unimportant walls furnish a variety of outlook and lighting that is bound to give life and animation to the whole interior. In general the living-rooms in temperate climates should occupy southerly exposures south, southeast, and south- west unless such an arrangement is contradicted by the di- rection of the view, prevailing winds, or other conditions of the site. An east dining-room is especially to be desired, since the morning sun on the breakfast table starts the day off cheerily. Living-rooms southerly and working parts northerly make a good complementary arrangement for using to advan- tage the four exposures of a free-standing house. Further discussion of the working arrangements, such as kitchen, pantry, laundry, and the like, may be found on pages 99 to 119. The sleeping-rooms must above all be private in location. That means that each room must be entered directly from a hall, not from another room. In a two-story house the privacy of the sleeping-rooms is automatically assured by placing them on the second floor. In a one-story arrangement a small bedroom-hall must be deliberately provided in addition to the entrance-hall. The relative advantages of a one-floor or two-floor arrange- ment for a private dwelling depend on a number of factors. In general, the two-story house and the real bungalow, which has all the rooms arranged on a single floor, are climatic ex- pressions of housing for widely different localities. Each is so normal for its own conditions that it becomes the prevalent type of that place. The informal spread-out plan of the bunga- low is normal for warm climates, where yard and grounds form part of the daily life for a large part of the year and where the buildings may be lightly constructed without cellars and 4 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING without heating systems. But when a dwelling must be ar- ranged for year-round comfort in a locality of extreme heat and cold, the supposed economy of a one-floor arrangement, unless kept very small and compact, loses all point and de- FIG. 1. Floor plans of a small house. The first floor plan shows a desirable spaciousness of living area and adaptability of working parts. The second floor plan shows an arrangement of four bedrooms, closets, and bath de- veloped from a central hall. feats its own end. Large cellar and roof areas, the need for weather-tight construction and for an effective heating plant soon eat up the supposed economy of cost. There is, however, something to be said for the simpler housekeeping of the one-floor arrangement. The ease with which a servantless household may be comfortably maintained when all the living arrangements are on a single floor, is re- sponsible for the popularity of various forms of apartments, flats, two-family dwellings, and even cottages with bedrooms on the first floor. Most of these are, however, rented dwelling- places and must not be confused with the type of house that it is desirable to build and own as a permanent home. THE MODERN HOUSE 5 The three arrangements shown in the accompanying illus- trations are typical examples of houses planned for modern conditions. In Fig. 1 are shown both floor plans of a small house 26 by FIG. 2. The first floor plan of a suburban house designed for the accomodation of a family with little children. 30 feet. Here the spaciousness of the living area and the adapt- ability of the working parts may be instantly noted. The contrast in the size and shape of living- and dining-rooms, together with the long vista through both rooms and porch to the yard beyond, form a pleasing development of the space. The stairway is screened from the front door and is arranged in a separate stair-hall which serves also as passage to the coat- room and the kitchen. Such an arrangement greatly assists smooth and noiseless housekeeping. The second-floor plan shows an arrangement of four rooms, closets, and bath de- veloped from a central hall. In Fig. 2 is shown the first-floor plan of a suburban house designed for the accommodation of a family with little children. 6 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING The panel of space across the front, comprising living-room, hall, and dining-room, is supplemented by a similar arrange- ment of rooms in the rear, in the form of nursery and kitchen. The front of the house can thus be kept in order while FIG. 3. A typical arrangement of all rooms on one floor. The living-rooms and kitchen are grouped snugly together, and the bedrooms are grouped and arranged to open from a retired hall. the rear part is in use. The nursery is so located that it can be watched by the worker in the kitchen, and the stairs are very accessible. With such an arrangement properly equipped, a mother could do her own work without exhaustion or loss of time. The children's lunch could be served in the nursery and the mother's couch and sewing materials would always be ready. The nursery could later be transformed into a study-room or library, or in case of illness into a down- stairs bedroom, since toilet facilities are at hand. The house also adjusts itself to hired help. A typical arrangement of all rooms on one floor is shown THE MODERN HOUSE 7 in Fig. 3. The living-rooms and kitchen are grouped snugly together, and the bedrooms are grouped and arranged to open from a retired hall. Such a plan is suitable for a one-floor cottage arrangement in temperate climates. Another one- floor arrangement is shown in Fig. 4. FIG. 4. A small farmhouse arranged on a single floor, with a cellar beneath for the furnace and for vegetable storage. THE FARMHOUSE * No building can be discussed intelligently apart from its surroundings. The best placing of the farmhouse depends on the location of the barns and other outbuildings. The rela- tion of these buildings to one another and to such considerations as sunlight, view, roadways, and garden should be carefully studied. Obviously, a general farm scheme that unites into one workable system lands, barns, and dwelling is the wisest beginning for the development of any property. Eaich im- provement will then take its place in the final scheme, and * The remainder of this chapter is taken from Cornell Reading-Course for the Farm Home, Bull. 39. 8 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING permanent economy will result. Owners of either old or new farmsteads will profit by adhering to a simple and direct work- ing plan for the farm grounds. The farmhouse is merely one unit of the whole farmstead. The practical value of a working plan can hardly be over- estimated. The haphazard farm groups commonly seen bear eloquent testimony to the futility of developing property with- out plan. Failure to plan involves waste of money and labor; it means a continuous process of tearing down, reconstructing, and makeshift. Under all circumstances, hit-and-miss methods of work have proved unfailingly wasteful. Organized farming and organized housekeeping are the present tendency, and to this end an organized arrangement is necessary. A well-planned farmstead is more economical, more orderly, more beautiful, and more salable than one which, like Topsy, "just growed." FARMHOUSE PLANNING A farmhouse is more difficult to plan than either a city or a suburban dwelling, because it must provide for so many needs. The city or the suburban house is merely a home; it is supple- mented by an outside place of business and by outside markets. The farmhouse, on the other hand, must be not only a home, but also the business center and to a limited extent the store and the market. This means that, planned as compactly as may be, a farmhouse is necessarily larger in floor area than a suburban house for the same family need be. Much thought and planning are, therefore, required in order to arrange this larger area in such a manner that wasteful methods of work will be avoided. Traditional types. It may truly be said that the problem of the American farm- house is still unsolved. For the building of new appropriate farm dwellings, there is almost no precedent to guide one. Most of the rural houses now standing are failures as farm- houses because they were not planned for farm conditions. In fact, many of them were not planned at all. They were THE MODERN HOUSE 9 merely built, and built in about the following fashion: an outer shell was constructed and roofed over, the inside was divided into rooms, and somewhere a kitchen was attached. If the house became too small, more rooms were added to fit the growing needs of the family. With each addition to the house, the kitchen retreated to the rear of the structure, where, by its very distance from the living-rooms, it confined the housewife to her post of duty. As the family decreased in numbers and helpers became few, the front part of the house was closed and home life was centered within the radius 6f the kitchen and its activities. Such of these old structures as are soundly built are worth replanning and equipping with running water, electric light, sound floors, and a good heating system. Alteration should be undertaken only after the complete project has been worked out on paper. In Fig. 5 is illustrated a rambling plan of the traditional farmhouse of the upright-and-wing type previously described. The original and the remodeled arrangement are shown in A and B, respectively. The main faults of the old plan, A, are two: first, the plan is deficient in correctly located hall space; second, the distance from the kitchen to the front of the house is too great. Since a person must pass through one room in order to reach another, the whole floor virtually becomes a passageway. This condition destroys privacy, interrupts work, and entails much extra cleaning. The correct amount of hall area placed in the heart of the plan would give separate entrance to each room and would save the whole house. Hall space should be regarded as the developer of the plan. If the plan is compactly arranged and the hall centrally placed, great service may be obtained from even a small allowance of hall space. The presence of five, six, or seven doors in a room in- dicates poor hall-planning, and therefore poor house-planning. It is well to remember that the number of doors in a room diminishes in proportion to the excellence of the plan. In plan B there is introduced enough central hall area to give direct access to each of the rooms. The kitchen is placed TttE REMODELED PLAN B OLD PLAN' A THE MODERN HOUSE 11 centrally at the rear of this hallway. This brings the kitchen nearer the living rooms and shortens all working distances. If the distances from the center of the kitchen to the center of each room in plans A and B are computed, it is found that the remodeled plan saves an average distance of fifteen feet a round trip over the old plan. In the remodeled plan, such modern improvements as heat, light, and running water have been added; closets also have been provided. The whole plan is now arranged so as to en- courage wholesome living. Under the old plan the house contained two cellars, one under the square upright and one under the kitchen, with an un excavated area under the dining-room. A long journey was thereby involved in going from one excavated part to the 'other. The new plan simplified this difficulty by excavating under the dining-room. wing. A study of new types. Attention must now be focused on more economical arrange- ments. The plan of any building is based primarily on its needs. Broadly speaking, family life makes three demands on a house plan: that it shall provide living area, working area, and sleeping area. The living area includes such parts as sitting-room, dining-room, library, office, and porch; the work- ing area includes kitchen, pantry, laundry, hall, and stairs; the sleeping area includes bedrooms and bath. It is the func- tion of a good plan to organize these three elements into a compact arrangement, allowing each requirement an area to itself. Spaciousness must be expressed in the living area, com- pactness in the working area, and privacy in the sleeping area. The farm cottage shown in Figs. 6 and 7 aptly illustrates these principles. Here is a compact plan with its three areas clearly defined. In the living area a feeling of spaciousness is obtained by the use of wide doorways and groups of windows through which vistas are seen indoors and out. No interior, however small in actual dimensions, need appear cramped if long vistas are planned for. Good interior design is also 12 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING evident in Fig. 6. It is indicated by the balanced arrangement of the structural parts of each room. On the rear wall of the living-room is seen a central fireplace flanked by broad door- ways of equal width, while the front wall opposite expands into a generous bay window centrally placed, with built-in -*\* > , xj > \P* *//< - 'i i - ii 5 W^'^i i ? ELOOR^N;/; PLAN 1) Fio. 6. First floor plan, showing living area and working area. bookshelves to right and left. These features so unite as to make of the living-room a composition at once so dignified, so orderly, and so effective that little furniture is needed to complete it. In the dining-room, balanced design is expressed by the long flower-box, the bay window, and by the central door on the opposite wall, flanked by diagonal corner features of THE MODERN HOUSE 13 equal width. In general, diagonal corners should be avoided; except where they are a practical necessity or where they are deliberately used for reasons of design, as in Fig. 8. Of the working area (Fig. 6), the kitchen, pantry, and stairs BARNS ARE: IN - THIS DIRECTFQN FIG. 7. Second floor plan, showing sleeping area. are the parts most constantly used by the woman of the house. Hence they are compactly grouped and are placed next to the living space. Woodroom and washroom are of intermittent use to the housewife but of constant use to the farmer. Conse- quently they are placed away from the living rooms in the direction of driveway and barns. 14 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING FIG. 8. A farmhouse plan, showing diagonal corners used deliberately for purpose of design. The sleeping area provides one bathroom and three bed- rooms, each of the latter with its closet. Their position on the second floor renders them quiet and private. Briefly stated, economy of plan is expressed in the grouped THE MODERN HOUSE 15 SECOND FLOOR FIG. 9. Plan showing simplicity of living area and com- pleteness of working area. chimney arrangement, in the condensed hall and stair arrange- ment, and in the small kitchen. The kitchen arrangement is weak, however, in some respects. It has only one outside wall and is therefore lacking in cross-ventilation. Moreover, the 16 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING position of the door between dining-room and kitchen, being in line with the kitchen range, would surely prove a nuisance from considerations of sight, sound, and smell. It is unfor- tunate, too, that the path of travel from the rear to the front of the house leads through the kitchen. In Fig. 9 is represented another well-planned farmhouse. It is characterized chiefly by the simplicity of the living area and by the completeness of the working area. Each area occupies about one-half of the floor plan. The living area is unique and spacious. Instead of two separate rooms, each of which would be small, living-room and dining-room are combined into one large apartment. A group of three glass doors connects this generous living-room with an unusual porch arrangement, called on the plan an "arbored terrace." This terrace, which is cement-paved under foot and vine-covered overhead, is in reality an open-air con- tinuation of the living-room, which adds materially to the comfort of the family in summer. Here meals may be served while sunlight and garden are enjoyed. The position of window groups on both ends of the large room creates a long, unbroken vista, so that all the living space is appreciated all the time. Centrally placed on the long outer wall of the living-room is a fireplace alcove, or inglenook. This feature increases the actual width of the room and provides two outdoor vistas in new directions. Inglenooks, however, should be used with great reserve unless they are generous in width and develop naturally on the plan. Many times the excellence of an entire plan is sacrificed to the use of a feature of this nature. The completeness of the working area is best appreciated by observing that each kind of work has its allotted place. The kitchen is intended for cooking; the pantry, for food storage; the pass pantry, for dishes; the woodroom, for fuel; the hall and stairs, for passage; the two recessed porches gather entrance to the house in a common passage that serves all rooms. The kitchen arrangement shown in Fig. 9 excels that in Fig. 6 in at least three particulars. The introduction of a pass I " id 18 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING pantry serves to seclude the kitchen from the living-room; good cross-ventilation takes place between the windows over table and sink; and the path of travel from the rear porch to the front of the house does not cross the kitchen. In this house the laundry is located in the basement, which stands out of ground on the kitchen corner. An outside door enters the cellar on grade level. The bedroom plan is compact, private, light, and airy. Other plans may be analyzed in a similar manner, the strength and the weakness of various arrangements noted, and a sense of good planning acquired. The larger farmhouse shown in Fig. 10 has been inserted for personal study on the part of the readers. It represents a well-organized arrangement with a new feature introduced in the rear a hired man's room with separate stairs leading to it. The dignified, simple, and well-designed exterior shown in Plate I, upper figure, will stim- ulate the imagination and serve to make the plan more realistic. It must not be supposed that the plans shown in Figs. 6, 8, and 9 are perfect in every respect. No business office is in- cluded and they contain fewer bedrooms than farmhouses of the past have provided. It must be remembered that each of these houses was designed for a particular family and for a particular farm site, as all successful houses should be. Con- sequently they are not intended as models to be copied, but as illustrations of the principles of house-planning. If the principles of planning are understood they may be applied, whether to new work or to alterations. In general, an intricate or confused plan is always a poor one; the more carefully an arrangement is studied, the simpler it should become. Briefly stated, the final test of a good plan is its extreme simplicity. Starting at the main entrance, one should be able to proceed mentally through the plan with ease and comprehension. For the most part the walls should be in continuous, straight lines and should show an absence of jogs, angles, and diagonal corners. Windows may be grouped or single, but should be disposed in an orderly manner with relation both to interior and to exterior appearance. THE MODERN HOUSE 19 The plans shown are a reasonable protest against the old wasteful types of farm dwellings. Study of these plans will serve to show in what respects the modern rural house should differ from former arrangements. A living-room now com- bines the unused parlor and the overused sitting-room for general family life; an office where the farmer's business is transacted is provided in a place convenient to roadway and barn, but outside the path of housework travel; the kitchen arrangement is compact and well organized; the downstairs bedrooms open, not from other rooms, but from a private hall, thus insuring quiet and privacy (Figs. 5 and 8) ; a bathroom is provided on either the first or the second floor, according to water pressure; if possible all the bedrooms are provided with windows on two sides; the large hall with open stairs has given way to a more condensed arrangement; a generous porch or uncovered terrace is placed where it either commands the best view or is most useful during the day; the family hearth has literally returned in the living-room fireplace; and the whole plan is so arranged that the rooms lived in most are the sunniest. A dwelling combining the above features is illustrated in Fig. 11. Wisely studied and frankly arranged, without a foot of waste room, this structure represents a type of farmhouse that is economical to build, to heat, and to work. The stairs for the whole house are contained in one vertical shaft; the hall is reduced to a small area; an office is placed near the roadway and away from the housewife's work, which is accom- modated in a dining-room and kitchen combination; a man's room is provided at the extreme end of the plan, away from the family; a washroom is on the line of travel between the back porch and the dining-room; and a spacious living-room, nth fireplace and window groups, is located on a desirable >rner. On the second floor, the stairs land centrally in a square hall, which gives direct entrance to each of the four bedrooms and to the bathroom; the bedrooms are provided with good closets; light and ventilation are everywhere abun- lant. 20 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING FIRST FLOOR PLAN. 5EXO/ND FLOOR FIG. 11. A house planned for farm life and farm conditions. Modern improvements. The class of conveniences known as modern improvements meaning thereby plumbing, heating, and lighting systems, the installation of mechanical power to be used for pumps, wash- ing machines, mangles, vacuum cleaners, and the like may properly be discussed only by experts who have special knowl- edge of them. The practical aspect of most of these improve- THE MODERN HOUSE 21 ments has been widely discussed in books and pamphlets, so that any householder may become informed before installing such improvements in the home. EXTERIOR DESIGN (PLATES I AND II) In order to be a success, a country house must be in har- mony with its environment. It should appear to have grown on its site, and to be a normal expression of human life in nat- ural surroundings. The house should be in tune with the color and the contour of the landscape. Farm lands which are for the most part flat or rolling, produce contours which are strongly horizontal. Architecture that is appropriate to such landscape should in general be low, broad, and snug. Tall narrow structures are necessary in cities where land is costly and are appropriate in rugged, cliffy countries where nature is replete with vertical surfaces; but they are inappropriate when standing free on a flat site. Color scheme. The setting of a rural house presupposes such natural scenery as is composed of trees, shrubs, lawns, gardens, hills, rocks, and streams. The color effect of the house must be in harmony with this setting. Such colors as white, cream, grays, soft greens, and browns of various shades will always harmonize with nature. Red is bold unless partially screened by planting. The use of brick is about the only reason for introducing a red color scheme. Brick walls are broken in mass by jointing and relieved by contrast at the openings, whereas a wooden house painted red is distressing. When field stone, concrete, cement, or brick is used, the color scheme is spontaneous, being, pro- duced by the color of the materials selected; when wood is employed, however, a surface color effect is applied by means of stain or paint. This color scheme should be neither too dull nor too bright. Cold grays and drabs are about as cheer- less as red is aggressive. In general, when choosing paint from samples, it is wise to select a color that is somewhat softer than the effect desired. A small piece of gay color which 22 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING looks interesting in the hand, appears glaring and bold when covering an entire house. Likewise, a cold, dead color appears cheerless when used in mass. The chief factor to be avoided in painting houses is an ef- fect of patchiness. For example, in the case of a porch post or column, the cap and the base should not be painted one color and the shaft another. The whole porch should be one idea. Cornices, brackets, and moldings should not be picked out by color, as light and shade interpret them sufficiently. Useless bric-a-brac and ornament that cannot be removed should be subdued as much as possible in the color scheme. Looked at as a picture, the windows and doors of a house should appear as decorative accents, contrasting with the background of wall. Windows especially are the eyes that give expression to the architectural face of the dwelling. With walls of a light color the windows naturally form a dark con- trast; but if the walls are dark or dull in effect, the windows may be enlivened by painting the sash a lighter or brighter color and the blinds a clear shade of green, yellow-brown, or other harmonious color. Doorways and entrances should have dignified recognition in the color scheme. General proportion. The effectiveness of a house in the landscape depends not at all on ornament, but on its structural shape and the color produced through the use of building materials. Refined proportions, simple roof lines, and interesting but not violent contrasts between roof, walls, and openings, together with the character and arrangement of windows and doors, are the elements that combine to make of a country house an ex- ample of true rural architecture. It has been previously stated that the mass-proportion of a house in the open country should be low and broad rather than tall and narrow. This feeling of proportion depends not so much on the actual height of the house from ground to gable, as on the position of the eaves or the cornice line. When the eaves line is low, the effect of the house is low; hence the THE MODERN HOUSE 23 value of long roof lines in obtaining good proportions. If the roof rafters are brought down to the level of the second floor, a sound, practical, and attractive structure usually results. It is desirable to include the porch under such a roof whenever possible, since this simplifies the roofing system of the house and unites house and porch into one contained design. While long roof lines and recessed porches are not always desirable, they have their charm and place. Low eaves and a long roof line usually fit a farmhouse plan very conveniently because such a treatment brings a smaller second-floor plan than first-floor plan. This is exactly the farmhouse requirement. The rooms under the roof may be lighted and ventilated by means of generous dormers or gables. It is commonly supposed that bedrooms located under a sloping roof must necessarily be low and hot. This is not true. The fact that some bedrooms so located have been stuffy does not argue that all bedrooms need to be so; it implies rather that there has been no cross-ventilation or that the windows were placed so low as to leave a pocket of hot air confined near the ceiling. An outlet for the hot air should be furnished by windows placed high in the room. If the roof pitch and dormer windows are studied to fit the height of the second-floor rooms, a full second story with high or full-length windows may be commodiously arranged under a long roof, and the low parts may be used for closets. Structural elements. The windows of a dwelling, whether grouped or single, should be similar in style and should show some kind of orderly arrangement. In general, unity of design is preserved if the tops of all windows on a floor are kept on the same level. Vari- ations in window heights will thus occur between the floor level and the sill. Oval windows, diamond-shaped windows, and other fancy forms should be avoided. A miscellaneous collection of windows jotted at different points over a building robs it of dignity and composure. Window blinds and small panes have a certain decorative value from the outside. 24 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING No country house is complete without a generous porch or other feature that will form a center for outdoor family life. A vine-covered arbor, a paved spot, or merely a shaded stretch of lawn near the house may be made fully as livable as the usual porch. The usual type of American porch, a covered platform attached to the house, built high and dry, inclosed by a railing, and reached by steps, has artificially confined outdoor life to the house apart from yard and garden. If comfort and beauty are both to be served, neither porch nor garden should be sacrificed; they should rather be arranged adjacently so that the lawn adjoins the porch and the vistas down the garden paths are continuous with the main vistas from the porch, or are related to views from the important windows of the house. In other words, house and grounds should be planned as one continuous design, using as a con- necting link the porch. The chief difficulty with a united porch and garden scheme arises from the usual difference in height between the porch floor and the yard level. These two levels may be brought near together either by setting the house low on the ground and build- ing areas around the cellar windows (Plate I), or by raising a flat, graded terrace to within a step or two of the porch floor. Both these schemes are frequently and successfully practiced, and in no way prevent light and air from entering the cellar. In order to be commodious, a porch should be room-shaped, rather than long and narrow. A porch 10 to 12 feet wide and 14 to 20 feet long will give greater comfort than one 6 to 8 feet wide and extending around two sides of the house. Further- more, a rectangular porch will not darken so much of the in- terior as will one extending along the full length of the house. If the porch occupies a sunny position, it may be shaded and embowered by screening with latticework, over which vines may be allowed to grow. A cement or brick floor is desirable for porch use. If an upstairs sleeping-porch is planned, the railing should be built solidly from the floor for 2 or 3 feet, and the open part above should be provided with window sash and awnings in PLATE II. Appropriate types of architecture for a suburban or country home. THE MODERN HOUSE 25 order that storms and early morning light may be excluded. This arrangement can be made comfortable for year-round use. Outside entrance doors should be sheltered by a hood on brackets, by a portico, or by a porch (Fig. 12). It is usually de- sirable to separate the living-porch from the main entrance. FIG. 12. A modest farm cottage of good design. Here, if anywhere, a little genuine design should be afforded. A portal is an intimate feature and should express dignity, hos- pitality, and beauty to all who enter. A natural-finish oak door with plate glass panel can hardly be considered appro- priate for a decorative doorway, because it is out of keeping, both in material and color, with the remainder of the exterior. COST OF BUILDING The actual cost of building a given house is determined largely by local conditions. The cost of labor, the cost of ma- 26 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING terials used, the distance of the new building from the base of supplies, and the amount of hauling involved, are items that vary with every enterprise. Thus no fixed price may be quoted as to the cost of a given building, the year round and in all localities. The reading public should, therefore, place no faith in the building figures quoted in popular magazines. They are misleading in the extreme; for they usually represent either a set of conditions which have not been fully told or which are so unusual that they may not be duplicated. In general it may safely be said that a modest house of usual construction may be built for considerably less money by rural than by city labor. One way of estimating the probable cost of a new house is to compare it with another dwelling recently built in the local- ity. If the size and cost of the house already built are known, one may compute the average cost a cubic foot by dividing the total cost by the number of cubic feet that the house con- tains. If the house that is planned is to be of better grade than the one figured on, it will cost more a cubic foot; if it is simpler, it will cost less. A rough estimate may thus be reached before the work is undertaken or is figured out by the con- tractor. With present standards of building it is likely that in no locality can a house with modern improvements be erected for less than sixteen cents a cubic foot, and that a modest house need not exceed twenty-four cents a cubic foot unless fireproof construction is used. An average cost of about eighteen cents a cubic foot is probably fair for most country districts. Much has been said and written about the present high cost of building. It is true that a house of a given size to-day often costs twice as much as one of the same size would have cost twenty-five years ago; but this advance is due not alone to the increased cost of labor and material, but also to similar types of dwellings not being compared. A house equipped with heat, running water, hardwood floors, many closets, and fre- quently with electric light and built-in furniture is com- pared with a mere weather-proof structure built with single THE MODERN HOUSE 27. floors, no closets, and few or no modern improvements. Many more trades and much more equipment than formerly now go into the building of a comfortable house. It is the amount and the kind of equipment that increases the cost; a house 30 by 40 feet may be made to cost $3,000 or $10,000, according to the beauty and finish of interior woodwork, floors, and walls, the amount of plumbing, the number and kind of fixtures selected, or the kind of heating plant installed. SUGGESTIONS FOR MAKING ALTERATIONS Any person who expects to make alterations in a house should begin to ponder improvements a long time in advance. The first step should be an accurately measured record of the present floor plans, drawn at a scale of one-quarter inch to the foot. The exact size and position of walls, openings, closets, chimneys, or other existing features should be located on these drawings, which may then be studied by comparing them with other good plans found in books and magazines. Tissue paper or tracing paper may then be placed over the drawings and alteration sketches freely made. A dozen arrangements may thus be tried on paper, hung on the wall, and considered at leisure. These plans should be supplemented by a building- book in which one may keep measurements, written data, and new ideas as they occur. In this book, clippings may be pasted and sketches may be freely made. These plans and this book correspond in a rude way to the architect's drawings and specifications, and will serve to crystallize the alterations into definite form. Generations of building experience have shown that suc- cessful results must be based on definite instructions. No man's memory should be trusted for measurements or other information, and verbal directions should not be given to workmen. Building operations are exceedingly definite; walls and openings when in place cannot be moved one inch in order to suit a piece of furniture or to make way for an altered notion. All these experimental ideas should be worked out on paper. As the owner studies over alteration problems, the best 28 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING arrangement will at length take shape in his own mind. An intelligible home-made drawing and an explicit written list of his requirements may then be put in shape, so that the car- penter or contractor can make a fairly accurate estimate of the cost before work is begun. In order to obtain the best results, the owner should read up, in reliable books, such sub- jects as waterworks and heating systems and should freely investigate catalogues of equipment. When the contemplated alterations are extensive and there- fore costly, or when a new house must be built, the work should by all means be turned over to a good architect. Forceful arrangement and good design require trained experience; an attempt to get along without such professional help is false economy. It is the architect's daily business to put building requirements into buildable shape. Practical construction is the basis of his design. Moreover, he is acquainted with all the short cuts whereby efficient results may be obtained quickly and permanently. REFERENCES King, F. H. Ventilation for Dwellings, Rural Schools, and Stables. Lynde, Carleton. Home Waterworks. Putnam, X. W. The Gasoline Engine on the Farm. Roberts, Isaac Phillips. The Farmstead. Schneider, N. H. Electric Light for the Farm. Stickley, Gustav. Craftsman Homes. White, Charles E., Jr. Successful Houses and How to Build Them. CHAPTER II HOME FURNISHING BY ANNETTE J. WARNER THE home represents the most intimate environment of the individual. No matter how unconscious of their surround- ings persons may seem, their tastes and ideas are affected by the things with which they live continually. Such being the case, the woman who makes it her task to provide for her family significant surroundings, thereby adds to the ordinary experiences of life a real factor of education and enjoyment. Any rules or discussion on furnishing the home must neces- sarily be very general, and cannot be conclusive in deciding individual problems. The most that can be done is to review such features and considerations as enter into all questions of home furnishing, hoping thereby to point the way to the solution of the individual problem. Even in the hands of an experienced person, matters of home furnishing and of decoration require a slow and thoughtful study. There are no shortcuts. No matter how long it takes to make a decision in furnishing, the time spent in so doing is insignificant when compared to the duration of the result. On account of this permanence of furnishings, also, an in- terior cannot afford to record passing fads, shams and imi- tations, but should rather express lasting, sincere, and dignified ideas. The furnishings of the house should be consistent in character with the structural interior. Beamed ceilings, rough plaster walls, and sturdy woodwork are appropriate in a home of the Craftsman style. Such an interior would be a suitable back- ground for mission furniture; it would be incongruous in a house of Colonial style, or as a setting for mahogany furniture. 29 30 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING The house should appear as though it were planned through- out by one person for one locality, one family, one purse. If the house is in a southern latitude, comfort is expressed by large spaces, long vistas, shadows, cool colors, light drapery, few and light-weight rugs and light furniture. If the house is in a northern climate or is used chiefly in winter, comfort is expressed by a large fireplace, warm colorings, large rugs, heavier and richer drapery, and some upholstered furniture. In the city house, space and light are luxuries that must be conserved by every possible means. In the country there are fewer limitations of this sort, but there are varying conditions in the environment of country houses that should influence their treatment. In general, simplicity of treatment in finish and furnishing preserves the dignity of the house and is always in good taste. An interior should also be fitted to its use in every part, should appear consistent, genuine, and harmonious throughout. The environment can thus be made to typify the qualities to which a family aspires. STRUCTURAL CONSIDERATION OF ROOMS Size The old ideal for a room was the largest, "squarest" room possible for every use for a family room, bedroom, or kitchen. Changed conditions of living and the increased cost of labor and building material have reduced the size of the modern house. According to the varied nature of their use, it is evident that rooms should vary in size and in shape. Living-room. The living-room for the family should be the largest room in the house, since it serves a greater variety of purposes and a larger number of persons than any other room. The restful effect of an appearance of ample space is one of its charms. Sacrifice of spaciousness in other parts of the house may well be made in order to provide a spacious living-room. The actual size for a living-room is a matter allowing great variation, but HOME FURNISHING 31 rooms varying from 14 to 16 feet in width and from 18 to 24 feet in length suggest good sizes. Dining-room. : The dining-room is also a gathering place for all the members of the family. It, however, has but one center and serves only one function. It may, therefore, well be considerably smaller than the living-room. For the comfortable serving of the meals, at least three feet should be allowed between the edge of the table and the sideboard or any other furniture in the room. Kitchen. The kitchen should be small and compact in arrangement and should not contain a foot of unnecessary space. A good size for a kitchen in which the work is done by one person is estimated to be from 100 to 150 square feet of space (page 102). Bedrooms. The bedroom of the modern house may be relatively small because the convenience of built-in closets, of lighter types of furniture, and of bathrooms makes a large size unnecessary. In a bedroom, after sufficient space has been allowed for pur- poses of ventilation, sleeping, dressing, and storage of clothes, convenience is better served by compactness than by size. Halls. Halls are used to give direct access to all parts of the house. After this purpose has been accomplished, space may appro- priately be economized here in a home of moderate size. Shape and proportion Simple rectangular shapes for rooms are the natural outcome of building conditions. Any extension or projection should be a coherent structural feature and should be used only to satisfy a need in the function of the room. A chimney seat, a recess necessitated by a dormer window, an ingle nook when it works out naturally on plan, are often reasonable features. A bay- window built to add space or to improve the lighting conditions of a room, if well designed may furnish an interesting decorative 32 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING FIG. 13. A typical low room in an old-fashioned cottage, showing how even a good horizontal arrangement of lines and furnishings decreases the ap- parent height of the room. Fio. 14. The same type of low room as in Fig. 13, showing how a vertical ar- rangement of lines and furnishings tends to increase the apparent height of the room. HOME FURNISHING 33 feature both inside and outside the house. No excrescences or protuberances should be built merely for the sake of original or ornate effect. An oblong is in general a more pleasing shape for a room than is a square. A pleasing relation between the three dimensions length, breadth, and height should if possible be maintained. A room that is very long is not easily adapted to general uses and is lacking in an effect of intimacy. A room that is too high is wasteful of unused space, is hard to heat, and is unfriendly in appearance. In a room in which all the dimensions are equal or nearly equal, the shape is obvious at once; nothing is left to the imagination, and the result is stupid and uninteresting. However, a square may sometimes be the most convenient and economical shape for a room. For a small dining-room with a square or round dining table, a square may be both a conven- ient and a fitting shape. An oblong in which one dimension is perceptibly longer is much more pleasing than one in which there is a doubt as to comparative dimensions. An excellent proportion for an average room is one in which the width is more than half and less than two-thirds the length. In a house of moderate cost and size, it is not always possible to plan so that each room is of ideal proportion. Persons must often live in homes which they themselves have not built. In such cases there are many devices by which the apparent pro- portion may be improved. Devices for changing apparent proportion (Figs. 13-16). The eye naturally tends to follow any continuous line. By establishing lines in any particular direction, therefore, that direction is emphasized at the expense of the others. Rooms that are too high may be made to appear lower by introducing strong horizontal lines, for example: 1. By bringing the ceiling color down on the side wall. This is successful only when the ceiling color is happily related in hue and value to the side wall, and when its width corresponds to the width of a moderate border 10 inches or 12 inches, in a room of ordinary dimensions, say 14 feet by 16 feet by 9 feet. 34 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING FIG. 15. A tall room of the late nineteenth century type showing a placing of picture molding and a selection and arrangement of furnishings that tend to decrease the apparent height of the room. Wall coverings of such dig- nified pattern and harmonious color as are shown in Plate V, may some- times be used above the molding with decorative effect. Note the relation of the shapes of the pictures to the spaces. Fio. 16. A typical modern living-room in which a group of casements and built-in seat dominate the furnishing effect. HOME FURNISHING 35 2. By using a molding at the intersection of side wall and ceiling, and by making the picture-molding continuous with the top of doors or windows. 3. By a wainscot or dado, the top of which is on a level with the window-sills. 4. By using a valance in the window drapery, if this is con- sistent with the style of the room and the other furnishings, and by hanging all draperies so that the width of the opening is emphasized. 5. By using furniture in which the horizontal lines dom- inate, such as long low bookcases, davenports, sideboards, or tables. 6. By using pictures which are horizontal oblongs in shape, or by grouping several smaller pictures so that either the lower or upper edges of their frames will establish continuous horizon- tal lines. Rooms that are too low may be made to appear higher by emphasizing the vertical lines, for example : 1. By placing the picture-molding at the ceiling, leaving the sidewall undivided. 2. By using vertically striped wall paper. Stripes should always be of nearly the same color or value in order to be un- obtrusive. 3. By using as long draperies as are consistent with the use and structure of the room, and by hanging these in straight folds and so arranging them as to make the openings high and narrow in effect. 4. By the use of tall and narrow bookshelves, cabinets, and other furniture. 5. By the use of pictures that are vertical oblongs, or by grouping the pictures with each other or with pieces of furniture so that the vertical is emphasized. In a room that is square or is too short an oblong, emphasis may be given to one dimension, for example: 1. By opening up a vista through a door or window, or by planning interesting features in the furnishings in order to emphasize the long axis of the room. A mirror may perform Fio. 17. A study of windows in relation to the adjoining wall space. First group: A single window in the middle of a short wall: a small double-hung window of bald design; a generous double-hung window with pleasing wall space around it; an interesting and well-placed casement. Second group: Two separate windows in a generous wall space: a good arrangement both for distribution of light and for the placing of furniture; a poor arrangement both for lighting and for furnishing. Third and fourth groups: Pairs and groups of windows in a generous wall space: a fair arrangement for a pair of double-hung windows, providing good light and good wall space; an interesting group of casements, dominating the wall space and furnishing abundant light; a pleas- ing group of double-hung windows; a pleasing arrangement of French windows. The use of moldings in any case must be related to the proportion of the room and the structural line of the openings. HOME FURNISHING 37 a valuable office in adding to the apparent length of a room. The French have understood this and have increased the ap- parent size of dance-hall and dining-room by the skillful use of many mirrors. 2. By placing the long dimension of a rug in the direction to be emphasized. If the room is sufficiently large and the other conditions warrant it, two narrow rugs so placed as to emphasize the length of the room may be used. 3. By placing the long pieces of furniture in the direc- tion to be emphasized. Seats or shelves may sometimes be built in. In rooms that are too long, the apparent width should be increased and the apparent length diminished by every device possible, for example: 1. By placing openings or important structural features centrally on the long sides, thus breaking the length of the room into two or more furnishing centers. 2. By using more than one rug, placed with the long edges parallel to the short side of the room, in order to break up the space and establish lines across the room. 3. By placing the long pieces of furniture or by grouping furniture so that the width rather than the length of the room is emphasized. Location of windows and doors (Figs. 17, 18). The location, style, and proportion of windows and doors are structural considerations that affect every interior. The amount and shapes of the remaining wall spaces after windows and doors have been placed define the possibilities of the fur- nishing scheme. It is, therefore, important to arrange windows and doors in such a way as to leave usable wall spaces. These spaces should be so pleasing in shape and proportion that the bare room is in itself a design. Many doors in a room are an evidence of poor planning. While there is no rule about windows, an amount of window area equal to about one-fourth the floor area will in general be found a reasonable guide. 38 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING B D K Q FIG. 18. A-B: Two types of bay windows. C: A well-placed group of high casements. D-I: A study of six windows showing how the appearance of the window is affected by the division of the glass. HOME FURNISHING 39 Structural surfaces. The structural surfaces of the room are walls, ceiling, and floor. Walls include plaster walls, windows, doors, and trim. Plaster walls. The usual finish for the walls of a dwelling is plaster. Plaster may be rough or smooth. It may be left in the natural color, painted, or papered. 1. Rough plaster: The irregularities in rough, or sand-finished, plaster produce an effect of texture that makes such a wall an attractive background. The natural color of rough plaster varies according to the color of the sand used in mixing it. Sometimes it is a pure gray, sometimes it is tinged with soft tones of warm color. Powdered color may be mixed with the plaster when it is wet, if the mason is sufficiently experienced to handle it. Rough plaster should be applied by a skillful workman in order to produce a uniform effect. Rough plaster is rather harsh in texture and is not suitable in all rooms or with all woods. It is more akin to hard woods like oak, waxed or stained, than to mahogany or satinwood or painted woods. It is incongruous with delicate or very luxurious hangings. It is better in family rooms than in bedrooms or small rooms in which hands come often in contact with the wall. If rough plaster is spotted or discolored, it is not so easy to clean as smooth plaster. If the discoloration is only on the surface, it may be removed by pumice stone. If it is desired to change the color of rough plastered walls, oil paint is a very good medium; a coat of glue-size applied before the paint will facilitate the work and will economize the amount of paint. 2. Smooth plaster: Walls finished in smooth plaster present an even flat surface, not so interesting as the rough plaster, but with many advantages. It is easier to apply and is easily cleaned. Smooth plaster should be painted or papered, since its glaring white surface is a trying element in almost any color scheme. 40 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING 3. Smooth plaster painted (oil color or water color): Paint has an advantage over paper in that any subtlety of tint or tone may be obtained through skillful mixing, In general, in the use of house paint, white will lighten any color and black will darken any color; but in the case of the yellows, since black paint tends to develop green shades in them, dark brown paint should be substituted for the black. Oil color is more durable than water color. Although oil paint is more expensive in the beginning than water color, it is more economical in the end for use in rooms that are constantly occupied, or on parts of walls that are subject to the frequent contact of hands or fur- niture, such as schoolrooms, nurseries, kitchens, or corridors. Oil color sometimes has a disagreeable shine. This may be avoided by adding turpentine or by flat finishing (pouncing with a broad flat bristle brush). Oil colors may be obtained already mixed, but they frequently vary from sample. A better plan is to buy the ingredients and have them mixed only a short tune before using. Different surfaces require different proportions of paint, oil, turpentine, and the like. An even tone throughout the room is always safe, but a very attractive effect may be obtained by an uneven tone. For example, the walls might be painted a gray blue and stippled with a gray green. Such treatment produces an effect of at- mosphere suggesting space. It should never be attempted except by an experienced painter. Oil color is easily cleaned by washing with soap and water. Water color, or calcimine, has the advantage of being in- expensive, and less skill is required in applying it. Water color may be applied over other surfaces, such as paper, beaver- board, or calcimine, but wall paper should not be put on over calcimine as it is likely to strip off. Water color walls cannot be washed but can be easily freshened by the application of a second coat. Water color is the most common treatment for ceilings even though the side walls may be painted or papered. 4. Paper or textiles: Smooth plastered walls are often cov- ered with paper or a textile; this treatment is effective in many furnishing schemes and is especially adaptable in old houses. HOME FURNISHING 41 Wainscots. Wainscoting treatments formed by chair-rail or paneling of various heights suggest a variety of decorative effects which are appropriate for important rooms, such as living-room, dining-room, and hall. A paneled treatment of wood or of moldings and plaster is dignified and effective, provided the wall and window spaces will accommodate themselves to such an arrangement. Obviously, panelled treatments can be studied only in relation to the individual room. Trim of walls. The trim of the room may be thought of as part of the wall or as a frame for an opening. If the room is small or the open- ings many and not well placed, the trim should be subordinated to the wall treatment. But if the room is of good size and the windows and doors are well proportioned and well placed, the trim will bear more emphasis. Except in fireproof houses, a certain amount of woodwork is needed to cover the bony joints of construction and to com- plete the finish of the room. The same kind of wood and the same finish should be used throughout the room, with the possible exception of the floor. Since the woodwork furnishes both a structural and a decorative element in the room, its choice should be considered from both standpoints. The trim covering the joints and framing doors and windows, should be wide enough to look adequate for this service, but not so heavy nor so ornate as to be obtrusive in the part it plays in the background of the room. A good width for the trim for the openings in average rooms is between 3^ and 5 inches. Hard woods finished to show their character are excellent if the grain is not too conspicuous. Quartered oak with its modest grain and possibilities of finish is very fitting for the woodwork of a room in which oak furniture is to be used. Other woods, such as hard pine and cypress, are susceptible to treatment that makes them very effective. Woods of an inconspicuous grain, or cut so that the grain does not obtrude itself, should be chosen for trim. A wood with a bold swirling 42 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING grain or with strong contrasts of light and dark is a poor choice for interior work, for it is too restless and insistent to take its place quietly in any decorative scheme. Fortunately, the item of expense is a protection against the use of woods so aggres- sive in color as mahogany, curly birch, and the like. Such woods should be reserved for furniture. The woodwork should play a definite part in the decorative scheme of the room, harmonizing with the walls both in char- acter and color. If the harmony cannot be secured by trans- parent stains, the woodwork should be painted. In fact, in many old or ready-made houses, paint for woodwork is the only means of securing a harmonious interior. Filler, stain, thin shellac, and wax are commonly used to se- cure the transparent finish desirable for hard woods. Woods with large or open grain, such as oak, chestnut, cypress, and pine, require a filler to make a smooth even surface. This filler may be kept the same color as the wood, or it may be stained darker, or a very light whitish filler may be used. The effect of this filler is to tone, to modify, or to emphasize the natural markings of the wood. Woods with a close inconspicuous grain, such as maple and birch, do not require a filler, but can be toned by staining. Wax is a more pleasing finish for hardwoods than is varnish, which should be used only on bathroom floors or other places where durability is perhaps more important than appearance. The soft dull finish of a waxed surface is more appropriate to wood than the glaring shiny finish of varnish. Paint is an opaque finish used to cover woods having an un- pleasant or no visible grain. Such woods as soft pine, white wood, and cypress are good foundations for painted woodwork. By means of paint, any woodwork can be adjusted in color to its surroundings. This flexibility of paint in relation to color schemes is a strong recommendation in its favor for both old and new work and for all types of rooms. Doors. Doors of good pattern in various woods may be obtained ready-made in standard sizes. They should be of the same gen- HOME FURNISHING 43 eral finish as the trim and other woodwork. Doors of uniform height on each floor contribute to unity of effect. The width may be varied for convenience. Mantelpieces, cornices, and picture-moldings. Any wood used in connection with such features as fireplaces should be consistent in character and finish with the other trim of the room. The mantel should be planned with and for the room, not purchased ready-made and grafted upon it. Like- wise any tile or brick facings used in the fireplace should har- monize in texture and color with the entire decorative scheme. A cornice of wood like the trim may mark the intersection of ceiling and side wall and should of course be finished like the other woodwork. A picture-molding marking this intersection is an effective finish for low rooms or those of ordinary height. A picture-molding so placed should be heavier than one lower on the wall. In some cases, a second molding may be used on the wall some distance below the one at the ceiling. This second molding then becomes the picture-rail. Ceiling. The treatment of the ceiling should harmonize with the finish of the walls and woodwork. Ordinarily the ceilings in dwellings are finished with plaster. This lends itself through the use of calcimine (water color paints), to any color scheme. Paper is a less desirable finish for ceilings. If it must be used, as sometimes happens in old houses where the ceiling has cracked or become discolored, a plain tone should be chosen. If a ceiling is cracked, canvas or burlap may be put over the old plaster and then paint or calcimine applied to it. Beamed ceilings produce an interesting structural and dec- orative effect. The beams should preferably be finished like the other woodwork in the room. If peculiar problems are presented by the woodwork, the finish of the beams may be considered only in relation to the ceiling. Beamed ceilings are often found in houses of early colonial architecture. They are also a feature of the new Craftsman houses. In the first case 44 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING they would usually be painted, since most of the woodwork is painted; in the latter, they would be finished like the oak or similar woods generally used. Ceilings of wood, except in sheathed or paneled rooms, are likely to look heavy and oppressive. In summer cottages and in some parts of the country, rooms sheathed and ceiled in yellow pine or cypress are often finished in the natural color and varnished. Paint is the only antidote and should be used on the ceiling at least, after " cutting" the varnish. White metal ceilings are in line with the progress toward fireproof construction. They cannot as yet be obtained in pleasing pat- tern except for very large rooms, and even here their construc- tion is unpleasantly obtrusive. Floors. Floors are made to be walked upon and are subject to hard usage. They should, therefore, be durable. Floors cannot be easily changed; therefore they should be permanent in material and finish. Since they contribute to the color scheme of the room, they should be finished accordingly. Floors continuous in color as far as the eye can see have a unifying effect. Wood is the material most used for floors. Wood that is hard, of in- conspicuous grain, and responsive to color treatment should be chosen. Well selected oak is probably the best. Maple and birch are very durable, but light in color; hard pine is also possible and relatively inexpensive. The matter of color and finish can be regulated to some extent to suit the character of wood selected and the color scheme of the room. Hardwood floors should in general be finished like hardwood trim, except that caution should be observed in attempting dark stains, because all floors through usage tend to wear back to the natural color of the wood. Since all wood floors tend to darken in time, the rather light appearance of a new floor should be endured with patience. If after a period of time the tone of the floor still appears too light, it is easier to darken it slightly than to remove a dark mussy stain. Furthermore, rugs can always be relied on to remedy the color effect of the bare floor. HOME FURNISHING 45 Softwood floors of pine, such as are often found in old houses, can be finished by filling the spaces between the boards with either a standard or home-made crack-filler and then applying two or more coats of good hard paint, such as the ordinary deck paint. Some housekeepers have had success with a crack-filler made of flour paste into which a pulp of damp newspaper is beaten. Under all conditions, however, a painted floor is a compromise and will require frequent renewals. COLOR Color is more potent in creating the atmosphere of a house or room than is any other influence. Harmonious color will cover a multitude of sins in design, while no amount of good design will atone for discordant color. Color produces a distinct reaction on the human system; it is cheering, depressing, irritating, or restful, as the case may be. It is, therefore, of primary importance to understand the right use of color in the home. Since the question of color is involved in the finish of walls and of woodwork, it is the first factor to be considered in the treatment of an interior. Color has three generally recognizable characteristics: First, that quality that gives it its general or popular name and dis- tinguishes it from other colors as red from green, or yellow- reds from purple-reds, yellow-greens from blue-greens, and the like. This quality is named by the scientists, hue. Hues, or colors, may in general be classed as warm or cool. Yellow, orange, red, and colors strongly tinged with these, connected as they are with ideas of sun and fire and blood, are the warm colors. Blue, green, and violet, and colors strongly tinged with these, associated in thought with cold and distant things like ice, the sky, the woods, and purple hills, are the cool colors. A second characteristic or quality of color is the strength or brilliancy, termed by the scientists, chroma or intensity. By this quality, a strong or bright color is distinguished from a soft, dulled, or grayed color, as the red in the upper from the red in the under side of an autumn leaf. The third characteristic or quality is that which distinguishes 46 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING light from dark colors, termed by the scientists, value. A popular term for light colors is tint; for dark colors, shade. Recognized influences of color Hue. Colors in which there is a suggestion of yellow or orange or red, the warm colors, such as tones of tan or buff or old gold or brown or yellow-green, or the "warm grays," such as taupe or "sand" or "mode" colors, are likely to produce a warmth of atmosphere that makes them in general agreeable to live with. These colors are likely also to harmonize with the wood- work in the average house and to furnish a becoming back- ground for the usual wood and willow furniture. Red or reddish colors are too aggressive and insistent to be used in large quantities. Red also tends to diminish the ap- parent size of a room. Yellow and yellowish colors are in general light, bright, and cheerful in effect. Blue or bluish colors, while they tend to increase the ap- parent size of a room, are inclined to absorb the light and to be forbidding if used in large quantities. Green, which is a mixture of yellow and blue, and greenish colors are in general quiet and restful in effect without being depressing. Violet is the color characteristic of mystery and shadow and royalty, and should be avoided or used with great dis- crimination in a home. In general, colors composed of two or more colors, whether of paint, of dye, or the interweaving of colored threads in a fabric, are more interesting, more refined, and more atmos- pheric in effect than the very evident reds and yellows and blues. Intensity or chroma. Strong or bright colors are not appropriate for use in large masses, such as wall or floor coverings, because they are too insistent and aggressive and they do not easily harmonize HOME FURNISHING 47 with the furnishings in the average home. These strong colors may be used in small masses, such as a bouquet of flowers, books, or a textile, to add a note of interest or to accent a color scheme. Dulled or grayed colors are in general appropriate to use in large masses, such as wall or floor coverings, because they are restful in effect and keep their place as background. A greater variety of these grayed colors may be used harmo- niously in the same room than would be possible with a com- bination of bright colors. Value. Light colors in general tend to increase the apparent size of a room, to make a room seem lighter, and to produce an effect of daintiness, of cleanliness, and of cheer; they also are more luminous and, therefore, very effective in artificial light. Used to excess, or inappropriately, light color may produce an effect of bareness or aloofness. Dark colors in general tend to diminish the apparent size of a room, to produce an effect of dignity or richness. Colors that are too dark are likely to be oppressive or to produce an effect of gloom or dinginess, and are very difficult to illuminate by night. Middle values, that is, colors that are about half- way between the extremes of light and dark, are in general more appropriate for the furnishings in living-rooms. Strong contrasts in light and dark, such as light woodwork with dark walls, or dark woodwork with light walls, dark figures on a light ground, or the opposite, produce a distracting and unrest- ful effect. Considerations governing color selection From the foregoing discussion it follows that: 1. Southerly rooms with a superabundance of light and sun- shine need in general cool and dark colors to temper the light. 2. Northerly rooms with no sunshine and too little light need in general light, yellowish colors to introduce a feeling of cheer and sunshine. 3. Rooms that are comfortably lighted and sufficiently sunny are open to a variety of color treatments. 48 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING 4. Rooms that are over-large and yet are comfortably lighted may be given a more friendly aspect by the use of warm colors that are medium dark. 5. In rooms that are too small and yet are comfortably lighted, a feeling of space can be suggested by the use of light or bluish colors. 6. In rooms in which the woodwork is already finished and cannot be changed, the color scheme is within limits prede- termined. From it walls and furnishings must take their cue. 7. Rooms that are comfortably large and light and with no hampering conditions are open to a variety of color treatments. 8. The living-room adapted to many uses and many persons should be more dignified and impersonal in color scheme than the other rooms of the house. It should be more neutral in its general scheme in order to be adaptable to a greater variety of coloring in the smaller areas. Books, pictures, an open fire, flower arrangements, and other changing and accidental conditions inevitably bring many touches of brilliant and varying color into the living-room. 9. A dining-room devoted to good cheer and used only for short periods admits a livelier treatment. Sometimes dishes that have a decided color may well give the keynote to the color scheme. 10. Since the bedroom is for sleep and rest, even though it is for personal use and allows a larger margin for individual preference than do other rooms, nothing should take precedence over those qualifications that fit it for its purpose. The white bed, white towels, and light furniture characteristic of the daintiness desirable in bedrooms, call for lighter colorings than do the family rooms. For bedrooms used also for both study and sitting-room, compromises must be made. The white bed is no longer suitable; the bedroom takes on the functions and, therefore, should assume the appearance of a living-room as far as possible. 11. Since the bathroom should appear, as well as be, im- maculate, all white or white with other light colors is most suitable. White with yellow for a bathroom on the north side HOME FURNISHING 49 of a house, white and blue or white and green for a sunny bathroom, are good. 12. For the kitchen, light colors are cheerful and cleanly in appearance. They have the added value of so diffusing the light both by day and by night that there need be no dark corners to work in. It follows from all these manifest influences of color, that the rooms to be treated should be examined as to exposure, lighting, size, proportion, and use before determining the color scheme. Color for the whole interior A uniform coloring for the walls of a series of connecting rooms contributes to unity of effect. A sufficient variety in effect may be secured by varying the color or pattern of dra- peries and other furnishings in the different rooms. It seldom happens that all the rooms on a floor have the same exposure, or the same amount of light or the same use. Every need may be considered and yet a friendly harmony obtained by the use of closely related colors that may range from light to dark in value and through a series of related hues. The parts of the room as a background The ceiling, the side wall, and the floor form the background of the room against which all the furnishings and the occupants of the room are seen. Like the frame of a picture, the back- ground should be subordinate in color as well as in amount of detail. This limitation, far from minimizing the importance of the background, gives it an added distinction, and demands for it the most careful consideration. The function of the back- ground is to serve. While not obtruding itself, it should through its color supply a pervading influence that may be felt like an atmosphere. This province of the background is best filled, as has been said in the discussion of color, by subdued warm colors, not too dark, that harmonize with the more usual types of furnishings and methods of lighting. (See Plate III.) Ceiling, side walls, and floor are parts of one whole. They should, therefore, be keyed to the same color. This important 50 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING point has often been disregarded. The ceilings have been made white, the floors constructed of any convenient wood without reference to its color; the color of the walls has been chosen with- out reference to either floor or ceiling. In the distribution of color values in the background, the old analogy, often repeated, holds good : the side walls of a room correspond in value to the middle distance in a landscape; the ceiling corresponds to the sky which is lightest of the three; the floor to the ground, which is the darkest. This is not a mere fancy. A very dark ceiling or sky is threatening and oppressive in effect. The dark tones of the ground contribute to an effect of stability and support that are fundamental in a serviceable floor. Walls and trim. The wall color, being most in evidence as a background, cover- ing a greater area than either ceiling or floor and serving as the connecting link between these, should be the determining factor in the selection of the color scheme and naturally would be decided first. The color of the wall should be selected after a diagnosis of such considerations as location, size, lighting and use of the room, and the recognized influence of color already discussed (pages 46 and 47). The color of ceiling, floor, and woodwork would then be chosen in relation to it. If the color of the trim, which is really a part of the wall, has been determined first, the color of the wall should be related to it. Golden oak, cypress, and mahogany furniture limit the choice of the wall color to tones closely related to that of the wood. If a householder is already supplied with furniture of a decided character or color, the choice of color scheme is limited in the same way. The furniture in such a case will determine the color of the walls. Woodwork painted to match the wall color increases the apparent size of the room; it also renders less conspicuous ir- regularities and poor design in doors and windows. Usually the woodwork may well be made a tone lighter or a tone darker than the wall. Paint for the woodwork in bedrooms or any room with a light color scheme should be toned; a HOME FURNISHING 51 cream or ivory tone is usually more gracious than a dead white. If it is necessary to finish the woodwork before the wall color can be known, a neutral color is the only safe choice. Ceiling. While the ceiling should be keyed to the color of the side wall, this should be done very carefully, since any light ceiling will absorb some color from the side wall. The ordinary method of lighting a room by windows placed in the side wall obviates to a considerable degree the effect of a white ceiling. The light strikes the side wall directly, leaving the ceiling inevitably much darker than white. This should be kept in mind in selecting the tint for the ceiling, lest it be too dark for the effective light- ing of the room; and it should not be forgotten when a ceiling color is extended to the side wall. In such a case the color that comes on a side wall should be several tones darker in order to appear of the same tone as the ceiling color. Floors. It is more difficult to regulate the color of wood floors than that of ceiling or side wall, because while it is desirable to re- late the color of the floor to the side wall, there is a distinct limit to the range of color in wood floors. Floors are often too light in value, but for practical reasons this cannot always be avoided. Whatever has to be accepted in the color of the floor, however, may fortunately be corrected by a good choice of rugs. PATTERN (PLATES iv, v) An exhaustive discussion of pattern would involve the whole theory and practice of design, but the usual niistakes of the home-maker in choosing wall paper, drapery, upholstery, and rugs may be avoided by an understanding of what constitutes good pattern and the kind of pattern appropriate for different uses. On account of the constant influx of novelty goods that tend to bewilder and confuse the purchaser, a fund of common sense and a determination not to be sidetracked by passing fads are necessary in order to make a wise selection. 52 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING Characteristics of good pattern The motifs employed for patterns are of two kinds: (1) ab- stract or geometric forms which are simply harmonious shapes so repeated as to make a pleasing pattern; for example, the Greek key pattern; (2) concrete or nature forms " convention- alized," or adapted to their use as pattern; for example, the French fleur-de-lis. The distinction of a design depends not on the origin of the motif, but on its decorative treatment and color. The effective- ness of a pattern as an element in house furnishing depends on its adaptability in color and design to the service it is to render in the room for which it is selected. A fabric with less intrinsic merit than another in pattern and color may be the better choice in some instances, by reason of its happier rela- tion to the other furnishings in the room. By far the greater number of motifs are taken from nature. Any nature motif must be conventionalized, or adapted to its use as pattern, by changing its form, size, or color, and arranging it in an orderly way, keeping in mind not its origin from nature, but its purpose as decoration. Any pretense at naturalistic modeling or shad- ing should be very formal in character. That it is pattern and not picture should never be lost sight of in judging a design for a flat surface. Medallions, scrolls without beginning or end, baskets of flowers or fruits, fluttering ribbons and bowknots, are all absurd substitutes for real design. The figures in a design are parts of one whole and should be connected or related in some way. Widely separated motifs tempt the eye to jump from one spot to another and provoke one to count rows, and mentally rearrange the pattern. All effect of restfulness is thereby lost. Patterns that cover the ground well are in general better for furnishings than scattered spots. Some patterns that would be objectionable on a flat wall, however, may be used acceptably in drapery, since the fullness of the folds rearranges the design. One of the characteristics of a good design is its appropriate- ness to the material in which it is developed. Patterns may be PLATE IV. Types of rugs with suitable pattern, developed in line and in mass, in self tones and in contrasting and vari-colored effects. HOME FURNISHING 53 woven, embroidered, or printed stenciled, stamped, or stained on a fabric. The pattern may appropriately declare the material in which it is developed. Woven patterns should pref- erably suggest warp and woof. The design in a rag carpet, for example, naturally appears in stripes made by the woof, which is much more prominent than the finer threads of the warp. There is a great variety of patterns appropriate to printed wall papers that may be selected in preference to those that imitate leather or burlap or silk or oilcloth. A pattern may be expressed in lines alone on a background of another color, or it may be in masses or spots that are lighter or darker or different in color from the background. In such patterns the shapes rather than the details are important. Sometimes the pattern is of masses that are broken up by a variety of detail and color. Pattern as used for walls and floors Walls and floors are flat solid surfaces. Their effectiveness and comeliness depend on this structural fact and this must be borne in mind in the selection of pattern for them. Any varia- tion of surface would impair the function of wall or floor. Any suggestion by the pattern of such defects is manifestly out of place. Wall patterns of trellises and vines, of realistic flowers or fruit or landscape, of simulated columns, or of panels made of pictured moldings should, therefore, be avoided. For the same reasons, realistic flowers and animals are out of place in pattern. The more realistic these motifs are, the poorer is the design. Because the effect of solidity in walls and floor must be maintained, the pattern should seem very flat. Since both walls and floor are backgrounds, the pattern should be unobtrusive in color and design. Fantastic ornament, violent color, or strong contrasts of any sort are out of place in a background. Since walls are upright surfaces, stripes, if inconspicuous, figures in which the vertical dominates or that are so arranged as to give an up-and-down rather than a crosswise or diagonal movement, are good types for wall pattern. 54 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING Floors are horizontal surfaces that are viewed from every direction. The pattern on the floor should, therefore, be effect- ive from any angle. Goemetric or very conventional patterns equally good from every point of view are the best choice for floor coverings. SELECTION OF FURNISHINGS Wall coverings A textile may be used to cover smooth plastered walls. All sorts of materials that give the desired effect, from the cheap- est to the most expensive, have been employed for this purpose. Canvas, burlap, grasscloth, and other weaves of pleasing text- ure are effective when appropriately used. None of these, however, compares with paper in popularity as a wall covering. Paper is comparatively inexpensive, is easily hung, is made in an immense variety of colorings and pattern and a wide variety of textures. Wall paper has an advantage over paint in that the exact effect may be known before it is purchased, by ex- perimenting with a roll of it in the very room and light in which it is to be used. If there is cause for doubt, a plain paper should be selected for walls. There are many plain papers of good color from which to choose. The oatmeal textures probably offer the most desirable and satisfactory coloring among the inex- pensive papers. The silk-fibered papers, while more expensive, compensate in color and quality for the greater investment of money. Another safe choice in paper is one nearly plain in effect but the surface of which is broken by dots or dashes or splashes or other slight variations that give a little " bloom" or vibration of color. Paper with stripes that are not too wide or of too conspicuous contrast are good, especially in low rooms. A plain paper sometimes shows up too conspicuously the un- evenness in old walls. In such a case a paper with a small con- ventional figure, or one with a self-toned foliage pattern is better. A paper with a good pattern may be very effective in a hall or corridor or a room with few or no pictures and plain draperies. It helps to furnish the room. A large-figured paper HOME FURNISHING 55 in a small room is out of scale and makes the room look smaller. A figured wall-paper may be used as a frieze in a large room. Such a frieze is generally more effective than one of the stock border patterns, and is more easily adapted in width to varied requirements. A figured frieze is often a decorative finish above a high paneled wainscot. A border of unobtrusive pattern and color may serve on oc- casion to define an edge or emphasize a direction. But the idea that every room must have a border because fashion so decrees is absurd and unreasonable. Festoons of flowers and conspicu- ous ornament of any sort that tend to draw the eyes upward unpleasantly is out of place. In rooms of ordinary height, borders should generally be omitted. They are the offspring of the traditional cornice whose original office was to make the division between ceiling and side wall. A picture-molding placed at this intersection is an excellent finish in a low room or one of ordinary height. If the room is too high, the ceil- ing color may be brought down on the side wall and the picture-molding placed at the intersection of ceiling and wall colors. Hangings for windows and doors (Figs. 19-23) Hangings are useful to temper the light, to obstruct an un- pleasing view, to preserve privacy, and to furnish a decora- tive effect. Door draperies are used for the temporary separa- tion of rooms or for decorative effect. The types of window hangings are shades, curtains, and val- ances. The purpose of a shade is to regulate light and to secure privacy; therefore, a shade should always be opaque. A glare of color in a room through a shade of intense hue is sometimes more trying than a flood of sunshine. Shades, being next to the window, affect the exterior color scheme of the house and should be chosen with this in mind. Shades need not on that account be at variance with the interior coloring of the house, for a neutral tone may be chosen that will not violate any color FIG. 19. A method of hanging two sets of curtains in recessed windows. HOME FURNISHING 57 scheme, or double-faced shades may be used. These are only a little more expensive and may, if necessary, be colored to order. In buying for a permanent home, it is economy to select shades of a good quality. Shades should be hung inside the trim as near the glass as possible without interfering with the operation of the window. If this is not possible, the shades should be hung near the inner edge of the casing or window trim. Shades may be hung so as to pull up from the bottom instead of down from the top. There are also fixtures which make it possible to adjust the shade so that it may cover any portion of the window at any time. These adjustable shades are particularly desirable for schoolroom win- dows exposed to direct sunlight for a large part of the day, for kitchen windows on the south side of the house, and for windows in any sunny workroom. Besides shades and blinds that shut out the light, the windows of most rooms need draperies to soften the hard lines of glass and wood, to temper the light, to veil a view, to complete the background of the room, and to add a decorative note in color or pattern. Each room presents an individual problem in curtains. Harmony, simplicity, and suitability are the guiding thoughts in the solution. Taste is more effective than money. With the modern ideas of the home as a place in which lives are to be lived, of rooms rationally furnished for everyday use, windows swathed in festoons of draperies, sweeping the floor, harboring dust, inviting germs, and excluding the air, have no place. The much trimmed, festooned and lambrequined draperies are not now much in use; their return should never be allowed. How- ever rich the material used for draperies may be, they should be simply made and so hung as to fall in straight folds. In a case of doubt, the simplest solution of the problem of window draperies should be accepted. The choice in material ranges from filmy nets, transparent gauzes, scrim, and muslin through soft silk and cotton fabrics, linens and coarse canvas weaves, brocades, damask, and tapes- try, velvets and velours; in color and design from one un- D FIG. 20. Four methods of curtaining a double-hung window: A, straight curtains hung within the window trim. B, a half, or sash, curtain often used for privacy. C, an inconsistent way of hanging drapery, which could be remedied by raising the rod, and extending it to the length of the top molding. D, a method of hanging curtains to cover an ugly trim or to widen the window in effect. HOME FURNISHING 59 broken neutral tone to the most complex variation of hues and patterns; in price from a few cents to many dollars a yard. Any fabric may be used, provided it is suitable. Effects in design, color, texture, and pattern that harmonize with the room and its furnishings are the distinguishing characteristics of the most tasteful selections of hangings, rather than rich and costly materials. Scrim, colored chintzes, cretonnes or any other dainty wash- able material is appropriate for a bedroom. Bright or gaily- figured hangings may be used in rooms devoted to good cheer and occupied for only short periods, su.ch as a dining-room or a porch sitting-room. Patterns and colors that are entertaining in a tea-room might be unbearable in a living-room. For rooms in constant use, or for rooms that should be reposeful in their influence, such as a library, a living-room, or a study, near-neutral colors and unobtrusive patterns are essential. A city dwelling, close to the street and overshadowed by other buildings, a country house situated on a hilltop, or in a valley, or by the sea, or in a setting of open fields or gardens sur- rounded by trees and shrubbery, present different problems in window treatment. Velvets, damasks, and handsome linen are appropriate for the city house, and the greater formality and reserve which are its natural characteristics. An effect of freshness is in keeping with the environment of the country home. Cretonnes, chintzes, and printed linen with brighter coloring than would be appropriate in the city home, are in harmony with the birds and flowers and outdoor country. Simple curtains of unbleached cotton for the small-paned cottage window with its ledge of flowering plants suggest the charm of the little house across the sea. For the house used only in summer, curtains should of course be of washable materials. The lighting of the room is an important consideration in selection of window draperies, If the room is poorly lighted, thin draperies light in value, tending toward yellow the most luminous color will be the most effective choice, provided it is consistent with the color of the walls. If the room is too light L Fio. 21. Two methods of curtaining a group of windows. HOME FURNISHING 61 and sunny, darker and cooler colors and heavier fabrics should be used. Curtain material should never be chosen without hanging a large sample in the window of the room in which it is to be used, because the color effect is frequently quite dif- ferent under transmitted light. Material with a black thread is likely to look dull and dingy; a fabric woven with blue and yellow threads becomes green when seen against the light. The effect of artificial light on the draperies should also be considered, since colors change surprisingly from their day- time effects. Valance is the term used for a short drapery hung at the top of the window. It should preferably extend across the en- tire curtain space, or in emergency cover only that space be- tween the curtains. Valances are decoratively useful in fur- nishing a continuation in color and line between curtains that hang too far apart, or in emphasizing the shape of the window. They may serve as a decorative connecting link between the outside curtains at a group of windows, making it possible to dispense with other drapery in the group. Valances emphasize the horizontal in a room. Portieres, or door draperies, sometimes serve in place of doors in the openings between rooms where only a temporary separation is required. They may serve also to soften the lines of the trim, to cover an expanse of objectionable wood in the doors, or to add a decorative note of color or pattern. There is a wide variety of fabrics, to choose from. Generally a heavy fabric hangs better and seems more appropriate in a doorway than a light one, and a double-faced material is simpler to make up. Manifestly, skeleton draperies composed of cords and tassels, strings of beads and shells, are an absurd substi- tute for a useful drapery. Door draperies may continue the color of the walls, or, like the window drapery, may be of a contrasting color. If the rooms connected by the opening require different color treatment, the porti&re may be made double. The same considerations regarding pattern that guide the selection of window hangings are applicable to door drapery. 62 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING Color and pattern. Color is of first importance in the decorative effect of window- hangings. White curtains may be appropriate in a room with white woodwork, white ceiling, and light walls, for they are in such case in harmony with the general color scheme, but they are not appropriate for rooms of darker color. Window- hangings should generally harmonize in hue with the walls of the room. If the hangings are of exactly the same color as the side wall, the result is likely to be monotonous. But if the room is small, the openings many, and the other furnishings in strong color contrast to the walls, a close match in color between walls and draperies may produce a most restful effect. If the walls are plain and not covered with pictures and other objects that attract undue attention, the draperies may be stronger in color and more pronounced in pattern, constituting the strong decorative note in the room. In general, provided the colors are harmonious and the pattern not too pronounced, it is safe to use striped or figured draperies with plain walls, and plain draperies with walls that have a pattern. Figured draperies may be used effectively with striped wall covering. The best designs for drapery, as for wall covering, are those that cover the ground and present no violent contrast in color or pattern. Window draperies may contribute largely to the color effects described in rooms of different exposure, or of different locali- ties. The warmth and light contained in soft tones of yellow and orange can be counted on to counteract a feeling of cold and gloom. Darker and cooler colors may be used when there is much sun or heat. Texture. - Texture affects the adaptability of the hangings. Texture is the quality of material made known to us originally, as its name signifies, through touch, but by experience is equally recognizable through sight. Words used to describe textures are accordingly descriptive of feeling, such as rough, smooth, hard, soft, velvety, silky, crepy, coarse, fine, firm, loose. Burlap, HOME FURNISHING 63 for example, is rough and coarse compared with India silk. Tightly woven linen is firm and hard in effect. Velvets and velours are soft. Burlap, monk's cloth, canvas, and similar textures are appropriate in rooms finished in rough plaster with oak woodwork and mission furniture. Silk and satin or mercerized fabrics are more appropriately used with wood of such grain or texture as mahogany or satinwood or with painted wood. Variations in texture produced by different weaves, patterns, or colorings may give even inexpensive materials so distinguished a quality as to make them appropriate for use in very dignified surroundings. Some of the designs from priceless tapestries in European museums have been printed on linen and may thus be enjoyed at moderate cost. Treatment as to number in one window. Ordinarily one pair of curtains is sufficient to answer the purpose of a window drapery. Especially in rooms with few or very small windows, swathing with drapery should be avoided since it produces a stuffy effect. Casement cloth, many of the heavy nets, and sunfast materials, cretonnes, chintzes, and printed linens are very effective when used as single hang- ings. It is sometimes necessary to think of curtains as screens to shut out the public or a disagreeable view. Curtains may be so chosen as to perform this service and yet admit light. Sash curtains hung across the lower half of the window are the most natural answer to this problem. They are often use- ful in a bathroom or kitchen. Two sets of curtains are sometimes required for practical or decorative reasons. For example, in windows near a street, one set of curtains may shut out the gaze of passers-by while admitting the light, and the other serve as a screen in the even- ing and a decorative note at all times. In recessed windows, such as are found in brick or stone houses, or in a bay window or a group of windows, thin curtains may be used next the glass, and heavier draperies harmoniously related to the side wall may be hung on the trim and drawn to shut off the recess or the whole window group when desired. 64 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING I \ \i\ IIP il a == == ===== ; Fio. 22. Three arrangements of valance and curtain, the first being the least desirable. HOME FURNISHING 65 If two sets of curtains are used, one pair is hung next the glass. These are called glass, or sometimes sash, curtains. As the function of these is to cut out the view but admit the light, they should be of thin material, such as net, plain lace, scrim, gauze, thin silk, mercerized cotton, sunfast fabric, or casement cloth. Such an inner curtain should be consistent in texture with the outer drapery; for example, with velvet or silk or any rich material, net of good quality or possibly mar- quisette is a good choice. With linen or cretonne, scrim is better. With cretonne or similar patterned hangings, the inner curtains should match the ground in tone; white, if the ground is white, cream or ecru if the ground is of that color; otherwise, one is likely to look faded or discolored. In thin materials, too coarse a mesh should be avoided on account of shrinking; an even weave is more easily made up and hangs better. These glass curtains soften the glare and are a pro- tection for the heavier window draperies. They are always in evidence on the outside of a house and should be selected with this in mind. If all the glass curtains in the house are alike, or if in the city those in the front of the house are alike, a pleasing unity of effect from the outside is conserved. The over, or outer, pair of curtains which is in more direct relation with the walls of the room may be made of any of the heavy materials already mentioned. This over-drapery may be used to regulate the light during the day, and, by shutting out the outside world, to give an effect of intimacy at night. At any time it may furnish a decorative note in the room. Hanging of draperies. If the woodwork of the room has been so selected and finished as to make of it a structural decorative feature, it should bear somewhat the same relation to the draperies as a picture-frame to a picture, outlining and defining that which is inclosed. In this case the draperies, if there is only one set, should preferably be hung inside the trim; if there are two sets, the outside one would probably need to be hung on the trim, but should be kept as near the inner edge as possible. 66 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING Varying types of window construction require different methods of hanging draperies. Often in the case of ready- made dwellings, the wood is so disturbing in color or finish, or the size and placing of the various openings in the room are so unfortunate that it is necessary to cover the trim in order to produce a good result. If all the windows in the room are of the same size and the same kind and placed on the same level, the problem is simple. If there are two sets of curtains, the problem is varied only by the sort of fixtures used. The question is more complex when there are several varieties of windows in the room, with doors requiring draperies besides. The most important or dominant opening should in general indicate the treatment. Casement or French windows that open out are compliant to the same treatment and arrangement of draperies as double- hung windows. . If casement windows open in, only one set of curtains can be managed easily. These may be hung di- rectly on the windows, and be confined by rods with rings at both top and bottom. If a second set of .draperies is used with such windows, the rod from which they are suspended must reach from the outer edge of the trim or even beyond this edge so as to free the curtains when the window is opened. Draperies should always hang straight; fashion should never be allowed to be a determining factor. When curtains are looped back, disturbing lines at variance with the structural features of the room are produced and simplicity is lost. If it is desirable to draw curtains back, the folds may still hang straight. Curtains just long enough to escape the sill are appropriate in most cases but if for any reason they must be hung to cover the trim, they should cover sill and apron as well. Sometimes when the design of the window contains a paneled space below, long curtains just escaping the floor are more consistent with the type of window than those of sill length. Valances hung between curtains are appropriate only when these curtains are not to be drawn; in such cases they should be of the same fullness and should hang in the same sort of HOME FURNISHING A 67 B FIG. 23. Three types of valance and curtain arranged to cover the trim. A, a simple gathered valance; B, a simple type of formal fitted valance; C, a type of valance in which the figure governs the method of hanging. 68 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING folds as the curtain. Valances should preferably be extended across the whole window and should hang on a separate rod in order not to interfere with the independent adjustment of the curtains. The valance usually hangs from the same height as the curtain; but in the case of a window with a transom, the valance may, if the construction of the window allows, hang from the top of the transom and fall only far enough to cover comfortably the top of the curtains. Portieres are hung in the same general way as curtains; sometimes on the trim but more often between the door jambs. Measuring draperies for windows and doors. The space to be covered by the drapery should be measured accurately. Every