'Living space' From window treatments to pleasing young people

Press, 4 July 1985, Page 17

'Living space' From window treatments to pleasing young people

By

PRUDENCE ROTHENBERG

Readers’ requests vary this week, from children’s rooms to vertical blinds in a home. An aunt writes in for advice for her niece’s bedroom. Another reader asks for a full colour scheme for her kitchen, dining area, and bedroom. Q Please I need some help with my kitchen, dining area and bedroom. I have enclosed a rough sketch to give you the general layout. A blue and white kitchen has always appealed to me, but I feel on the south side I should try warmer colours. I am very fond of the colour terracotta. The bench top needs replacing, and I rather like apple, or sage green. Would this be too limiting. What do you suggest for lino? I intend to put cafe curtains in the kitchen. Should I continue the same wallpaper into the

dining area, and what drapes would you suggest? The carpet in the dining area is a two-toned brown pattern. The bedroom off the kitchen I intend to paint over wallpaper. I like the ceiling to be in another toning colour. For the drapes, a floral appeals. B. F., Rangiora.

A Thank you for your plan. Why not a terracotta and blue kitchen. As you have always loved blue,, why not enjoy it, and the terracotta will give the required warmth. For the walls, try Moon Dance Floatation, 1913. This wallpaper is not quite plain, and has a warmth of colour in the various creams. Do take this paper through to the dining room. As it is open living, I like the flow of colour.

For your bench top, have Papyrus, leathergrain. This will be ideal with your wallpaper, and will not tie you for further changes. The top cupboards in the kitchen could be Resene heather, and the bottom cupboards, Resene Mexican red, the windows, door architraves, doors and cupboard trims white, with vinyl flooring to match the walls. Paint the bedroom ceiling in Resene champagne, the walls, Resene cameo. For the curtains and bedspread, Wilsons Beethoven ClOl2, sage would be attractive. This fabric has a green background and flowers in greens, two colours of brick, and a soft, blue-grey. You have a lot of work ahead — good luck.

Q I am not very good at drawing, but these are three rabbits in some bamboo, flowers, and sticks, etc. I found it very hard to find the exact colours, but the borders are a very, very, dark brown, and the background is cream. There

are browns and a dull goldy colour in each frame. All the frames are the same. This is a duvet cover for my second daughter, aged 10, who collects “rabbits” and is very fond of yellow. My other daughter, aged 11, collects “owls,” and loves pink. She needs a new bedspread and likes things a bit more frilly. I have drawn their new bedroom, which is divided by a wardrobe. On each piece behind the wardrobe will be a drop-down desk, and behind their bedheads will be shelves for their collections, etc. I thought of making them a stool each, or a very narrow chair. They both need a ruffle for their beds. My real problem is to find a wallpaper and curtains that will not look out of place with either of the bedspreads. I know that yellow and pink do not go together, but I feel both should be allowed their choice of colour. Also, what colour for the paintwork? If there is room I would like a bookshelf in the corner, and a window seat. This will also act as a storage unit. There is a very high, narrow window above the wardrobe unit. My sons are aged five and a half, and three. They both like blue/green/ yellow. They have a long window each side of their wardrobe unit. One likes trains, the other fire-en-

gines. I thought of blinds for their room, and they will also need duvet covers, which I can make. I need suggestions for a complete colour scheme. I prefer paper to paint. R. C., Cheviot. A What thoughtful and ideal rooms for your sons and daughters, They share a room, yet have privacy. I agree with you they should be able to have colours of their choice. Keep the walls in a neutral colour. I suggest Silken light, Siam, 2314. Above each bed, where it can not be seen from the other bed, have a pegboard. Painted in Dawn Pink for the 11-year-old, and Resene, Golden Sand for the 10-year-old. The division hides the beds, so the girls can have the colour of their choice. For the 11-year-old have the valance in G. H. Landers, Today collection, Design, Spring, colour rose. This fabric has a rose background and small flowers in blue, pink, etc with blue-green stems. For the bedspread, from the same collection Design, Fresh Cut. This fabric has the same background, but larger flowers. For the valance for your younger girl, Texturato, C 1240, Deep Gold. Again I would go the neutral way for the main curtains, and choose Texturato, Foam 1235. This is a soft, blue-green colour, and will be as happy with the golds of one daughter as to the pinks of the other. For your sons, a neutral wall paper — why not the same as your daughters? The duvet covers could both be the same, in G. H. Landers, pattern Streamline, colour Navy. This fabric has a bright navy background with bright gold, and bright green stripes. Above one bed I would have a pegboard in Resene Festival, a bright gold. The other pegboard, in Jungle Mist, a blue with a touch of green in it. For the valances, James Dunlop’s Ardennes, 03 gold, and 52 Ontario. The blinds would be attractive in the duvet fabric. Obtain picture frames from bric-a-brac shops, and for one son frame the fire engines, for the other, the trains. Children so quickly go from one interest to another, so you are far better to bring their hobbies in with pictures rather than fabric. Who knows, next year it may be animals and cricket. It is too expensive to change the fabric, but no effort to change their pictures. Q My fifteen-year-old niece is refurnishing her bedroom. The white painted furniture is being replaced with mellow, old furniture of a medium-to-light stain. My query on her behalf is about the choice of fabric for the new bedspread and curtains. Her home is a country one with villa-type windows and high ceilings.

The bedroom is four and a half metres square, with one window facing northwest. The carpet is a soft beige, the door and trim are painted white. The wallpaper is a deep wine colour, with a small floral pattern in soft pink and green leaves. The wooden bed-ends are gate style. The bedspread would need to withstand some afternoon sun. June has quite a collection of potplants, books, and dolls in her room. She would like the new bedspread and curtains to be on rather simple lines. Frills are now out. E. G., Christchurch. A Thank you for your letter. How nice of you to take such an interest in your niece’s bedroom. As the paper is rather dark, I think her bedspread and curtains should be light. I like the deep, almost maroon, background with small pink flowers and green leaves. Your niece has a choice of green or pink for her bedspread and curtains. I know pink is a warm colour, but warm colours look particularly inviting in the sun. I would suggest being 100 per cent Terylene, it should withstand the sun. In this particular fabric you can buy a bedspread, with a quilted top and a valance. The colours I suggest are either Mushroom. BS 1245, Mushroom, a softsalmon pink, or BS 1234, Celedon, a pretty, midgreen. The curtains can match your choice of spread. Q I have recently shifted to another home and would be grateful for some advice about window coverings. We have large windows in this house. I do not have, need, or want sheer curtains. Because of shrubs and trees we have total privacy. I would like to have vertical Venetian blinds without any curtains, pulling them to the side most of the time, and perhaps leaving them across to cut out the sunsometimes, and at night in the winter. Would this look too bare? A I have used vertical blinds in a home with a beautiful view, but facing north and west. The reason for using them was that the windows were from wall to wall, and curtains would have encroached over the glass and taken away from the view. I do find vertical blinds a little bare, but this is my personal taste. Remember that they come in excellent soft colours to complement your cream wallpaper and brown, beige, and pink Highgrove Persian carpets. Why not have curtains in the smaller bedrooms you are re-decorating? If you have any queries on home decorating for Prudence Rothenberg, address them to “Living Space,” Home and People Page, “The Press,” P. O. Box 1005, Christchurch. Queries can only be answered in this column.