Make room for enjoyment

Press, 19 September 1985, Page 11

Make room for enjoyment

‘Living Space’

by

PRUDENCE ROTHENBERG

We all like to steal a little time from our working week. It is appreciated even more when others are working. I took a couple of hours and went to lunch with a friend who lives on the hills overlooking the sea. The day was one of our better spring days. My enjoyment started walking up the path, passing enchanting rock walls and steps that wandered through the varied colours that quilted the ground of the garden. Although it appeared uncontrived, I knew so much love and effort had gone into this garden.

We sat inside, with ranch sliders opening up two sides of the house. Around us the various colours of trees and shrubbery abounded. The vista over the sparkling sea to the Kaikoura mountains was beautiful.

Sitting there, I thought everyone requires some place to escape to, to let their mind wander and rest. I came back to the city feeling I had enjoyed a holiday.

Q I am wondering if you could help me with a query I have for the hallway and stairwell. It always seems to look cold. I enclose a plan and a sample of wallpaper from our lounge, which is the main area seen from the hall. We have gold conquero carpet and antique white woodwork. I would like some suggestions for a wallpaper for the upstairs and downstairs hallways to give a warm look, and some suggestions please for the curtains for the two stairwell windows. One is large and narrow, the other short and fat. J. 1., Christchurch.

A You have gone to a great deal of trouble and your plan is excellent. Unfortunately, you do not mention the colour of the furniture in your sitting room. I hope the colour I give you for the curtains in the hallway will either blend or be an excellent accent. For your wallpaper I would choose the gold

from the off-white green and gold paper in your sitting room, such as Vision Shadows either suede 2430 or Japonica 2426. Wilsons supreme satin is a fabric that will reflect the light. For the hall I suggest curtains supreme satin rust. I hope this will have the required effect. I am sure it will no longer feel cold. Q Would you please help me as I have very little imagination when it comes to furnishing a room from the very beginning. We are having built onto our house an lift by Bft glass conservatory. We do not wish to decorate it as many do with pot plants and cane furniture. We would like to to be more special, possibly with carpet and a little furniture that is a bit different. I am in the process of doing up an old rocking chair and recovering it with a velour of gold, green and rusty tonings.

What other furniture would you recommend for our conservatory to help make it look “classy” but comfortable? As our house is not large it will not be able to take a great many bits and pieces but we do want the conservatory to blend in.. We own a walnut grandfather clock, a fourpiece leather lounge suite, Persian rugs, and two beautiful spinning wheels. This will give you some idea as to the type of furniture we like to live with. A. H., Christchurch.

A Thank you for your type-written letter. This does help as sometimes it takes ages to decipher writing. Either tile the floor of your conservatory with terracotta tiles and lay one of your Persian rugs on the tiles or try to match the carpet from your sitting room. Do not have too much furniture as you do not want a clutter. I would suggest a two-seater settee and either one or two

arm chairs. Have the furniture upholstered in Vykings new chevron designed wool. The one I have chosen for you is in soft green and natural tonings, Baldur Malta. Cushions should be in the terracotta colour. You will require a table as I hope you will enjoy your new room so much you will want to have morning and afternoon tea there. Why not lunch? This type of furniture should have an empathy with the furniture you already have in your home.

Q We have just shifted into a new house and I would be grateful if you could give me a colour scheme for the lounge and living room. Plan and paper are enclosed. I would like to buy a new lounge suite and recover two arm chairs which are in the living room. Furniture and woodwork in both rooms are mid to dark brown stain. The drapes are cream but I am not alto-

gether happy with these either, although we chose them! The ones in the living room are over ranch sliders. They reach to the floor and merge into the fawn of the carpet. The curtains do not look right in the lounge, where they finish just below the sill. From our previous house, I have two lamp shades, a vase, a candle, and two cushions, all in a light blue and I would like to use them if possible. My preference would be

for blues as I do not like greens.

I have four cushions covered in a pale pink paisley material which I bought overseas. I thought of recovering the chairs in a floral pink design, which would then allow them to be used in the lounge if necessary. D. W., Christchurch.

A I have just the Sanderson for your chairs, Sanderson PR7187/6. It has the colour of your wallpaper and the lamp shades, and is soft and pretty. With your rather deep maroon to pink wallpaper I would not advise using colours that are too heavy. Vyking fabrics have released some wonderful colours in both worsteds and wovens in their 100 per cent wool range. The colour I advise for your suite is a soft pink, Vyking Thor Shell, the colour of one of the flowers in the Sanderson.

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.