MAKING A HOUSE A HOME.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19633, 11 May 1927, Page 7

MAKING A HOUSE A HOME.

DECORATING THE WAULS. BY CHARLES A. FARMER. The following is the first of ft series of practical articles in which are suggestions based on experiments suited to the modest purse. The articles cover the important tasks of home renewing, and form a guide to equipping a home. Limited purses do not permit a change of furniture, but the cost of changing the setting is nothing. The cherished old properties of our homo must remain, but like the wizards of theatrical stock companies, we put up a fresh " back cloth." With the adroit use of paint, paper and fabric wo give our environment all the appearance of a new production. The most common mistake made when resetting the scenes for our household goods is that it must be good, bad or indifferent according to our financial means. As a fact, the good is quite as cheap as the bad, and if we have tho requisite taste there is positively no obstacle to having tho home of our heart's desire. One of England's most famous architects is proud of the admiring interest shown by friends in his delightful home. Yet they are surprised when they learn his walls, which show his furniture and pictures to such uncommon advantage, are covered with nothing more than various shades of ordinary brown paper. It is natural that when wo begin to consider the ways and means of rejuvenating our homes, our first thought turns to the walls. Beware tho temptation of pretty paper; the test of a good wall is that nobody notices it. If the eye is taken from a comely pieco of furniture and the homely impediments of the room to sprays of moss roses, or llower basket, suspended in panels of ebony trelliswork, it is a bad setting. It will get on your nerves. It will give tho cheerless impression that tho room is furnished with wallpapor.

| Treatment ol Walls. Nearly all modern homes aro small and thousands of new houses aro smaller. It takes much less furniture to make our rooms sufficiently equipped to bi> homely, but it has become still mors important to pay special attention to the treatment of the walls. Ono of the advantages to bo derived from the choice of distemper or a perfectly plain paper is that it creates a pleasant illusion of space. If the most used living room happens to bo so situated that it is not rich in light, almost tho ideal wall treatment ia a plain paper of pale gold, cr distemper of this shade; should the taste incline to a touch of pattern it can be satisfied by a rich toned ffieze or a dado not exceeding two feet three inches. But tho dado is not recommended. This soft golden wall makes the room score more spacious and airy, and seems to radiat® sunshine for tho spirits all hours of the day. Plain ivory white or light grey toned plain papers can be obtained very cheaply, and offer tho most appropriate renewal for bedrooms. A good and economical alternative to plain papers is to use distemper, and then to size and finish with a flut or glossy coat of varnish as desired. The varnish should be of high grade quality and transparent. Walls so treated can be easily and quickly cleaned whenever desired, and will keep their stimulating freshness for many seasons. There are, however, those who feel they must have paper. They find it impossible to break a hoarv domestic tradition, yet they have a difficulty in discovering such patterns as meet the new circumstances. There are many chintz and jasper wallpapers which any good decorating firm in any town can procure, and which can he used with quite charming effects, while still preserving tho wall as a background and not making it the picture. / Unobtrusive Decoration. The ncxli problem is, of conrse, what shall we hang on the walls ? It not infrequently happens that this presents the most embarrassing little problem to the new homemakor as well as to the homo renovator. Framed oleographs of Buch cheerful themes as " tho Maiden's Last Prayer," and "The Hopeless Dawn" aro so cheap and to omnipresent! While good art is so dear and »o unget-at-able. At least, it is thought so. Actually, there has never been a time when it was so easy for us all to bring the beauty of the best artists into our homes. The first point we mast bear in mind is that having our walla in some simple one-colour scheme, the best supplementary treatment is to have few pictures.

When Queen Mary, some tim» ago, paid a private visit to a suite of four model rooms exhibited in Whitechapel, one of the features which gave her great pleasure and provoked her surprise was the economy in works of art. She noted that, there were no more than six pictures in the dining room, for instance,, and yet it seemed charmingly complete. Assuming that the room moat used has been papered or distempered in plain, pale gold, or a buff, or brown if & warmer treatment is preferred, it will be found that a couple of pictures suspended from two to three fret from the top are ample, but it is essential that they »ha!i be good and full of colour. If the best is good enough for yon, then you may have original wtrk* by some of the most famous artist* tu ?onr home. Yet the priori are- no higher indeed they are frequently lower, than those asked by the " cheap fhops " for those shoddy and gaudv framed oleographs with their treacly "r distressing i themes. The original ' >?oar prmts by ! Mr. Hall Thorp*. ft !'. A., for essmple, i !irfi a !] the work of the artist himself. ! Vet in tb«" portfolios which anyone may ! have at home for the purpose of selection, there are gems in flowers and fruit | gtu.di«« gav in colouring and *nr« in form, I yet as low a«- fsv« «h(sl:r)g* each. Choice of Pictures. Some of the art which wag chos«o by i the judges planning model hc«ne# at ] Manchester, Bradford • and in " Other ; cities were actually poster* from the I fy>r:don Underground railway. fb« vivid ; imaginative work of Mr. Gregory Brawn, | Mrs. Bsrrsclough and Mr. rred Taylor are among the best as-'providing, rich f contrast* Against the fdarn wall#, finch j potter* may ( be obtained for a few sbdb } »ogs on application, and only repair* to j be trimmed and framed in passe-partout. I But every rooe* .ha# jAs awkward j corners sf not its recede*. ;We cannot- leave tkffo Mask. It i» a | little idiosyncrasy w«> have inherited! from | oor ( ®raftdp*renta. -who, having covered the | wahs with some atrociously florid paper, 1 proceeded to cover 4h« puper with fam.lv j portraits and memorial cards until tbev j w«re in danger of looking Jtk« the ; of a family vault instead -of :he wails <-f " home sweet home." -• Happily, the old photograph album is returning' to favour. It is the best and I past offensive repetitory for mr more intimate records. - At the same time, if we must And a ; place for certain family . • picture*, the most satisfactory way k to u<k» th*m to ] solve the problem of the awkward corners j Not break tbw note cf d;*t:neii' nor tn I Impair the general dtert, we most avoid j a (noddle of frame type*. j»»*' ! two at most", a thin 'fdarn gift and *a | narrow dark brown osk and take ear# f to have x «y;!h' margin of ,r:-'>unt If®#®* j the photograph. | (Nest Article How to Tr««t *** Windows.. "J