PLANNING A HALL

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIII, Issue 20639, 30 January 1937, Page 18

PLANNING A HALL

SEAL OF COMPLETENESS “The hall, landing, and stairs of a house are the links that gather the thread of the different rooms together and put the final seal of completeness to the whole,” states an overseas writer. “Because the hall is the central point of the house it is often not as light as a room, and is probably quite small. Remember this when you start to decorate and choose your colours and furnishings to give the greatest possible effect of light and space. “The best plan is to have light neutral coloured walls and paint and give the colour note with rugs and curtains. Neutral shades nowadays need not be dull, for there are many graduations of cream, buff, and grey, from the purely neutral tone to those flushed with pink or yellow. “I would choose myself a good washable distemper of glossy paint in a tone between buff and cream, with the faintest tinge of pink in it, and the paintwork to go with this can be almost any colour—green would be very suitable.

“The ceiling of the hall and landing should match the walls, and with the buff tone tinged with pink, a pink celling would be pretty and original. "If you have stairs in your house which have to be painted, give them a coat that will match the doors. Green stairs with a fawn carpet go well together.

"There is always the problem of a plain carpet versus a patterned one for the stairs. My own preference is for plain, with bright-coloured rugs. A soft blue or brown would go well with the pinky buff colour I have chosen lor the walls. “A point that is worth mention is that it pays to have as good an underfeltin# as you can afford. The thicker it is the more it will save the carpet and deaden the sound of footsteps. “The majority of halls have wooden or tiled floors, and they usually look so nice that it is a pity to cover them. A concrete floor can be improved by a coat of paint to match the stair carpet, and the addition of rugs just works a miracle. “For the furniture for the hall—little and good should be the motto. A hallstand or a wardrobe for coats and umbrellas is an essential, and a mirror has more uses than mere decoration. I was greatly struck by a full-length dress mirror in a hall the other day. It made a small and rather dark hall look twice its size. Beside the mirror there was a low oak stool on which stood a heavy brass bowl filled with Shirley poppies, and the reality and the reflection made a particularly welcoming hall.”