Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1886-03-27
FURNITURE FOR A MILLIONAIRE.
Tameda's Exquisite Designs In Coiors =
Incompatible woodwork-The Plano.
London Truth


Incompatible Woodwork Tho Plano.
London TRUTH
The suite consists of two very large
cou:hes, piano, music cabinet, tables,
chairs, foot-stools and curtains. They
are designed and made for New York
millionaire, who has given no limit so
far as price is concerned, so that the
very finest materials and the most
skilled work have been secured. The
designs are by Alma Tadema, whose
picture, GA Reading from Homer" now
in the academy, is to DO hung in the
drawing room for which the furniture
is intended. hear rumors OF freizes
and panels by Sir Frederick Leighton,
of roman sculptors at work upon the
marble for the same fortunate room and
of other details, which lead me to the
conclusion that if money is the root of
all evil it is also the root Of all art.
The touches, chairs and stools are
upholstered in silk of beautiful shade
of pure gray, traversed by bands of ex-
quiste embroidery in colors which are
rich, but carefully subdued, as one sees
them in Mr.. Tademas pictures. The
ground of this embroidery is also silk,
the color being precisely that of the
bloom of o ripe plum. Upon this the
tints of gold and orange, blue, red and
brown, with slender curved lines of
pure white giving a peculiar delicacy to
the whole, form beautiful scroll pat
tern. A rich trellis fringe of mingled
gray and gold runs along the edges of
the touches, and beneath it is deep
silk fringe of the plum-bloom color,
which does not show, except in the eff
feet of depth and richness it imparts
to'the upper fringe.
The woodwork of all this is simply in
comparable, being mingling of cedar
wood, ebony and lockwood, inlaid with
the finest mother-of-pearl to be had.
Wherever there is corner swan S
head is carved out of the ebony, large
carbuncles forming the eyes. The labor
of bending the ivory has been immense,
for it is essentially brittle substance,
and affords an inverted illustration of
the proverb. Bend. not break" On
the arms of the couches there are long.
curved lines of tapering ivory, which
approach each other closely at the base,
but gradually increase the interval OF
width as they rise. This, it appears,
was very difficult matter to manage.
The piano is not yet completed. The
upper part of the music cabinet is a
copy of an Asiatic temple. The pillars
are of tluted cedar wood, the delicious
red Thrown of that beautiful wood com
ing out with great effect by reason Of
the carving. The capitals are carved
ivory, in mellow tint of warm cream
color The rest is ebony, inlaid with
the various woods / have already emu
merated and with the exquisite mother
of-pearl, which glitters like jewels. The
curtains that vail the recesses intendea
for holding the music are of gray silk
embroidered in soft, rich colors, Tyre
occupying the center.
A large curtain, is also of gray silk
with curious embroidered dado, the
ground of which is plum bloom silk
with quaint design in sections, in eact
of which is straight piece (that re
minds me of old studies in comic sec
tions) in blue and red.
The round tables are too lovely. The
woodwork matches that of the other
furniture, but is not a repetition. Ir
fact, no two designs are precisely alike
There is some thing to study in eacl
back of a chair, each side of stool
each arm of couch. The tops of th,
tables are of Ale erian onyx, and the
are like bits of golden sunsets, caugh
and fixed, to be Joy forever. So deli
cately, pretty, transparency, efful
gently pink is the ground of one o
these that it looks as soft as a rose loaf
though marble cold. Dashes of yellow
and orange are splashed upon tn
ground and have a cloudy, dreamy loo
that makes one think OF summer sky
scapeS.
But to be practical. Just fancy tn
ordinary housemaid let loose on thos
lovely embroideries, with their delicat
colorings! Think of her doubtful dustel
swooping around!