The Indianapolis journal., 1897-04-11
WINDOW DRESSING ART
THE COMMERCIAL ADVANTAGES OF
MAKING ARTISTIC DISPLAYS.
Especial Talent Required for the
Work and Much Labor Involved
some of the Devices Employed.

Window dressing. as well as store deco
ration in general. is a fine art now, IT Is
a science. Good window dressers are in
demand. and there are very few of them,
said the director in a store whose business
il is 10 criticise the window dressers
achievements and order a window out
when the effect is not satisfactory.
There are two kinds of window dress
ing" he went or, 1.-The forid or acrobatic
kind. and the kind that is more reticent
Some window dressing is used merely to
call peoples attention to the store-me-
chanical toys and figures, allegorical SYM
bos. any and everything that is striking in
color and arrangement is resorted to; the
more subtle kind of dressing is designed 10
show the quality of goods to be found in
the store.
a few years ago any employe in n store
who showed taste or ingenuity in arranging
the goods under his charge was detailed TO
do some part of the window dressing and
interior decoration. Sometimes a member
of the firm who had a bent that way picked
out two or three clerks and decked OFF
window or two to suit his fancy. Not un-
frequently there were no show windows in
a store at all no matter how handsome
All that is gone by now The decorating
department is separate and distinct from
as very important. head decorator is
paid sufficient salary TO focus his attention
on the matter. ard he hires such help as
he can to work under his orders. Old win
dows are altered over. and new windows
are planned especially for the display of
goods. The windows have to be properly
lighted and VENTILATED
Ventilated The goods don't breathe?"
No. they don't. but the window dresser
and his assistants do Sometimes the men
work for hours at time in window with
the shades drawn down. IT is natural that
they would hurry the job and not have
much patience for artistic effect II their
heads were bursting from the close air and
they crampcd for space. Ventilation
is a strong point Just now our window
all night last night. He does that often.
Sometimes, after all his pains, the window
is ordered out because the effect is not
right. Sometimes we spare his feelings,
but in the course of a few hours some one
of the firm discovers that there is certain
line of goods that has not received proper
advertising. in which case there Is COM
pelling motive for that particular window
being blotted out and a new one arranged
in its place.
THE NOTION WINDOW.
THE most difficult window to dress. be-
cause the most tedious. is a notion window,
and yet ii is that brings in. perhaps.
out OF all departments the most practical
return to the firm for the time and thought
put into it, Next to the notions come silks.
beautiful possibilities for the window
dresser, but the silks are the most expen-
sve goods in the house and must not be
pinned, must not be crushed, rumpled or al
lowed TO have the slightest bit of bloom
taken eff them. Wash fabrics are not
easily managed: the gfnghams and cotton
stuffS are stiff and unyielding, and refuse to
lend themselves TO design at the hands
of the decorator that & can easily be exhibit
ed in softer goois There are twenty diff
ferent styles of plating and overlappng &
and draping silk or wool. These styles can
be regularly taught to a boy or girl
fingers are so clumsy that they might take
lessons for years and be but bunglers in
the end. The successful window dresser
must have a knowledge of color and pro-
portion and the price and value of the
goods he deals with. but he must know
something about history and mythology
likewise and be quick To get up new de-
signs for Decoration day. for st. Valen-
tines. for the fall school-opening time. for
the Fourth of July. Washington's and Lin
coins birthdays. Easter. Christmas. any
and all public and religious festivals and
celebrations that touch the whole people.
Whether the occasion be of national or only
commercial Importance. the judicious use
of wax figures is a great factor. Wax fig
ures give realism and life to the window
that cannot be dispensed with. but they
must be good figures and must be disposed
in artistic way. man have his
windows arranged so as to show off the
cheapneSs of his goods pure and simple, and
again ne can give the better-priced goods
such a prominent place and arrange them
so dexterously as TO concentrate the shop
perS' attention on the value of the better
grade in contrast with the cheaper
Where do our best window dressers
come from?"
"A good many come from England from
apprenticeship in Cheapside and st. Paul $
churchyard. A good many learn the trade
as boys. from helping under the head deco
rator OF store; some excellent window
dressers are evolved from the statesmen I'm
the stores: Our most satisfactory window
dresser. who is paid $50 week. began work
with us twelve years ago as al cash boy He
went through several stages as salesman.
and by the time he had got 10 the wooden
dress goods department the deft way i'm
which he arranged the bolts of various
colors and displayed the goods on his coun-
ter told plainly that he could be better en-
ployed elsewhere. The sort of salesman
who is never found showing a reddish
blonde woman a pink gingham or red
fiowered challie. and who instinctively
knows the shade of dress goods likely to
into a window dresser If he has energy
enough. If. in addition TO his feeling for
color. he has tact enough To bring some
slow-sellinG goods to the front and spea K
of them in such way that the customer
buys, his chance is better still, for more
than half of the success of a window
dresser consists in managing the, goods ~
best advantage. He must ticket them
right and must beware of using common
place-sounding phrases. A really tasteful
carefully arranged upholstery window tina I
We had in last week was spoiled by the
ticketing. Unique cheapneSS' was one of
the General tickets. We go in for the reti-
cent style of decorations and believe i'm
showing just enough of the goods we have
to sell to whet the interest of the passer-by
and tempt him TO come inside and investi-
gate the stock"
SHAPE OF THE WINDOW
What Is the most difficult kind of a win
dow TO dress?" was asked of the window
decorator in a Sixth-avenue store.
The kind of window that is designed par
ticularly for a show window" he replied:
''the window that has rounded and paneled
corners, and that the carpenter thought
was a wonder in its way. Those rounded
glass corners reflect all sorts of queer
goods show off in them even lcok as good
as ordinary. The interference Of outside
objects is another stumbling block TO the
window dresser. L mean lamp posts and
street stands and signs reflected i'm the
front glass. Awnings are another trouble
often a greater nuisance than anything the
decorator has TO contend with. Would you
like TO see my tools--my implenlents?' he
added. Come up the top floor and I'll
show you what answers 10 me for a paint
ers tubes and brushes. and | keep school
for my boys beside = There is a big airy
work shop on the top floor. and there are
half dozen boys learning TO plat and
shirr and pucker white cheesecloth on to
plain surfaces. There are long shelves
piled with metal rods certain kinds of
lights and crystals for brilliant effects. and
fixtures of all descriptions. Some OF the
a n