Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-08-13
ARE SIMPLE AND WHITE
NEWEST HINTS IN MODISH BED
FURNISHINGS.
Tucked White Lawn Spreads and
Dotted Swiss Are
Favored.

Written for The Evening Star.
Happy that woman who. on her return
| to town after a summer outing, discovers
| that she has a bed room to furnish. If
she has been close to natures heart she
will find a sympathetic note in the new
beds and their fittings, for never have they
been so beautiful or artistically simple as
this year.
The vogue for bed furnishings of gaily
figured cretonne and of coarse lace over
vivid colors, in silesia or silk, is practically
dead These two modes of dressing bed
are used only to carry out complete
scheme of furnishing identified with some
historic period The up-to-date bed room
is a marvel of simplicity, with polished
floors, simple rugs, plain, unfigured paper
and simple furniture.
The rage for the beds of gaily painted
enamel, even of the pure white enamel,
has given place to distinct demand for
the plainest of brass beds. To meet this
demand, furniture makers are offering a
good hollow brass bedstead for $40, and for
$3.50 can be bought solid brass bedstead
that is as elegant as the most faStidiouS
could demand.
Colonial styles in these brass beds give
them a general square effect, and do away
with all extraneous concentrations. The
old ashioned double bed Is seldom seen, its
place having been uSurped by the twin
beds. Where a room has only one occu-
pant, the three-quarter or single bed is
more desirable, particularly in this day of
fiat houses and apartments.
There Is an occasional call for the old
fashioned carved mahogany bed, but it is
used only to carry out an ornate furnishing
design and is not for general use. Women
who have been visiting in the English
country houses have brought back a fancy
for single beds. All of these are in wood
and 1npk mike the mission furniture
with square head and foot boards built
from square railing and studded with cop
per nailheadS.
The Essentials.
Two-piece mattresses are used exclusive
ly and the old fashioned ticking has disap-
peared in place of which artistic figured
material, notably heavy sateen, is used.
The mattress protector is also Of quilted
sateen to match the covering. The new
mattress is no less than eight inches thick.
Pillows are much smaller not only be-
cause 1t is generally considered healthier
to lie on a fiat pillow, but because the
new. round bolster rolls open in the back
to admit small pillows during the day. If
the bolster-roH is solid, the pillows are
kept in boxes covered with cretonne and
set on casters, to be rolled under the bed
during the day.
1t is quite fad for the woman who goes
in for beauty sleep to own an individual
down pillow, which travels wherever she
goes. This Is a little larger than pillow
supplied for an infants outfit and is cover
ed with white lawn white silk her
monogram embroidered in the center and
the ruffle edged with the finest of Valen-
cienneS.
Slumber robes OF soft white Japanese
silk are made to fold at the foot of the
bed and to be drawn up when the air turns
chilly in the night These are thick with
down, not heavy and are just large
enough to cover the bed.
Lighter Spreads.
The Marseille counterpane even in
white, is just now suffering eclipse. In
it's stead have come lawn or linen bed
spreads. Many Of these spreads are tuck
ed. For instance, a row of three or four
tucks will outline the exact shape of the
bed. To this oblong piece of lawn is joined
a deep flounce, which carries the same
number of tucks in the same size as those
used on top of the bed. Or good quality
Of lace insertion is used instead of the
tucks on top of the bed, and the f1ounce
around the bed is edged with lace to match
the insertion. The bolSter-roll is covered
with the lawn and has a rosette of lace on
either end.
The only colors seen on the new bed
spreads come in the form of Persian lawn
bands, which sometimes take the place of
tucks or insertion, but these are less pop
ular than the pure white. Curtains come
to match all these covers If dotted swiss
is used for bed cover, then white silk is
used beneath it-no color.
The most expensive bed spreads are those
Of fine linen, hand embroidered in satin
stitch Mont mellick, English eyelet work
or Madeira. The most exquisite work halls
from the Irish and French converts, and
bureau scarfs come to match the bed |
spreads.