The Washington herald., 1914-01-29
SUGGESTIONS FOR
HOUSE DECORATIONS
Paper and Paint Constitute Large and
Important Part Of Background
for EurnituIe.>

or a house that has been vacated by a
previous tenant the very first thing to
claim the attention Of the incoming oc-
cupant is the question OF paper and
paint
Paper and paint constitute a large and
important part OF the setting. the back
ground. for all the rest OF the furnish
ing, and IL they are not quite as they
should be. the result of all other furnish
ing effort is marred or even wholly
spoiled.
Plenty to Choose From.
Never was there more richly varied
supply of wallpapers to select from than
at the present day. Unless one first
formulates an approximate idea OF what
is desired and holds closely to il there is
likely to be trouble and confusion from
the embarrassment of riches. Let US.
therefore, take a brief survey of some
Of the possibilities open to the intending
purchaser.
In the first place there is an almost
endless assortment of the weI-known
varieties of wallpaper. both plain and
figured. 10 be seen in any of the wall
paper shops. A discriminating purchaser,
blessed with good taste and a definite
notion OF the effect to he secured, can
n
stock at a moderate cost. Some good
paper may be had for Il or Il cents a roll
II is. of course. essential to formulate
and keep in mind the principles that
ought to govern selection. To the con-
sideration Of those principles We shall
come shortly
Other Wall Coverings.
Besides these more usual papers OF
commerce there are several varieties Of
fall coverings to which attention should
be especially directed. Among the FORE
most of these coverings must be men,
toned Japanese grass cloth.
This grass cloth is to be had in various
colors. and has a beautiful sheen. 1t is
durable and affords an excellent back
ground of neutral tone against which
pictures and furniture, show to excellent
advantage. Even when large expanses
of 1t appear on the wall without the en-
bellishment OF pictures, its decorative
value Is highly pleasing.
Paper limitations of grass cloth are
made and are. OF course, much cheaper.
They also come in different colors, and
are both plain and figured. The patterns
used are of oriental character.
japanese gold and silver papers. plain
Or figured with unobtrusive patterns. Of
fer another available resource to the
decorator. Sometimes these papers need
a bit of toning down to dim their bril-
lance, and this may be done by covering
them, after they have dried on the wall.
with thin rice paper. When gold or silver
papers are used 1t is well to cover them
with a coat Of varnish or shellac.
All Sorts of Papers.
All the oatmeal papers are good and
so are those known as eggshell. Not a
few OF the felt papers are well worth
considering. Indeed, there Is scarcely
anything in the paper line that has not
some decorative possibility or fitness for
some special use.
Wrapping papers Of several sorts and
even butchers brown paper can be used
with telling effect If rightly managed.
Several ingenious decorators have re-
sorted to this material for wall covering.
and the results have been eminently sat
isfactory.
Quite at the other end of the scale
from the papers just described. are the
landscape papers that were so popular
from the middle of the eighteenth GEN.
tury through the first q1hrter of the
These old landscape papers
OF both Occidental and Oriental patterns
were printed from wood blocks. and the
designs were often made by famous
artists.
Many of these blocks were preserved
and are now being used once again to
print the paper in a style that has been
successfully revived in our day.
How to Plan Decorations.
In considering wallpaper, We find 1t
expedient to make two divisions Of the
subject. First. We have the papers that
are to be regarded purely as suitable
background. and. secondly, we have the
papers, such as the landscape papers just
referred to, which are to besregarded as
independent decorations in themselves
and with which no pictures or other wall
adornments are to<be useS