The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-01-24
DECORATIVE

If any old mirrors are tucked away in the attic, now is the time to bring | them out and reiuvenate them. It seems strange that so few persons | other than professional decorators | appreciate the mirrors happy gift or
 brightening a gloomy room. multi 1 plying its good points and thus dis l tracing attention from its bad ones. Considering the fact that at least five centuries have elapsed since the man ufacture of looking glass was begun in Venice, there would appear to have been ample time for complete i investigation of it's decorative poten- 1 tlalities.
 The truth is, however, that the l amateur ranks continue generation | after generation to cast mirrors for | the useful but prosaic role of first l aid to the toilet, or as a pretext for l the display of elaborate frames pro-
 duced in various historic periods
 though mirror frames, as well as
 Although mirror frames, as well as
 sent numerous distinct and interest | ing types, and in the course of their
 evolution the best skill of renowned
 artists in wood and metal has been | lavished on their adornment, it is
 with the decorative employment of l looking-glass itself that this article
 is principally concerned, says Good | Housekeeping.
 As a matter of historic fact there
 is ample precedent for such consider
 alton, for the first looking glasses had
 no frames at all, but were inset in ha Ile, A,,I ;, s4e
 unique ability to reproduce surround
 ing objects that constitutes the real
 charm of a mirror. as fortunately | placed, it borrows from the move
 ment and color of the room in which
 it hangs, or the garden beyond the
 window that it faces and brings their
 enlivening hues into the interior
 scheme of the house decoration.
 In contrast to the motionless chairs
 and inert tables, or even to the un-
 changing pictures that hang beside it,
 the mirror seems a living thing, re-
 producing as it does all the life and
 activity of it's surroundings from the
 flicker of a sun beam and the f1utter
 of a curtain in the breeze to the
 passing to and fro of the human oc-
 cupants of the room. Like the fig
 ures produced by a kaleidoscope, the
 picture" in the mirror Is constantly
 changing.
 Viewed from in front, the glass
 may merely duplicate the delicate beauty of a bowl of flowers on a table
 over Hslich it hangs, though leading
 it the interest of a new background
 formed by the reflection of the op- posite wall, but take a step to the right, and suddenly it's surface is
 splashed with vivid color borrowed from the cretonne hangings; or to
 the left, and as by magic the scene
 shifts to a blazing log fire with its
 curling smoke wreaths and showers
 of dancing sparks above the flames. Besides the fascinating brilliancy and variety of its reflections, the mir TOT possesses other important ad-
 vautages over the commoner types |, Of wall decoration. Cheaper than a good picture and infinitely. more de-
 sirab3e than a poor one it has also the virtue of complete elasticity with
 respect to shape and size. Unlike Q I painting, the mirror can be fitted tc , the wall space it is desired to adorn Looking glass can be had to fit the f largest surfaces, or a delightful! decorative effect can be obtained by = cutting it into small, unframed pan . els putting these together on the 9 wall like the pieces of a mosaic, anC ! fastening each in place with smal S metal corner pieces of the familiar l French gilt.
 t The last-named method is wonder l fully successful in producing an effec T of speciousness in tiny room o1 s hall. Two large mirrors hung on op t posite walls where each will dupli . cate the reflections in the other vii = afford relief from cramped dimen 7 sions.
 y In q room with windows badl, - placed symmetry usually can be re stored by balancing the windows witt . enc or more looking glasses. Darl N corners can be brightened with mir v TOTS so placed as to reflect the ltgh from a window on the opposite sid
 of the room; this not only dispels tn = darkness but i1npairs life and interes to ill-Ughted wall surfaces agains
 which picture would be wasted - tno statue or other decorative ob r ject frequently gains in interest b q being placed in a corner of the roor Il against two panels of looking glass. Il There must be a definite relation ,- ship between the mirror and it's sur L roundings, consistency of scale be d tween 1t and the space it occupie: g harmony of character between it an @ the other objects in the room. A l. inset mirror may sometimes com 7- pletely fill space between doors o 3, windows, or the back of a recess l. without appearing crowded, but is mirror in q frame demands an ampl 'e margin. There also must be hal r, mony Between the size of the lookin 1. glass and that of objects immediatel u beneath 1t.
 '- In a strictly formal room the mir SS TOTS. of course, must conform to tn . decorative period, represented in tn ,S furniture. hanginSs and architectur; " treatment.
 A, In a room with plain, neutra ,S tinted walls monotony may be avoit ot ed by dividing the wall surface int Is panels with simple wood moIding ot painted to match, and filling certai fl of these panels with a looking glas v- In small room 1t may prove SUI of ficient to mount one mirror in th re panel between two doors or vii Id dows, and another in the center par e. el of the opposite wall, whereas If tt so room is spacious and somewhat stat, ,t ly in character-say a drawing rool te or formal dining room it is ofte