Evening star., 1922-10-01

\ N ITdOe magazine not iOilB ago
read an interesting article by a
woman who had been shopping in
furniture stores, both large and
small, Of Chicago. with the purpose of
finding out just what kind Of furniture
could be procured by the man or woman
spend, and. yet, who was educated to
the point where he or she could appreci-
ate simple lines. good proportions and
sturdy workmanship. She made the
statement reluctantly that practically
nowhere did she find such furniture at
anything like reasonable price, and
that her questions both to manufac-
turers and dealers as to why ineXpen-
sve furnituramush necessarily be ugly
and shoddy. met with either Indifferent
or indignant response. l am not pre-
pared to say tha the idea prevails with
some manufacturers and retailers that
poor people want snowy things. that
they don't know any better and that
such things are good enough anyway,
but judging from some of the products
offered for their consideration it would
seem SO to some extent. at least. If
there are any who do entertain such a
belief and act on such 4 policy they
have vastly misjudsed the present-day
American public, and ! am firm in the
belief that those who fail to meet the
growing demand for quality. service
ability and beauty in the lower priced
home furnishings. as well as those
planned only for the wealthy, will in
evitably lose their trade to the more
far-seeing men in the home building and
furnishing industries who see in their
business not only a means of making
full opportunity to have a part in ele-
waiting the standard Of living Of our
people and in educating them to high
er Appreciation of and pleasure in the
retinements and beauties Of life.
Certain il is that every dar women
coiorings and durable quality that
will hold their color even If they are
hung at sunny window or sub
jcctcd to the cleansing process of
soap and water. and still Will not cost
a months salary. The same is true Of
furniture. There are always people
looking for something a little out OF
the ordinary with character and dis
tinction of it's own. and yet not worth
a kings ransom. There is a surpris-
ing number of people who will not
buy rather than waste their money
by buying something that will neither
give the service eNpe ected Of it nor
satisfy their love of beauty and har-
mony.
We have a long. long way to go to-
ward supplying these wants. but
there is absolutely nothing that Will
effectively than an insistent demand
for quality and a refusal to buy any
thing else The merchant watches his
merchandise turnover with d more
eagle eye than the most thrifty house
wife does her weekly household al
ha$ cn1I
one season are not stocked the next.
This much, however. must be said
in justice to the manufacturer. 1t
actually does cost more to build
good piece Of furniture than a shod-
dT one. Highly trained. we'll paid ex-
perts are employed to plan and design
the best furniture: and all of the
carving and much Of the work is done
by hand: but it does seem that be-
tween these really wonderful pro
ductions and the hideous, ornateiy
machine carved, highly Vanished
be a happy medium Why couldn't
the labor that is spent in turning out
the elaborate carving be just as econ
nomically spent in better grade of
material and workmanship" The
remedy is to buy one piece of good
furniture in place of two, and to buy
one at a time, if need be. rather than
a suite that you will soon learn to de-
test.
In buying furniture consider these
points carefully. First of all study
the size and style of the room where
tit is to be used and the other furni-
ture with which 1t is to be combined.
Then study Its line and proportion.
Is 1t too tall for the width or too
squatty? Is the chair or table or
whatever 1t may be weak and spindly
looking. or is it too heavy and
ponderous? Is the finish highly
polished varnish that will be easily
marred and cracked, or does the sur
face glow with a soft dull light and
shadow, a finish that is really part of