The Washington times., 1923-01-07

Book on Interior Decora-
ton is q decided Improvement
on the usual run Of books and
magazine articles treating the sub
ject OF home furnishings.
The outstanding feature Of the
work Is what Mr.. Holloway terms
the common sense view" telling
how beauty In the home may be
acquired at small cost. Sue
cessful homes are not produced In
a haphazard fashion, and those
that are not satisfactory are usual
~ 30 because Of the lack Of well
realized idea Of precisely the sort
Of home desired, Its appropriate
ness to the characteristics and
uses Of the occupants, or the
amount OF money there il to
spend"
The book! considered as q whole,
falls into three broad divisions.
namely, color, In which il in
cluded form; fabrics and furniture.
Color IL presented in q manner
easily understood by the animated
and is most valuable to the train
ed decorator or painter. The ex-
PLANTATION Of harmony and con.
!. trasting color schemes Il particu-
Iarly interesting and the develop
meint Of plans Il presented in .
simple ana practical manner.
Form. that essential part Of the
livabIe home, receives. q compre.
hensive discussion. Robins we'll
known saying that ''the test Of
good art Is that the eye should be
perfectly satisfied" II the keynote
Of the chapter. Furniture. tex
tiles. accessories and their place
ment is a great concern Of form,
and all are given able, interesting
and helpful treatment by the au-
thor.
The question of draperies,
hangings. upholstery and rugs is
equally well handled. The ex-
perienced decorator as well as the
novice win find much in the way
of helpful suggestion, both as to
the materials and the methods in
which they should be correctly
used. This subject has been work
ed out to cover a wide range OF
treatments, taking as much
thought for the small house and
apartment as for the pretentious
home.
Certainly much time and effort
was expended to place before the
public the excellently written and
comprehensive furniture discus
sions. Furniture ID considered In
a general sense. then its applica-
ton and specific use in decorative
plans. The same common sense
that eharacterizes the other por-
tions OF the book il manifest in
the way in which the subject Of
furniture is treated. The recog-
nized periods Of furniture styles
are adequately set forth and their
application to modern living condi-
tions clearly and wisely indicated.
Explanations of the use Of modern
furniture for homes Of moderate
means and the question Of modern
as against period furniture, forms
enlightehing chapters. Much com.
mendation Is due the sound ad.
vice offered to prospective home
builders as to the appropriateness
Of furniture to its surroundings.
The appeal Of this book is due
not only to the mass of interest
ing and useful data and the beau.
tiful illustrations. but to the au-
thor's chatty style. A friendly
vein is disclosed when he analyses
happy home, picturing the fam
lily about the fire, the lamp turned
low, the flames kissing and crack
ling between the logs, wreaths of
spark-lit smoke drifting upward.
The moral drawn fits in well with
discourse on home. would to
heaven that more men and women
might realize the pleasure to be
won through the home, instead
Of running to the unconscionable
movies" A kindred feeling is
awakened in the reader when he
finds certain floor lights termed
as "befrilled floor denominations, q
or warnings against the use OF
mats containing lite-lile portraits
of huge dogs" How humorous ia
the definition Of Rocco style az
"a very graceful, very refined and
very free kicking Of decorative
| heels"
Washingtonians will find a par
ticular interest in this practical
book, especially in the chapters
devoted to Apartments and how
to live in Them" As Mr.. Halo
way was an apartment house
dweller for many years, he writes
with the experience that comes
with years, and many viii profit
from his plans how to make space
where seemingly there IL none and
how TO select and raiact flnnr.noN