Evening star., 1928-09-14

Every one knows that color is an
agency for creating beauty In the fur-
nishing of a room. but not every one
realizes that it is equally essential to
comfort. The coiorS which count most
in producing either comfort or discom-
fort are those of the walls. not those
of the draperies, or the floor cover
tnss or the furniture. Get the right
color in the walls and your problem
is half solved. Get the wrong colors IN
those chief light-reflecting areas ana
nothing you can DO to bring beauty ana
comfort into that interior will be OF any
avail. So when planning to decorate
room look first to the walls
Before decorating a room in general,
first decide upon the dominant color
to be used, which should be largely de-
termined by the amount of sunshine the
room gets; then decide upon the other
colors to be used in addition to the
dominant color There should be sew
eral colors. as room decorated In one
or two colors does not give good effect.
The easiest and most practicalt way to
select the ColorS for a room Is to take
q figured fabric, either cretonne, tap
estry, danask, or a rug, as color pat
tern. Select a fabric which possesses
that dominant color that you wish to
use and also use all the other colors con-
tanned in the fabric for the general
decorations in the room.
Keep in mind the two fundamental
Jaws of color in room decorating: First.
the larger the area, the more subdued
the color should be, especially In walls
and ceiling, the smaller the object, the
more intense the colors may be; that is
70 say, get the brilliant colors in the
small accessories, such as pillows, book
ends pottery, flowers and books. Let
them serve as the high lights. Some COL
ors should not be uSeG solidly as wall
colors. Brilliant reds are too violent,
and strong blues. deep browns, dark
greens and purples should be avoided.
yellow in It's many shades and tints
IS useful wall color. Lavender is eff
fective in bedrooms. White is color
to avoid. 1t Is not even good for CELL
ines. A lighter tint of the wall color
Is better to use there. Yellow is the
sunshine color. Brighten up your walls
the light-refiecting surfaces, by painting
or pspering them in shade or tint of
yellow, such as deep cream, light tan,
straw color. gold, pale yellow, or even
butter color, and the entire room will
radiate warmth and comfort
Elegant fabrics, such as brocadeS,
damssks, and taffetas. are still popular
There are. types of interiors that de-
rland the richness and elegance of
those materials, but it is just as inter-
esting and very encouraging to observe
that in simpler settings just as effective
results are obtained from the use of
inexpensive fabrics. There are num-
Der of tubfast and sunfast fabrics which
are to be found in almost every deal
er's stock These offer great variety
of weaves, colors and textures and are
suitable for use as glass curtains, drap-
cry materials. bedSpreadS and upholstery
fabrics. Artificial silk, either alone or
in combination with cotton or wool.
lends itself to a variety of attractive
treatments. It's color may sparkle with
the luster of real silk or glow with a
warmth peculiar to itself. It has the
merit also of being inexpensive. having
regard to its lasting quality and beauty
of effect. The fact that cretonnes are
cotton instead of silk or velvet is not
important. The important fact is that
IN their colors and patterns they reveal
the artistry of great designers and con-
vey to room at small cost the leading
elements of beauty in home decoration,
which are color and pattern.
Curtains and Draperies.
Curtains, table linens chair coverings,
COt6ISs- sUCuoHIGdhH, USu llIlGt1S
and quilts all are much more colorful
than formerly. but it is in fabrics for
curtains that one really appreciates the
limitless possibilities of colored artificial
silks and satins. and these are equally
suitable for down quilt covers and for
cushion covers. Many of them are en-
boSsed. There are charming inexpen-
eive and semi-transparent fabrics with
stripes of green, orchid and gold. or
blue. orange and gold, which would
make dainty curtains.
A room that has but one window is in
greater need of draperies than room
that has more windows. Make the
draperies double width instead of single,
and do not cut of any light with them.
Make the valance two or three feet
wider than the window, so that 1t will
extend from IL to l8 inches beyond the
casing on either side. The side drap-
cries should be set out corresponding
distance on the walls and extending
over the windows just far enough to
reveal the richness of the material.
Table Accessories and Linens.
A clever needlewoman can, with the
aid of simple materials, make much in
the way of table accessories which
would be a source of considerable ex-
pense to the woman not so fortunately
gifted. If she had to buy them. For