Evening star., 1935-09-21
VOGUE
SMILES ON PAINT
Sophisticated Types Use
Marked Contrasts
for Effects.
BY LYNN HARDESTY,

NEW YORK, September 21.-Painted
furniture is more in vogue this season
than ever, according to displays in
fashionable New York shops Sophis-
ticated types of living and dining room
furniture-empire and classic mod
ern, for example-are appearing with
painted finishes, as well as luxurious
bed room groupings. New textures
and surfaces in paint are constantly
being evolved.
Bright, clear hues, while in fashion
for kitchen and dinette, are being
modified, to softened shades and light
pastel tlntS, in some of the furniture
for formal rooms. White-Which in
Cludes a wide range of off-white
tones-is still favorite, especially in
combination with colorS and natural
wood tones, because the pieces fit in
so well with the white lamp shades
and other accessories which are now
so popular.
Marked Contrast Possible.
Painted surfaces look very well with
wood in its natural tone. so that
even IN the same piece-a dining
table, for eXample-one may see the
top in natural wood and the legs
and StretcherS in an old ivory finish.
The dresser which goes with this
has shelves of natural maple, with
all the vertical parts of the piece
painted ivory, While the chairs have
seats and the cross bars of the back
IN the natural wood.
Sometimes only a line of color is
painted along the edge of the table,
with touches on the legs of very
dark brown or cream white Often
both tables and chairs appear in all
white-a parchment hue, softened by
adding little cream color and given
rubbed, antique finish.
Modern style furniture is especially
effective in color. A small desk seen
In a swanky shop on Fifty-seventh
street.-the Rue de la PaiX of New
York-waS painted a soft, robins egg
blue with part of the frame a deep
blue. Bedsteads, dressing tables and
bureaus feature light faWn hue with
a slightly darker tone framing the PAN
els or accenting the edges.
This vogue for painted furniture
plays into the hands of the housewife
who likes to use the paint brush, for
even prominent decora tors have been
repainting old mahogany and walnut
furniture. One decorator whose client
had to economic took an old walnut
sideboard which was quite passe and
made it into a creditable empire piece
by painting it black with touches of
old gold on the carvings and handles
Some open-back chairs and a pedestal
table of yeSteryear were similarly
treated.
White Star in Linoleum.
The setting was small dining
room with a floor in black linoleum,
in the center of which a large. eight
pointed star in white was inserted.
This same effect could be achieved
with paint. White walls and black
woodwork, with the addition of a
columnar table lamp in the empire
style and window curtains of old gold,
finished the transformation of the
room.
Old furniture stored in attics may
be similarly revamped. 1t is quite
the thing to take an old chair of
the Victorian period and make it q
charming accent in a room by paint
ing the frame deep blue. grayed-
orange or soft vermilion and cover
ing the original horsehair with a
modern colorful fabric.
r6ilIVenati1p old he'd roOr,o
ture, off-white shades are always in
order, but some prefer delicate yell
lows, light lavenders, or greens that
are never darker than Spring greens.
One shade may be used, or two
closely related tones-the lighter one
for panels and drawer fronts,