Evening star., 1948-03-01
PLANNING A HOUSE.
From Mrs. r. r., Arlington

nova Spanish type house. the
bedroom to be furnished m q
French period. the dining room In
Spanish, the recreation room in
modern ct cetera. The lady has
obviously given a great deal OF
thought and study to her ideal home
and displays such intelligence In
her approach to the problem that
I feel sure she would eventually ar
rive on her own at certain conclu-
sions to which this letter will Just
be short cut.
Having myself gone through the
period of wanting a Spanish type
house when came from the west, I
think I know exactly how she feels.
Architecturally the Spanish house
was an outgrowth, as is any true
so-caIed architectural style, Of Ger
tain conditions prevailing IN the
locality in which 1t was developed.
The climate was warm; so the walls
were usually built Of thick adobe
brick which acted as tnsuletion
against the sun. Patios, adjoining
the house were easily accessible for
outdoor living and dining. Red tile
roofs were in order because red
clay was available. Any architec-
tltral style can be so explained, from
the rooms Of Scandinavia, high
pitched to shed snow, to the gaudy
tent of the nomad chieftan who sets
up shelter against the dust and
elements for awhile, then folds his
tent and resumes his endless wan
derings. Le Corbusier expressed 1t
perhaps q little too simply when he
said that form follows function. In
many respects, the climate here In
Washington and suburbs, where
gather my fellow Reader intends to
build her home, is comparable to
that Of the southwest, where Span
ish houses-some good, some bad
abound, and close study Of the
best in contemporary architectural
design will show that builders are
adapting many features Of the
homes designed for southwestern
living to our own locale.
I know this reader will want to
know more about the philosophy OF
design before going ahead with her
house and suggest that she pick
about in Ruskin on architecture and
read Frank Lloyd's Autobiography,
his sons book My Father Who Is On
Earth, and q book by Wright ana
Baker Brownell on city planning, IN
which the minimum site standards
for q house are outlined.
II I were choosing an architect,
I'm sure I'd want to see samples OF
his previous work. Many very In
telligent persons engage splendid
architects and then proceed to Grip
ple their usefulness to the project by
presenting a dream house which the
client himself has designed. This
is roughly the equivalent OF going
to specialist for a cure and then
telling him you want to use old
medicines you happen to have In
your cabinet.
So much for the house: but the
same philosophy will apply to the
furnishings Of q house brought
about from. real study of the prob
lens. Just as house built on your
site, in your neighborhood. for your
way of life will never turn out 20
be Swiss chalet type or Victorian
type, so the pieces Of furniture
which you choose with your pur-
poses in mind will probably not
turn out to be all Louis for the bed
room or all Monterrey for the dining
room or all modern for another
room. AS a glance through any dec
orators magazine will indicate. ex-
cept in certain extremely formal
rooms reserved for state entertain
ing, the most beautiful homes now
are furnished with good-repeat
good-pieces Of furniture from diff
ferent periods and often Of differ
ent woods all combined in a single
room. A good piece of furniture
from one period should farmonize
with good pieces from other periods.
This of course presupposes excellent
selection. And a really fine table
or chair will only gain in charm as
it acquires a few scars, lovingly
rubbed to a soft sheen by the mis-
tress of the house; and basically
l-designed, soundly made sofa,
accurately chosen for your needs,
will be adored by the family as
the years give it a real place in the
decorative and living scheme of
your home. When traces Of the FAM
ily's enjoyment of the furniture
become too obvious, reupholstering,
slip covering, sanding and reflnish-
ing beloved old pieces give lift to
the house and every one in it-like
mothers Easter bonnet. Another
factor to bear in mind is the best
houses today are PLANNED with
many Of yesterdays pieces Of furn-
iture accommodated within the de-
sign of the house itself. Just as grand
mothers big old wardrobe Is thing
of the past since we have closets, SO
the ordinary chest of drawers is not
always necessary when adequate
cabinet space has been provided
with built-in drawers for shirts,
spaces for shoes, hats ct cetera be-
hind flush panel, sliding doors.
X X
SOSi
(From A. F., Washin9ton.)
I think we all enjoy reading the
poems in this very nice column,
but the requests for nursery rhymes
has always been a mystery to me.
How does any one have a home with
children without nursery book of