Evening star., 1952-07-28
Decorating.
In Latest
LevittOWn
By Dorothy BihImon

Recently we went with. other
members of the press to see the
newest Levittown, in Pennsyl-
vania. This is the second Of
these communities which have
gained national attention by mass
producing attractive homes for a
modest price tag.
This price tag consistently
shaves hundreds of dollars OF the
going market price of the same
house is not mass produced. The
basic house in the newest Levitt
town, located in Bucks County,
Pennsylvania Is miles. north of
Philadelphia is a three-bedroom
ranch type home that sells for
1890 on a minimum 10 by 100|
foot lot. Among the 80 odd
"extras" in this carefully engi-
neered package are an all-elec-
trio kitchen. automatic washing
machine, three way fireplace,
large thermopane picture win
dows, a radiant heating system,
a sliding living room wall which
makes the third bedroom CONVEX
tible into extra daytime living
space, complete landscaping, and
a slice of community swimming
pool.
The builders estimate that
1880 of the $4,000 of the houses
will be one Of the four variations
of this type known as the Levitt
towner." The rest will be larger
and more elaborate dwellings inI
a higher priced country club sec
ton. These Country Clubber"
homes sell for $4,000 on mini
mum size plots of more than a
quarter-acre. These have a 80
foot living room, three bedrooms
and two baths on the ground floor,
plus an unfinished second story.
The cost of these houses is kept
low due to the building methods.
The construction site is trans
formed into an assembly nnel
with the single exception that the
men move to a waiting line of
materials rather than the materi-
ais to the men. The key element
is timing. Trained crews move
from site to site, each doing its
special job, with the materials
they need waiting there ready toI
be used. Metal tubing for the ra-
diant heating system for instance,
is pre-cut and twisted into proper
sized coils to fit the floor slab.
Lumber is delivered pre-cut toI
the exact size, and is unloadedl
from the trucks in such way that
the pieces to be used first are
stacked on top. Plumbing fixtures,
window walls, bricks for the fire.
place, insulation, doors, asbestosl
panels for the exterior, are all
delivered on schedule.
A new approach to the deco
ration of the modern house has
been devised by Miss Beatrice
West, New York designer and col
orist in the treatment of one of
the model homes. Miss West has
used modern motifs in most of
the model houses, but she has
given this one three bedroom
house, with large living area and
f1oor-to-ceiling window walls in
the living room, the flavor of the
early American and has showed
how traditional furniture of an
early era may be used harmoni-
ouSly, in a home of modern archi-
tectural design.
Color schemes as well as fur
nishingS suggest the times of our
forefatherS. In the living room
the color scheme is pumpkin,
green, yellow and copper estab-
lished by the materials used for
the draperieS. A braided rug,
leaving exposed wide expanse
of polished floor. repeats the colors
in the draperies. A studio couch
is used against one of the walls
to provide plenty of seating room
as we'll. as emergency sleeping
space, but with this exception the
furnishings are early American.
Two end tables with light maple
finish hold lamps with bases made
from an ironstone pitcher and