264 ' Missouri Agricultural Report. 



in-seats, book shelves and cabinets have many advantages. Being an 

 actual part of the room the sense of unity is increased and being station- 

 ary, the labor of cleaning day is lessened. Much of the beauty of the 

 old hand-made furniture is due to the fact that the maker was a master 

 of his craft and knowing his material and its possibilities, designed 

 accordingly, and beauty came as a natural result. The advent of ma- 

 chines which could accomplish in a few minutes results that would re- 

 quire hours of hand labor and multiply the product with the same amaz- 

 ing rapidity turned the heads of the \\orkers for a time and led to all 

 sorts of experiments as to what novel things could be produced. For a time 

 the unusual took the place of the beautiful and the market was flooded 

 with things which look like something which they are not — chairs made 

 of good lumber carefully treated to make it appear like old ragged broken 

 scraps, glass pitchers shaped like cloth bags ornamented with ribbon 

 bows, and a host of similar grotesques. IMuch of the furniture produced 

 in the last fifty years is overloaded with cheap machine carving, dis- 

 torted into impossible curves, fancy and ugly, and finished with a glar- 

 ing coat of varnish instead of the soft gloss of an old finish. We are 

 fortunate in these days to have popularity and good taste so well com- 

 bined as in the style of furniture designated as Craftsman. 



The curtains, couch covers and other accessories are a very important 

 factor in the harmony of a room and may be made to brighten a dull 

 room or be the softening note where the light is too strong. Curtains of 

 a soft filmy texture — a plain net, scrim or similar material are, as a rule, 

 more attractive than those requiring starch and always better than lace 

 unless the lace be of a very fine quality. In color they should generally 

 be the neutral tone between window shade and the wall color, softening 

 the hard outline of the window. The color effect may be secured with 

 either plain or figured material, but if the latter is used, care is needed m 

 selecting a color and pattern which will give the tone desired. Strong 

 contrasts and striking designs are to be avoided. 



In the city where houses are close together curtains are necessary as 

 a protection from the curiosity of neighbors and must cover the whole 

 window, but in the country their chief purpose is the artistic effect in the 

 room and there is no need of interfering with the desire of the family 

 to ' ' see out ' ' — especially if the window commands a fine view. 



Many points concerning curtains apply also to couch covers, especial- 

 ly the relation of the color to that of the room. No one feature adds more 

 to the sense of rest and comfort in a living room than a luxurious pile 

 of pillows on the couch — but let them be usable pillows, not fancy silk 

 and satin creations nor of colors easily soiled. 



