'JIO 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



August, 1 910 



frames disabled or out of keeping 

 with their new environment. It is no 

 sacrifice, but rather a tribute to the 

 subjects, to reinstate them with more 

 suitable frames, and these may be 

 "antiqued" or softened in tone to do 

 away with too sharp a contrast be- 

 tween the old canvas and the new 

 frame. 



A suggestion for a decoration 

 above a drawing-room mantel is 

 shown in the second illustration, 

 where a circular picture is framed 

 with the same plaster relief work of 

 the mantel. Less expensive would be 

 the framing of an over-mantel pic- 

 ture in panels of wood to correspond 

 with a wooden mantel. Sometimes a 

 set of pictures, three or five, are 

 framed together to form a mantel 

 decoration with good results. 



The charm of a picture above a 

 mantel exceeds any other kind of 

 decoration if the subject is correctly 

 chosen. In a living-room or library, 

 the mantel picture should have qual- 

 ities to arrest the eye and stimulate 

 the imagination of those who gather 

 about the fire on the hearth. 



The great advance in color print- 

 ing (particularly in German prod- 

 ucts) has produced a great variety of 

 pictures of really artistic excellence 

 that may be bought at moderate cost, 

 and from these one may select a land- 

 scape with interesting detail, a com- 

 bination of water and land, or a sea 

 view. These color prints, of a size 

 suitable to hang over a mantel, cost 

 from ten to forty dollars, and a 

 frame may be added for five dollars 

 up to twenty-five or thirty. 



On the selection of the frame de- 

 pends much of the successful appear- 

 ance of a mantel picture. Not only a 

 consideration of the coloring of the 

 picture itself is necessary, but the 

 tone of the wall-paper and woodwork 

 and the general color scheme of the 

 room must enter into the choice. 

 Sometimes a wood, birch, mahogany, 

 oak, chestnut or ash, can be stained 

 to a proper tone. Sometimes a frame 

 with a gilt finish is preferable, with 

 the foundation of plaster or wood. 

 Among the latest ideas in picture 

 frames are the carved wood effects 

 covered with gold leaf. These are 

 imitated quite successfully in a com- 

 position that costs considerably less 

 than the hand work. A study of the 

 picture frames in an exhibition of 

 paintings, will be helpful to one who 

 is beginning to buy and select frames 

 for a home. Here one may see how 

 the artist who has expressed his ideal 

 in color has chosen to surround it 

 with glass, mat and frame. 



For the cheapest frames a com- 

 mon window glass is used, but a fine 

 grade of glass adds so much to the 



A group of prints 



A picture framed in gray 



beauty of a picture that it is some- 

 times wiser to economize on the 

 frame and not spare expense on the 

 glass. Water color paintings espe- 

 cially deserve a clear, transparent 

 glass. 



A mat adds to the expense of 

 framing a picture, and is sometimes 

 omitted on this account. Here, again, 

 is a false economy, if the picture is 

 really benefited by the increased 

 margin. It is a popular idea that 

 photographs and prints look better 

 without a ma,t, framed with a mold- 

 ing of wood, close to the picture 

 itself. Where this rule might be suc- 

 cessfully applied in one instance, 

 however, its unqualified adoption 

 would be a mistake. 



With a gold frame a gold mat is 

 used, of two different grades. A 

 white mat In varying ivory, cream, 

 oyster or buff is suited to a picture 

 that shows some tone of white in the 

 margin. Green, red and brown mats 

 can also be had, but these must be 

 carefully adapted to both picture and 

 frame. However carefully the 

 glass and mat are selected, the frame 

 itself is undeniably of primary im- 

 portance, and one can scarcely make 

 a suitable decision without trying a 

 piece of wood against the picture. 



The wood or gilt molding that 

 holds together the picture, glass and 

 mat, completing the framing of a pic- 

 ture, requires a careful understand- 

 ing of proportions and a good eye 

 for color effect. Photographs and 

 prints vary so much In their brown, 

 gray or black hues, that It Is some- 

 times necessary to have the molding 

 stained especially to match the pic- 

 ture. When it is impossible to obtain 

 the right color In a wooden molding, 

 a gilt molding may be substituted. 

 Sometimes two separate moldings 

 may be joined together to make the 

 frame wider, or a gilt beading may 

 be added to give contrast to an oak 

 or a mahogany frame. 



An inexpensive mat and frame 

 may be made from Japanese wood 

 paper, which comes In a number of 

 artistic colors. In the illustration of 

 "A Gray Frame," a Japanese photo- 

 graph Is treated in this way with 

 charming result. 



For amateur work there is noth- 

 ing simpler than a passe partoiit, or 

 binding together the picture and glass 

 with narrow strips of paper. A spe- 

 cial binding with the back prepared 

 with glue can be bought in white, 

 black, gray and red. 



So varied are the combinations 

 that picture framing offers that no 

 set rule can be established. A good 

 plan is to carry the picture to the 

 store and experiment with different 

 styles of frames before making a de- 



