420 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



November, 1910 



Decorations and Furnishings for the Home 



By Alice M. Kellogg 



IX — Furnishing a Young Girl's Room 



jHE interest so conspicuously manifested by 

 our younger generation in the home sur- 

 roundings is naturally concentrated at its 

 own room and belongings. Last month, 

 in this department, some suggestive ideas 

 were given for the room occupied by the 

 boy of the family. A similar theme, but 

 capable of more elastic treatment, is the furnishing of the 

 daughter's apartment. Here it is often possible to perfect 

 each detail for the refinement of daily living independently 

 of the rest of the house. 



The charm of absolute cleanliness for walls, floors, win- 

 dows and general interior furnishings is never more desir- 

 able than in the young girl's room. Beginning at the foun- 

 dation, the floor may be laid with strips of oak or maple 

 and stained a deep mahogany red, dark oak or gray, as 

 suits the color scheme to be carried out in the rest of the 

 room. A word may also be said about painting a floor in 

 a French gray, where the furnishings are light in tone, or 

 an old-fashioned pumpkin yellow where the woodwork and 

 walls will blend with so strong a note. Sometimes an 

 opaque varnish is the only means for treating bare floors 



that will not take a stain or a paint. 



If an old floor cannot be left uncovered there are various 

 styles of carpeting to be had. The most desirable selection 

 at the least cost is a gray or a brown ingrain at ninety cents 

 a yard, which, laid over a carpet lining, makes a pleasing 

 background. Plain velvet carpets costing a dollar and sev- 

 enty-five cents a yard are also useful for their quiet tones. 

 Almost a plain effect can be had with the mottled Brus- 

 sels carpet at a dollar and ten cents a yard, and the brown, 

 blue or green fit into almost any colorings. In the finer 

 grades of Brussels the new patterns are small and well-knit, 

 some of them in chintz effects. The new borders are all 

 narrow and make a finish to the edges of the floor. 



If matting is preferred to keep down the expense, the 

 plain white made in China is the most durable and, lacking 

 pattern, makes a better under-covering for bright-hued rugs. 

 The colored matting is best when used by itself, as its 

 broken weave contributes enough design to the floor. In 

 some places a dark-red matting looks better than one of 

 colder tones, but always one must consider the general as- 

 sembling of furnishings before committing oneself to a de- 

 cision in this important item. Grass matting, successful as 



Corner of a girl's studio 



An attractive tea table 



