August, 1908 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



3*3 



The 1 Value of a Pleasant Sunroom 



By Delia Austrian 



HERE never was a time when health and 

 sanitation played so important a part in the 

 furnishing of a home. Light and plenty 

 of sunshine are the great forces recognized 

 for the making of health, and are important 

 considerations in the planning of a house. 

 To-day in building houses people give as 



much attention to the questions of lighting and ventilating as 



to furnishing and decorating. They are satisfied with few 



ornaments, but insist on having plenty of windows. It is not 



unusual for a large 



room to have from 



four to six windows, 



with the curtains 



pulled up to flood 



the place with sun- 

 shine and one win- 

 dow raised to let in 



fresh air in coldest 



weather. 



Many families go 



into the suburb so 



they can enjoy 



plenty of sunlight 



and fresh air. For 



this reason they 



build verandas ex- 

 tending all around 



the house. At times 



they have the ve- 

 randas screened -off 



with curtains to 



keep out the heat 



and rain. In other 



homes, especially in 



the cities, they have 



the windows built 



so they can put them 



in and take them 



out at will. The 



sunroom is an addi- 

 tion to the modern 



home. It has come 



to take the place of 



a garden most 



homes once enjoyed. 



In the city it is most 



common to build the 



sunroom off the hall 



or living-room. The 



walls may either be 



The Sunroom May Be Richly Embellished with Plants 



of natural brick or tinted. The room is often steam heated 

 to make it more comfortable in cold weather. It is often the 

 home for plants, growing in long boxes, kept to a certain 

 temperature by steam. This room is also often made more 

 cheerful by canaries singing in cages. It is common to have 

 a hammock or a swinging bench. Wicker furniture is pop- 

 ular and appropriate. A large tea-table may also find room 

 here. It is often here the family comes to sit of a pleasant 

 afternoon. A desk and a large box for toys is certainly in 

 keeping with the furnishing. It is a good place for children 



to play and study 

 when tired of the 

 nursery. As soon 

 as the pleasant 

 weather appears the 

 doors are thrown 

 open and the win- 

 dows taken cut to 

 give plenty of air 

 and a beautiful 

 vista. 



There are many 

 ways of furnishing 

 this room. An at- 

 tractive sunroom is 

 done in white. 

 Along the walls are 

 narrow strips of lat- 

 tice work that hold 

 the climbing ivy. 

 The ceiling is deco- 

 rated with the same 

 lattice work. The 

 room is inclosed by 

 large windows taken 

 out in the summer- 

 they are protected 

 from the heat by 

 brown and white 

 awnings. The floors 

 are of red tiling, 

 which harmonizes 

 well with the lat- 

 t i c e w o r k. It is 

 covered with hand- 

 woven rugs. The 

 furniture is of dark 

 brown wicker up- 

 holstered in chintz, 

 a design of large 

 roses. From the 



