The Editor wishes to extend a personal invitation to all readers of House and Garden to send to the 
Correspondence Department, inquiries on any matter pertaining to house finishing and furnishing. Care¬ 
ful consideration is given each inquiry, the letter and answer being published in due time as matters of 
interest to other readers. Where an early reply is desired if a stamp and self-addressed envelope are 
enclosed, the answer will be sent. No charge whatever is made for any advice given. 
COLONIAL HOUSES 
T HE simple lines and dignified proportions of the Colonial 
bouse as exemplified in the New England and Southern 
types, are always beautiful and as adaptable to the requirements of 
life to-day as in the days of the Georges. Much information rela¬ 
tive to correct detail to be embodied in a Colonial house in process 
of planning, may he gathered by the prospective builder before¬ 
hand and thus enable him to more clearly outline his ideas to his 
architect. Beautiful examples of pure Colonial houses are from 
time to time published in the pages of magazines, also illustrated 
articles showing examples of rare doorways and window motifs, 
as well as much detail from the interiors of these perfectly con¬ 
structed and wonderfully satisfying houses. 
Some of the work of Grinling Gibbons is still to be found in 
many of the fine old houses in New England, and much from 
the hands of his disciples. Cornices, mantels, door and window 
frames, beautifully carved, supply designs which no latter-day 
artists have been able to improve upon. 1 he Colonial mantel¬ 
pieces especially, have been largely reproduced by mantel firms 
and are on the market to-day, procurable and ready to he set 
in place. The prices are wonderfully reasonable and the matter of 
having them match perfectly with the woodwork of the room is 
easily arranged. Where they are to be enamelled, they are finished 
in three coats of flat lead ready for the last coat, and, in this way, 
the same tone for the finish is insured throughout the room. 
A very perfect type of Colonial house will shortly be published 
in the pages of this magazine. Every detail of this beautifully 
planned and executed house breathes the true old-time atmosphere 
which makes it adaptable to the surroundings in which it has been 
created, and it is hard to realize that it is of recent construction so 
fully does it embody the feeling of the quaint old houses which are 
its neighbors. 
In planning any house, the situation and the immediate environ¬ 
ment, of course, must be taken into consideration. When a house 
is of Colonial type, this is of special importance. The stately 
columned Southern Colonial house seems to require the setting of 
tall trees and the sweep of rolling lawn, while the square and simple 
lines of the New England type of house, may (as is most frequently 
the case in the earlier examples) give directly upon the street. 1 he 
fine dignified front door opens wide into the central hall and on a 
summer day one may have an unobstructed view of the old-fash¬ 
ioned garden at the rear. 
When the Southern Colonial has been decided upon as the type 
to be reproduced, the body of the house should be painted in a true 
Colonial yellow with columns and trim of ivory white, or, the body 
and columns of white and shutters and roof showing exactly the 
right shade of green. This matter of the right shade of color is of 
extreme importance to the finished success of the house. A rich 
dark green that has no yellow in it, nor yet too much of black, is 
the proper shade for the blinds, and the stain for the roof may be 
somewhat lighter in tone. 
The New England Colonial house offers a wider choice of 
color: white, yellow, silver gray, brown and green appear with 
almost equal frequency. The usual trim is the ivory white al¬ 
though the shutters are often painted the same color as the body 
of the house. Where shingled sides are used, an exterior stain 
gives color to these as well as the shingled roof. An excellent 
color combination may be arranged by trying together the sample 
boards of the shingles which are supplied by the stain manufactur¬ 
ers. This careful selection of color well repays any trouble 
expended in the finished result. In the Colonial house of either 
type, the front door is an especially important feature. This is, 
in almost every case, painted white. 
The hardware used upon it should be carefully chosen and 
eminently Colonial in style. The polished brass is the best finish 
to select for doors of this type. 
Most of the old Colonial mansions in Virginia and Kentucky 
are built of brick, sometimes painted in white or the soft yellow 
shades above referred to, but more often left in the natural color 
of the brick laid in carefully smoothed white mortar, many hav¬ 
ing for the trim white marble or stone, but of whatever material 
the trim is always white. 
When a modified Colonial house is planned, a much wider choice 
in design, arrangement and finish is permissible, though too 
radical a departure from the acknowledged pure form, should be 
avoided. In the many houses of this type to be found throughout the 
country, and particularly in the smaller residences, one realizes that 
the jig-saw and the turning lathe, have gotten in their pernicious 
work. A preponderous use of Palladian windows and fan-shaped 
glass for front doors is also a mistake. Simplicity should be the 
key-note of the modified as well as the pure Colonial. A small 
and inexpensive house built on Colonial lines may be extremely 
dignified and attractive; whereas, if too much detail is shown and 
the ornamentation runs to the ornate, the house will stand for all 
that is most objectionable in architecture. 
FINISH OF THE INTERIOR 
For the wood finish of the interior, the pure Colonial house more 
frequently runs to the ivory enamel showing an eggshell gloss used 
in combination with mahogany, than to any other wood finish, 
although in certain beautiful rooms of these old houses—particu¬ 
larly libraries and dining-rooms,—oak was often used. Where 
the best effect is desired with the least expense, white wood or 
poplar is suggested as the choice for the standing woodwork, as this 
wood takes an enamel admirably and also shows up well under 
mahogany stain; it certainly gives the maximum of results at the 
minimum of expense. Three coats of flat lead should be specified 
for use under the enamel and the tone used for the enamei should 
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