i8 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
June, ■ 1912 
The New England settees are matched in the new style of furniture, 
preserving their excellent lines in the best of workmanship 
decidedly with age and use. 
One of the greatest .ad¬ 
vantages of this type of 
furniture is its extreme 
durability. For not only 
are the pieces of this work 
put together in an almost 
indestructible m a n n e r, 
without the use of metal 
in the construction and 
the use of sturdy pins 
and mortise joints, but 
the wood itself is treated 
so as to be everlasting. 
The sideboard on p,age 
17 and the chairs about 
it are made from apple 
wood, the enduring ciuali- 
ties of which were so well 
known to the furniture 
makers of the Tudor 
period, and even to our 
New England ancestors. The finish is as plain as possible, and 
such a thing as varnish is unknown. The pieces are not polished 
and can be scoured without losing any beauty of finish or being 
stained by moisture. 
Although much of the furniture is greatly to be desired for 
the .all-year round house, and appears especially to advantage in 
the bed rooms, its greatest appeal is as summer furniture or in 
the summer home. Its simple, straightforward lines suggest com¬ 
fort for the days when the housekeeper does not wish to fuss 
about continually with a dust cloth. 
The light tones are particularly suitable for summer hangings 
.and furnishings, and the color of the wood itself is cool and in¬ 
viting in appearance. 
The rusli bottom chairs might w^ell have been used in Anne 
Hathaway’s cottage, and the best of it all is that they are as 
comfortable as they are simple. The settees reproduce the best 
of our New England work in designs that are suitable for the liv¬ 
ing-room, and still are durable enough for use out-of-doors in the 
garden. Although the inspiration is old there is a new and grace¬ 
ful air about the articles which is certainly very atti'active. 
One desirable point about this cottage furniture is that the 
pieces produced in this style include an entire outfit for the home. 
That is, one does not necessarily suffer the inconvenience so often 
found in getting a desirable chair of a new type that does not 
match with an older style of furniture, and which is too indi- 
‘vidualistic to he used with other chairs. This furniture, besides 
the attractive sideboard and rush bottom chairs, includes sev¬ 
eral sorts of tables, from the gate-legged form of beautiful de¬ 
sign and workmanship to a sturdy dining table that mav be 
matched with a long bench. Bookcases, mirrors, cupboards, and 
even w.all shelves are to be had. 
iMost of the pieces are so finished that the natural grain of the 
wood appears in all its beauty so that the air of honesty and 
naturalness about all the pieces is still more emphasized. They 
really pretend to be nothing' more than useful articles. 
Beside the applewood. spoken of above, some of the dining¬ 
room furniture is fumed oak, which is finished in a warm, neutral 
gray, made by using a thin stain over the ordinary oak. On ac¬ 
count of these light neutral tones of natural tan and gray, rugs, 
curtains, and wall treatment of infinite style and pattern can be 
used harmoniously. These colors seem to generate a feeling of 
comfort on hot days that is not the case with so much of the up- 
iholstered and pillow-accompanied furniture that one is so often 
irritated by in August. 
It is not safe for every¬ 
body, especially those who 
cannot afford the best and 
most costly, to indulge in 
the ornate, as the taste 
has not been educated in 
the selection of the or¬ 
nate. and things that are 
extraordinarily had are 
almost invariably chosen 
by the uneducated mind. 
By this it must not be 
construed th.at this furni¬ 
ture is only for those of 
humble means, for it is 
not: indeed, some of 
these chairs and book¬ 
cases have been purchased 
to ornament the summer 
homes of wealthy people 
of taste who have a true 
perception of the artistic. 
Settles may be had in varying degrees of elaboration. They are of 
service both inside the house and out-of-doors 
d here is a suggestion of Old England about this table and its bench. It can be 
well scoured without spoiling the finish, and has the advantage of possessing 
real practical worth as well as simplicity 
