32 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
June, 1912 
The comfortable steamer chair and the swinging Gloucester hammock 
are well adapted to seaside porches like this one 
The piazza rocking chair, popular almost from time immemorial, is 
yielding to the wicker styles, which are lighter 
liard steamer chair into a thing of solid comfort, if not of beauty, 
■for the porch. 
Using it as a model all sorts of chairs have been evolved. Elab¬ 
orate affairs in willow and wicker, built with just the right slant 
to the back and the right “hump” under the knees, are cushioned 
hnd fitted with all the comforts that contribute to perfect peace 
on a lazy summer day. Some have deep pockets on either side 
for books and magazines, others a convenient receptacle in one 
arm for a glass, and one 
model has a complete smok¬ 
ing outfit snugly tucked 
away in one side, in addi¬ 
tion to provision for liquid 
refreshments. 
Rather picturesque are 
the steamer chairs with 
wooden frames, the back 
and seat formed by a piece 
of striped qanvas in gay 
colors. The same style is 
made with a light iron 
frame, and as both kinds 
fold up into a small space 
they are particularly useful 
in contracted quarters, or 
where extra chairs are kept 
at h^ind. 
Porch furniture is of ne¬ 
cessity moved about so 
much that one important 
qualification is that it be 
light in weight and easily 
handled. For this reason, therefore, willow furniture is more gen¬ 
erally popular than the heavier wooden pieces, and in willow there 
is every variety that could possibly be required. Chairs are made 
in all shapes and sizes, with settees, swinging seats, tea-tables, 
work-tables, book and magazine tables, flower stands, tabourets 
and baskets, and the general scheme of furnishing and decora¬ 
tion is limited only by the designs of the cretonnes which are 
numberless, and the colors of stain available for the furniture. 
Except for rather elaborate sun parlors, the willow furniture 
painted a dead white, with dainty cretonne cushions is quite out 
of place, and for the restful outdoor living-room, greens and 
browns or willow in the natural color, with cretonne of more or 
less quiet tones, are much more harmonious. 
For those who prefer porch furniture of wood rather than wil¬ 
low, there is a variety, new this season, that is light in weight and 
most attractive in appearance. It is made of r.ather narrow strips 
of wood about an eighth of an inch apart and painted white, and 
the solid pieces, legs .and arms of chairs, and the pedestals of 
tables are done in either red or green. Complete sets of outdoor 
furniture are made in this style, and also of wicker and wood 
combined. The latter is light and substantial and can be done in 
any color to suit the indi¬ 
vidual taste. 
Whether the furnishings 
are of wood or willow, a 
serviceable addition to the 
porch outfit is a stationary 
seat built against the wall 
and fitted with a tufted 
cushion or with pillows. It 
may be just a plain bench 
with curved ends, like the 
old-fashioned settle, or a 
more elaborate affair with 
high back, carefully de¬ 
signed to match the other 
woodwork of the piazza, 
and painted to correspond. 
The general character of 
the porch and its furnish¬ 
ings should decide the kind 
of seat to be built. In any 
event it occupies small 
space and will be found a 
decided convenience. 
Next to the question of seats in the scheme of outdoor room 
furnishing comes that of tables. Such a large part of everyday 
life is spent on the porch that it is quite necessary to Iiave at 
hand conveniences for both work and play, and at least one table 
that can be put to various uses should be provided. If it is of 
good size and fitted with a lower shelf, it will serve as a work 
table, for books, for afternoon tea, for card playing, and even an 
occasional out-of-door breakfast or luncheon. For the spacious 
piazza furnished in willow there are to be had specially designed 
tables for all of these various uses, including the willow tea- 
wagon and a new table that is made in two parts. Each of these 
parts is triangular in shape, making a convenient little table that 
(Continued on page 51) 
No porch is really furnished without rugs, which nowadays are made especially 
for outdoor use and in very attractive designs 
