Miss Grcenleaf will gladly answer queries pertaining to individual problems of interior decoration and furnishing. When an immediate reply is j 
desired, please enclose a self-addressed envelope 
As to Holiday Gifts 
ITH the holidays passed and the 
new year begun comes the com¬ 
fortable realization that we are settled 
in our homes for the winter season, and 
accordingly we adjust ourselves and our 
belongings and set our backgrounds to 
obtain the best effects. 
There is to-day a decided tendency 
in gift making to select ornaments, 
furniture or rugs for the house, rather 
than the more personal things which 
long precedent had established, and 
many of us are just now endeavoring to 
find places for the recent acquisitions 
which have come to us with the Christ¬ 
mas season. This requires study and 
possibly some decorative changes, and 
unfortunately, alas! occasionally the ab¬ 
solute necessity of relegating an expen¬ 
sive but ornate vase, aggressive brass 
lamp, or other things of this ilk to the 
topmost shelf of the china-closet. This 
experience points to a fact which it would 
be well for the gift-making public to 
realize, namely, if one be moved to give 
decorative bits or pieces of furniture it is 
absolutely essential that they be familiar 
with the style of the house into which 
these will go, and also with the taste 
of the recipient, otherwise it is far wiser 
and more kind not to go into this field 
in making the present. 
Table Lamps and Shades 
Y OU are fortunate if you have received 
among your holiday gifts a lamp 
for the living-room or library table. They 
and their shades are very important 
factors in the furnishing. It is, of course, 
of the utmost importance that they fit 
into the general Scheme of the room, 
both as to design and coloring. Even 
if you did not receive a whole lamp, per¬ 
haps a large dull-glazed pottery jar came 
your way. If you already are well sup¬ 
plied with such receptacles for flower- 
holders, consider the possibility of using 
the jar as a base for a lamp. It is a 
simple matter to select or have made an 
oil-fount to fit into it, and shades may 
always be independently acquired. 
Cover the Water Tank 
IKE many others we have a tank 
in our house which is supplied 
from the city water. The pipe which 
led down from it became stopped up, 
and upon investigation we discovered the 
cause. It had been stopped up by rags, 
probably dropped in the tank by mice. 
Our plumber’s bill was large, as the rags 
were difficult to get out. I made a cover 
at small expense, and this not only pre¬ 
vents a similar occurrence, but prevents 
dust also from going in the tank. C. Iv F. 
Unruly Doors 
F EW things are more annoying 'about 
the house than a door which will 
not stay latched when closed. If you 
examine such a door you will usually 
find that it has shrunk. Take the door 
off its hinges, and then take the part of 
the hinge on the door frame off, and place 
Utilize surplus pottery jars as lamp bases, 
having an oil-fount made to fit 
enough pasteboard back of it to make up 
for the shrinkage. Replace the hinges, 
using slightly longer screws. Or else 
remove the plate in the door frame that 
the latch and lock fit into, and put some 
material back of it to bring the plate 
nearer the door. The writer has used 
both methods with the best of success. 
If the door sticks on the “saddle” on the 
lower edge, before planing it off be sure 
the hinges have not worn off, and so 
allowed the door to drop down. If so, 
replace them, and so do not injure the 
door. If the door has sunk lower than 
when put up, and so will not lock, or 
latch, you can often remedy this by 
taking off the plate on the door frame and 
filing the plate. Too much “side play” 
can be taken up by filing. C. K. F. 
Small Oriental Rugs 
I T is becoming more and more com¬ 
mon to discover among one’s holi¬ 
day gifts a small Oriental rug or two. 
They are among the most welcome of all 
gifts for the reason that they fit so 
acceptably into the furnishing scheme 
of almost any room. Even if they do 
not find a place on the floor, which is 
unlikely, they may be useful for covering 
the heavier cushions at the ends of long 
davenports and window-seats, or even 
for covering hassocks. That of course 
would seem a desecration for Orientals 
of really excellent individual merits, 
many of which are splendid wall decora¬ 
tions when hung. 
Lighting Fixtures 
HEN the time comes to decide upon 
the lighting fixtures for the new 
house there are many points upon which 
the amateur should inform himself. To¬ 
day the combination fixture appears 
only occasionally; that is, there will 
be usually but one or two combination 
(Bo) 
