November, 1914 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
295 
interests of the household — perhaps, better, its past. As men¬ 
tioned above, miscellaneous curios are deadly. Should one be so 
fortunate as to possess a complete set of old Lowestoft mantel 
garniture, or a set 
of old blue-ancl- 
white Delft, noth¬ 
ing could be bet¬ 
ter. When they 
are used, how¬ 
ever, nothing else 
should be includ¬ 
ed. The use of a 
clock as center- 
piece has always 
been a debated 
point. A clock is 
a restless thing, 
and the mantel 
should carry no 
atmosphere of ac¬ 
tivity. It should 
spell rest, com¬ 
fort and the sense 
of abiding safety, 
where the denizen 
of the world can 
find peace and 
comfort without 
being eternally re¬ 
minded that time 
flies. 
Bedroom man¬ 
tels are a perplex¬ 
ing matter to treat when they are clumsily built. A white marble 
mantel that is ugly in shape and unpleasantly cold-looking may 
be improved by painting it to match the color of the woodwork. 
A glaring, smooth-tiled mantel may also 
be changed for the better by applying 
the flat-finish brick paint. A very sim¬ 
ple covering for a mantel may add to 
the daintiness of the furnishings. The 
mantel of a bedroom is the personal 
property of the owner of the room, and 
naturally takes on a more significant 
expression of individuality than in 
rooms used for other purposes. Here 
familiar and personal belongings may 
be displayed, and a glance at such a 
mantel will reveal the tastes of the oc¬ 
cupant of the room more than an ac¬ 
quaintance of months or years. 
The laws governing symmetry are 
almost obvious, so just a suggestion in 
what should be used is necessary. 
Vases and candlesticks both lend them¬ 
selves to this effort of making the ends 
of the mantel balance. Here the Orien¬ 
tals are of especial value. If, by any 
chance, there are two vases or jars 
nearly of a size, and it is impossible to 
obtain pieces of exactly the size, the 
larger should be put on the right-hand 
side. It is a curious fact of optical 
illusion that pieces so placed will ap¬ 
pear approximately the same; whereas, 
if the position is reversed, the disparity 
in size will be greatly intensified. If vases are not used, candle¬ 
sticks are always in order. Single candlesticks are generally pre¬ 
ferable to branch candles. Again, the old fluid lamps of the Em¬ 
pire Period, with 
a pair of vase¬ 
shaped shades or 
globes and glass 
pendants, are de¬ 
servedly highly es¬ 
teemed. When 
such are used 
there is generally 
a central piece of 
similar character. 
Should one be 
decorating a room 
according to an 
historic period 
there are, of 
course, the well- 
defined laws gov¬ 
erning the mantel 
dressing. The 
Empire demands 
formal treatment, 
a clock or vase, 
and at the ends 
candlesticks or 
candelabra. These 
are usually 
backed by a mir¬ 
ror. The whole 
effect is extreme¬ 
ly formal, rather heavy and depressing. The Adam requires 
shapely vases—Wedgwood especially. William and Mary usually 
has no mantel shelf, or if there is one, it is so narrow as to accom- 
There is undisputed character to the treatment of this fireplace, yet one feels that fewer of the historic lares 
and penates would have been more effective, giving less of the air of an antique shop 
An arrangement of recessed gradines often provides space for massed decoration. On this mantel a certain unity 
has been preserved, whilst the objects themselves reflect the atmosphere of the room 
