October, 1915 
51 
INTERIOR DECORATIONS 
CONDUCTED BY AGNES FOSTER 
Vari-colored birds and 
flowers on a black 
ground would set off a 
Chinese lacquered mir¬ 
ror. $2.60 a roll 
N ovelty as 
novelty may 
not have much 
substantiation, but 
if novelty has in 
addition some fun¬ 
damental virtue, it 
scores two points at 
once — fashion and 
beauty. There are 
those who have a 
positive infatuation 
for novelty, but 
happily that type of 
mind generally is 
found among de¬ 
votees of the styles 
of dress rather than 
interior decoration. 
With every innova¬ 
tion as to house 
decoration there are those who cavil and those who 
answer, “Why not, pray?” The answer should be 
the raison d’etre of the novelty. 
A most plausible innovation is the use of fur on 
fabrics. Applied as a guimpe on lampshades it has 
a distinctly decorative quality, and gives to the shade 
a soft, enriching finish. The material of the shade 
must be correspondingly rich to avoid its looking 
tawdry. Inch wide strips are sewed on at tire top and 
bottom much in the same manner as a guimpe is 
applied. A thin strip of gilt galoon may be 
laid through the middle of the fur to enrich 
the appearance of the latter. 
The most effective combination is a shade 
made of deep gold silk and over this gold lace 
edged with fur. Medallions of fur may be 
placed at intervals so as to catch up the lace. 
In an Italian or English room of rich fabrics 
and coloring such a shade would find its 
metier. For a dainty boudoir a pink silk shade 
of delicate tone might be edged with white 
swan’s down. 
Fur bordered cushions give the same genial 
effect as a Maltese cat curled up on a couch. 
They are the same acme of luxury, but are 
practical as well. A brocade cushion in deep 
mauve striped with yellows and greens, edged 
with a black fur and finished with handsome 
tassels is at once harmonious and mellow in 
color. For a debutante’s boudoir what could 
be more alluring than a cushion of rose striped 
taffeta edged with white fur and with tassels of 
a deeper rose. As the proverbial old maid loves 
her cat, so might she love a deep blue velour 
cushion finished with a dark toned fur on her 
comfortable lounge chair by the fire. Now that 
fur has come in as a decoration on accessories, 
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Questions on House Furnishing and Decora¬ 
tion will be answered promptly and without 
charge by this department. Readers desiring 
color schemes will kindly state exposure of the 
room. Fabrics and articles shown here can be 
purchased through House & Garden. Send 
a self-addressed stamped envelope. 
Fur on lampshades is perfectly plaus¬ 
ible, in fact, it is the last word in 
luxurious accessories. Gold lace 
adds greater distinction. $45 
grey 
striped paper 
with yellow rose and 
blue flowers suggests 
black furniture with rose 
decorations. $2.50 
Cushions also are adaptable to fur trimming. This 
edged with dark fur, gives the same genial effect 
Maltese cat curled up on a couch. $24 
it may as well be 
used as an edging 
on curtains. A silk 
combining tones of 
deep blue and pur¬ 
ple and edged with 
a two-inch band of 
dark brown fur at 
the bottom would 
make a striking 
window hanging. A 
black pliable satin 
hanging edged with 
red fox — almost 
orange in hue— Th 
would please beyond 
measure those of us 
who desire varied 
effects and like, 
above all else, to fall 
in with the fashion. 
Or, to reverse the effect, orange curtains of Shiki silk 
edged with black fur might please the same lady who 
craves novelty. 
***** * 
Modern wall papers seem rather to be planned for 
the restaurant, the breakfast room, the club or billiard 
room, in fact, for any room except those in which we 
most live. They are more or less a reaction against 
the neutral backgrounds that everyone has had for the 
past decade. Neutral colors set off your pictures, 
etchings and prints, but nowadays pictures are 
tabooed to a large extent. They are being re¬ 
placed by decorative mirrors. Thus, what 
would look better than a Chinese black lac¬ 
quered mirror on black paper covered with 
brilliant birds and more brilliant foliage and 
flowers. There one has the exact compliment 
of the neutral background; decorative, but 
decorative with such perfect balance of rhythm, 
of line and color as to form a harmonious and 
gorgeous wall surface. Used in a hallway with 
Chippendale furnishings and mulberry hang¬ 
ings the effect would be graceful and elegant. 
The grey striped paper with baskets filled 
with rose, yellow and blue flowers immediately 
suggests black furniture decorated in rose. The 
prevailing taste this season seems to be for 
painted furniture and our papers have been 
designed and colored to act as a foil to the 
furniture. And it is surprising what a vast 
accumulation is to be found in these modern 
papers from which the decorator may work— 
color combinations never dreamed of before. 
We find in the papers the background color, 
one, and applied on to it, the various colored fruits, 
as a flowers and birds that we may use as motifs 
on our furniture. 
This wall paper of black and white 
Chinese design is suitable for 
hallways. It needs no further 
decoration. $4.00 a roll 
Stripes 'are more than ever in 
vogue, but they must be used 
judiciously, as this in blue, yel¬ 
low, black and white. 50 cents 
Pick out from the stripes—which 
here have blue and yellow pre¬ 
dominating-a tone to decorate 
the furniture with. 50 cents 
For a . bedr-gap* ii*viih* while . V£opd- 
w@rk • P'ptfti't'g**c6uld be.*£r$sh^r 
and more restful than this black 
and white paper. $1.25 a roll 
