The Editor will gladly answe'r queries pertaining to individual problems of interior decoration and furnishing. When an immediate reply is desired, 
please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope. 
White Wall Papers 
HE papers for 1911 evidence the 
fact that light tones are to be widely 
used during the coming season. White 
papers have been sold in limited quantities 
for the last few years and have been gain¬ 
ing steadily in popularity. Londoners 
were the first to appreciate the advantages 
of white paper as a wall covering. Their 
rooms were so darkened by the prevailing 
fogs that it was found necessary to use 
the lightest possible paper. Formerly it 
was thought that white papers were too 
perishable for ordinary rooms, but expe¬ 
rience has taught that certain white pa¬ 
pers with a smooth finish will keep clean 
for a surprisingly long time. 
Creamy white tones should be used, 
as these are warmer in effect than blue 
white. Some of the papers on the market 
have pretty satin stripes and simple geo¬ 
metrical figures. In some homes white 
papers are used -throughout the first floor 
rooms, but each room is treated with a 
different color scheme. Some of the 
London interiors have color schemes car¬ 
ried out in unusual shades of purple, pink 
and Alice blue. The tendency towards 
light papers is to be commended, but it 
will be found that white papers have more 
character and give a better effect than 
many of the pale shades, which sometimes 
appear weak and insipid. 
Since light papers tend to make a room 
larger they have been found particularly 
well suited to small apartments. Dark 
papers which absorb the light destroy the 
sense of atmosphere and accent the feel¬ 
ing of shut-in-ness. 
For houses where there is much “wear 
and tear,” and where a white paper is de¬ 
sired, the extra cost of a washable paper 
is often justified. 
Newel-Post Tops of Cut Glass 
HE beautiful cut glass balls which 
are used in place of the knob on 
the newel-post of mahogany stairs, scin¬ 
tillate with rainbow colors, and add a 
touch of brightness to the hall or living- 
room. Some of these balls are elabor¬ 
ately cut; others, with plain facets, are 
just as expensive and have an air of sim¬ 
ple grandeur. In a Colonial room, where 
the doors are of mahogany with cut glass 
knobs, the hall newel-post would be most 
appropriately topped with a large ball of 
the same cut as the knobs. There are 
two stock shapes — but the balls can be 
cut to any pattern you desire, as can the 
door-knobs. A very beautiful design in 
pineapple shape is shown in domestic cut 
glass; the imported balls are usually 
round. 
Few things add so much to the livableness 
of a room as a good drop light. This desk 
lamp with pale green porcelain shade 
costs $6 
A cut glass ball on top of a mahogany newel- 
post is particularly effective in a house 
where mahogany doors and glass knobs 
are used 
The solid ball is replaced often by the 
more useful but less durable hollow cut 
glass globe for electric light. These 
globes are mounted on a low base of any 
metal desired, bronze being the favorite. 
The solid balls cost about the same as the 
heavy globes — from eight dollars up. 
A Permanent Vacuum Cleaner 
P ERHAPS the main reason why the 
average household is yet to be sup¬ 
plied with that most useful modern ap¬ 
pliances — the vacuum cleaner — is the im¬ 
agined complexity of the equipment. The 
cleaning of one’s home without the usual 
raising- of dust, the discomfort of dust¬ 
laden air, and the spread of disease 
germs, appeals to every housekeeper. 
The installation of the plant, however, 
has been the bugbear, as special meters 
and circuits have been required for elec¬ 
tric attachment, and electric lighting com¬ 
panies have refused to allow the old-style 
vacuum cleaner motors to connect with 
ordinary lighting circuits. Now, the va¬ 
cuum cleaner has reached that state of 
perfection which enables a plant of one- 
fourth horsepower to operate satisfactor¬ 
ily in a large residence or a small build¬ 
ing, with the entire approval of electric 
lighting companies; the rqotor being con¬ 
nected with the regular lighting wires and 
meters by any electrician. When once 
installed, the operation is simple child's 
play—no more dangerous nor complex 
than turning on the electric light. 
Another objection at first made to the 
installation of vacuum cleaner motors 
has also been overcome in the approval 
given by the insurance companies to the 
newest type of quarter-horsepower motor. 
The present process of installation is 
simple. The small motor is placed in the 
basement or cellar and requires no special 
attention except oiling twice a year. 
There are no belts, chains or gears to get 
out of order. The dust is sucked through 
a central pipe into a large dust-bag con¬ 
cealed in the motor, which need be emp¬ 
tied only once in two weeks. It is ad¬ 
visable to use black iron pipe, which al¬ 
lows of no accumulation of dirt — a 114- 
in. pipe from basement to second floor, 
and a i-in. pipe above the second floor. 
( 366 ) 
