DE GRAAF & TAYLOR, 
 
 47 & 49 West 14th Street, 
 
 RUNNING THROUGH TO 48 WEST ISth STREET. 
 
 THE LARGEST 
 
 FURNITURE AND BEDDING 
 
 Establishment in the City. 
 
 ESTABLISHED 1850! 
 
 Always on exhibition , the largest and most complete slock of Good 
 Furniture , at reasonable cash prices , in the latest designs 
 and variety of woods. 
 
 OUR CENTENNIAL PARLOR BED HAS NO EQUAL 
 
 For the combined uses for which it is intended. 
 
 DE GRAAF & TAYLOR, 
 
 47 & 49 West 14th St, bet. 5th & 6th Ayes, N. Y. 
 
 _ 
 
AD VER TISEMEN T8. 
 
 Mitchell, Vance & Co. 
 
 836 & 838 BROADWAY, 
 
 And 1 3th Street, 
 
 NEW YORK, 
 
 Offer an Uneqnaled Assortment of 
 
 GAS FIXTURES, 
 
 IN CRYSTAL, GILT, BRONZE, AND DECORATIVE 
 PORCELAIN. 
 
 H - - ■ . * y , : 
 
 Fine Bronze and Marble Clocks. 
 
 MODERATOR AND OTHER LAMPS, 
 
 In Bronze, Gilt, Porcelain, Cloisonne, etc. 
 
 Elegant in Styles and in Greatest Variety. 
 
 A Cordial Invitation to all to examine our Stoclc. 
 
A D VER TISEMENTS. 
 
 CHAS. E. BENTLEY, 
 
 (SUCCESSOR TO BENTLEY BROS.) 
 
 Manufacturer of 
 
 DECORATIVE ART - NEEDLEWORK 
 
 In Crewel, Silk, and Floss. 
 
 NOVELTIES IN EMBROIDERIES, 
 
 With Work Commenced and Materials to Finish. 
 
 Perforating Machines, Stamping Patterns, etc., etc. 
 
 Wholesale, 39 8f Jfl EAST 13th ST., 
 
 Retail, 8 5If BROADWAY. 
 
 FULL LINE OF MATERIALS USED IN FANCY-WORK. 
 
 ALL THE NEWEST STITCHES TAUGHT IN PRIVATE LESSONS BY THOR¬ 
 OUGH EXPERTS. 
 
 STAMPING AND DESIGNING TO ORDER. 
 
 Send 3 cents for Catalogue. 
 
 Gatherings from an Artist’s Portfolio. 
 
 By JAMES E. FREEMAN. 
 
 One volume, 16mo. - - - - - Cloth $1.25. 
 
 “ The gifted American artist, Mr. James E. Freeman, who has for many 
 years been a resident of Lome, has brought together in this tasteful little 
 volume a number of sketches of the noted men of letters, painters, sculptors, 
 models, and other interesting personages whom he has had an opportunity to 
 study during the practice of his profession abroad. Anecdotes and remi¬ 
 niscences of Thackeray, Hans Christian Andersen, John Gibson, Vernet, 
 Delaroche, Ivanoif, Gordon, the Princess Borghese, Crawford, Thorwaldsen, 
 and a crowd of equally famous characters, are mingled with romantic and 
 amusing passages from the history of representatives of the upper classes of 
 Italian society, or of the humble ranks from which artists secure the models 
 for their statues and pictures .”—New York Tribune. 
 
 “ ‘An Artist’s Portfolio’ is a charming hook. The writer has gathered 
 incidents and reminiscences of some of the master writers, painters, and 
 sculptors, and woven them into a golden.thread of story upon which to string 
 beautiful descriptions and delightful conversations. He talks about Leslie, 
 John Gibsoiij Thackeray, and that inimitable writer, Father Prout (Mabonyj, 
 in an irresistible manner .”—New York Independent. 
 
 New York: D. APPLETON & CO., 1, 3, & 5 Bond Street. 
 
^pplctmrs’ Jpotw Daohs 
 
 HOME DECORATION 
 
 ART NEEDLEWORK AND EMBROIDERY; PAINTING ON SILK, SATIN, 
 AND VELVET; PANEL-PAINTING; AND WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 BY 
 
 JANET E. RUUTZ-KEE3. 
 
 AUTHOR OF ‘“HORACE VERNET,” ETC. 
 
 WITH NUMEROUS DESIGNS, MAINLY BY GEORGE GIBSON. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, 
 
 1, 3, and 5 BOND STEEET. 
 
 1881 . 
 
COPYRIGHT BY 
 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, 
 
 1881. 
 
 THE GETTY CENTER 
 LIBRARY 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 I.—Introductory . 
 
 II. —General Remarks . 
 
 III. —Materials and Prices 
 
 IV. —Stitches and Methods 
 
 V.—Window-Hangings and Portieres 
 
 VI. —Screens .... 
 
 VII. —Lambrequins and Small Panels 
 
 VIII. —Incidental Decorations . 
 
 IX. —Wood-carving . 
 
 PAGE 
 
 5 
 
 7 
 
 20 
 
 25 
 
 42 
 
 63 
 
 87 
 
 98 
 
 114 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2018 with funding from 
 Getty Research Institute 
 
 https://archive.org/details/homedecorationarOOruut_O 
 
HOME DECORATION. 
 
 i. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 The spirit of beauty is abroad, and tbe desire to in¬ 
 crease the attractions of every-day homes grows greater 
 from year to year. People have awakened to a percep¬ 
 tion that taste in ornament and skill in decoration are 
 not so much gifts as faculties which can be cultivated, 
 and which, once awakened, rarely sleep again. 
 
 The impetus given to decorative art within the last 
 fifty years has outlived many extravagances and absurdi¬ 
 ties, and the time has come when the highest principles 
 of ornament are applied to every-day use. Houses are 
 very often intractable things to deal with, badly built or 
 ill-arranged, with little of architectural merit, either in 
 design or execution, and yet the love of beauty, the striv¬ 
 ing to make the best of what is unavoidable, will convert 
 a desert-like structure of mere brick and mortar into a 
 bower of elegance and prettiness, and this, too, without 
 any great outreaching or expense. 
 
 The beauty of home decoration lies not so much in 
 the richness and variety of the materials pressed into the 
 
G 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 service as upon two tilings which are too often disre¬ 
 garded—simplicity and harmony—to which we may add 
 that desire to express an idea or that imagination which 
 at once converts the lowest effort into the highest by 
 making it individual. 
 
 Much can he done for home decoration hy the use of 
 simple means, and in this manual we shall restrict our¬ 
 selves to work which can he undertaken in the home for 
 the home, leaving on one side that which requires elabo¬ 
 rate study or special preparation, as, for example, china 
 painting, enamel, and faience work—in short, all ceram¬ 
 ics—and devote our attention to the great variety of 
 ornamental work that can he achieved, hy the needle in 
 embroideries, hy the brush in paintings on silk, velvet, 
 or wood, hy the saw in delicate wood-work, or hy the 
 ornamental use of leather. Even with such restrictions 
 the field is a wide one, so various are the materials that 
 can he used, the stitches that can he learned, the designs 
 that can be elaborated. 
 
 First of all, we may lay it down as a principle that 
 the useful should underlie the ornamental. A beautiful 
 thing, which has grown out of a definite need, is more 
 beautiful than that which has only its beauty to recom¬ 
 mend it; so, in home decoration, that which first strikes 
 the mind is the appropriateness or fitness of an ornament 
 to the needs of the home, and we at once perceive that 
 what we may call the main features are more important 
 than the hundred and one knickknacks and fancy adorn¬ 
 ments, without which, however, the beauty of the home 
 would he incomplete, and which can be multiplied indefi¬ 
 nitely. 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
 
 j Embroidery. Designing. —The easist and most pop¬ 
 ular form of home decoration is that which can he ac¬ 
 complished by the needle. And as long as the question 
 to be considered is one of material and color only, a sense 
 of harmony and taste for simplicity will be infallible 
 guides, but in the matter of design some knowledge of 
 art-principles is necessary; at the least it is desirable to 
 understand the meaning of terms constantly met with in 
 suggestions for decorative needle-work. 
 
 We will suppose a case in which the needle is to be 
 the prime agent in adorning the home. The question of 
 embroidery is taken up enthusiastically, and the novice 
 in such matters hears a great deal about art needle-work , 
 conventional and natural designs, and becomes fairly 
 puzzled as to the real meaning of the directions that are 
 given. What is meant by art needle-work f and what is 
 the difference between a conventional design and any 
 other ? Decorative needle-work is, in fact, only a revival 
 of the ancient art of embroidery, and is founded upon 
 the study of ancient models ; and the word conventional , 
 in connection with designs for execution by the needle, 
 signifies the method of altering natural forms in such a 
 way as to render them suitable to the material upon 
 
8 
 
 HOME DECORATION'. 
 
 which they are to be worked, and to the purposes for 
 which they are intended. 
 
 Some little knowledge of the principles of elementary 
 drawing and a sufficient idea of geometrical proportion 
 are alone needed to enable the simplest beginner to de¬ 
 sign conventionally, for the use of the needle necessarily 
 limits the subjects that can be treated. It has been 
 proved by experience that flowers, foliage, or fruit can 
 not be represented in embroidering exactly as they are in 
 nature. As in sculpture the artist does not attempt to 
 reproduce as minutely as the painter, so in needle-work 
 the designer must be content to attempt such reproduc¬ 
 tion as is possible for the process and material which are 
 to be employed. It is just this recognition of limitation 
 which is meant by the term conventional. In early days, 
 for example, in architecture, the flrst expression was mere 
 outline-form, giving the geometrical proportions of the 
 subject represented; then, as the art progressed, such 
 adaptations were so varied and intermingled that only a 
 careful student can trace the graceful curves and twists 
 back to the first rigid geometrical outline. So, in con¬ 
 ventional needle-work designs, some object from nature 
 is selected, usually a flower or leaf, and its geometrical 
 outline considered apart from everything else. Taken as 
 the basis of the pattern, this outline, arranged in different 
 forms, produces a design in which it requires some knowl¬ 
 edge of the principle to trace the original. 
 
 The conventionalizing of a flow T er or leaf, then, simply 
 means the use of its form in an arbitrary fashion, and, 
 as such an arrangement, to have any value as a work of 
 art, must be original, it is impossible to give more than 
 general rules for conventional adaptation. The first 
 point the student of design would be called upon to de- 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
 
 9 
 
 cide would be the leading lines or stems which are to 
 form the basis of the contemplated pattern. These once 
 selected from the geometrical outline of a leaf, for ex¬ 
 ample, could be variously treated ; they might be branched 
 
 out in a form of angular severity as shown in Fig. 1, or 
 in a more flowing style as represented in Fig. 2, their 
 geometrical symmetry being carefully preserved. 
 
 It will be at once clear that such adaptations would 
 admit of infinite variety according to the character and 
 arrangement of the foliage with which the design is 
 supplemented, the branching alone being in absolute ac¬ 
 cordance with the order of nature, and flowing always 
 in one direction, while the design which radiates from it, 
 or clothes it, may be varied in accordance with individ¬ 
 ual taste and judgment. Thus, in the example of the 
 natural violets, as shown in Fig. 3, we have in Fig. 4 a 
 conventional adaptation of the same flower for treatment 
 by the needle, in which the geometrical proportions of 
 the leaves are taken to form the branching lines or 
 
10 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 stems, while the design with which these are clothed, 
 or supplemented, is only remotely derived from the nat¬ 
 ural leaf, and is entirely original in conception and treat¬ 
 ment. 
 
 The geometrical rules applied to such objects as may 
 be chosen necessarily include proportion, symmetry, and 
 the proper relation of one part of the figure to another; 
 but, these principles once thoroughly learned, a little 
 
 Fig. 3.—Violets—Natural Forms. 
 
 practice will enable the student of art needle-work not 
 only to design, but to recognize what are really true de¬ 
 signs, correctly conventionalized, and what are simply 
 natural objects, naturally copied. Roughly speaking, 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
 
 11 
 
 there are two methods of treating natural forms by the 
 needle. The most suitable, for less proficient workers, 
 may be termed the natural treatment, where convention¬ 
 alism is limited to the degree that is absolutely necessary 
 
 Fio. 4.—Conventional Forms derived from the Violet. 
 
 on account of the material used and the shape and size 
 of the article to be worked, and the more severely con¬ 
 ventionalized treatment in which natural forms are made 
 the basis of a less formal design which is carried out in 
 2 
 
12 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 various directions. By this latter method very beautiful 
 patterns can be made, but it necessarily requires both 
 knowledge and experience. 
 
 The object of this little book is not, however, to teach 
 the art of designing, and we must be content to give 
 sueb directions as to suitable designs and coloring, ap¬ 
 propriate materials and styles, etc., as may serve as guides 
 in the difficult matter of selection. Taking it, then, as 
 established that flowers and foliage are the most desirable 
 objects for reproduction by embroidery, we may go on 
 to say that the simplest flowers are the best, because they 
 can be most fully expressed in a few lines in outline, 
 and require the fewest shades of color. Double flowers 
 are alike unsuitable and difficult. Wild roses, daisies, 
 lilies, pansies, sunflowers, and daffodils are all easily out¬ 
 lined, having strong forms and decided proportions, -and 
 are admirably adapted for the purpose. 
 
 Attention to detail is essential: before commencing a 
 pattern, the worker should note the shape and size of the 
 leaves, the notches of the edges, the chief characteristics 
 of the design, and, above all, the junction of leaves and 
 flow r ers with the stalks. The truth and life of the repre¬ 
 sentation depend largely upon such trifling details, and 
 especially in outline work they are most important. 
 
 Many beautiful combinations are made with berries 
 and their leaves, and a very little practice in simple 
 flower-forms will soon suggest a variety; in u filled-m” 
 embroidery—that is, in work in which the flowers and 
 leaves are not only outlined, but fully worked—the va¬ 
 cant spaces should be left larger, as the material becomes 
 a little contracted in the working. Designs for outline 
 work may be more closely drawn, but, whether intended 
 for the one or the other, they must be very exactly and 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
 
 13 
 
 carefully reproduced, for everything depends upon the 
 grace and truth of the form. 
 
 For border designs, if they are intended for an hori¬ 
 zontal position, upright sprigs or flowers are the best, and 
 such patterns require a line below and above to keep 
 them together; otherwise they will look disjointed, and 
 each sprig will appear too independent of the rest. The 
 flowers need not spring directly from the line, but the 
 effect will be as controlling as if they really touched it. 
 If the pattern is large, several lines are an improvement, 
 as they give more weight to the lower part. Scroll bor¬ 
 ders also require a line on each side. Sometimes an 
 equally good result is obtained by the scroll being worked 
 on separate strips of material and laid on, by which means 
 the same idea of inclosure is conveyed. Inaccuracies should 
 be carefully avoided; although nature can not be exactly 
 copied in needle-work, still it need never be outraged. 
 For example: a strawberry-leaf in combination with a 
 carnation-bud is absurd—a convolvulus with a thorny 
 brier; or, as in a pattern submitted to us the other day, 
 a pineapple surrounded by primroses and violets, or any 
 other effect which is alien to reality should be avoided. 
 It is often necessary to enlarge flowers, but in this there 
 is no sin against truth, for they may be enlarged in proper 
 proportions, and all those in a group should be made of 
 corresponding size. As we have shown, to convention¬ 
 alize does not mean to depart from nature, but to adapt 
 from nature, and good conventional work is always true 
 in principle. Although flowers, foliage, and berries are 
 undoubtedly the easiest subjects for embroidery, many 
 natural objects can be associated with them; birds and 
 butterflies are very appropriate, especially the latter, as 
 they can be made to harmonize with almost any flowers; 
 
14 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 but the mixture of birds and flowers of different climates 
 should be avoided. 
 
 Next in importance to the design comes the question 
 of color. 
 
 Colors in Embroidery .—As a conventionalized form 
 is a necessity in copying from nature, so, too, is a con¬ 
 ventionalized coloring, because it is impossible in many 
 cases to give the natural coloring of a flower or leaf ; even 
 when we are able to reach the general tone, the subtile 
 gradations are beyond us. Then, too, we have to con¬ 
 sider the surroundings; our worked flowers must be 
 adapted to the indoor atmosphere, for they will not have 
 the clear air, the sunlight, and their natural texture to 
 make them delightful. Pure color transferred to needle¬ 
 work would be glaring and offensive—in addition to 
 winch we must remember that nature has no raw col¬ 
 or, and her beauties are entirely dependent upon subtile 
 mixtures which it is quite impossible to attain in the 
 finest shades of silk or wool. Therefore, it is best to be 
 content with suggestions only from nature, and avoiding 
 too close a copy to chose our colors with regard to their 
 general harmony. Harmony and simplicity being the 
 first principles of decorative design, the treatment of the 
 subject being conventional, the coloring should be so too. 
 
 The ground-color must regulate the general tone, and 
 this must often depend upon the purpose for which the 
 work is intended; for example: in curtains everything 
 should bear relation to the dominant tone of the room. 
 The prevailing color having once been determined, the 
 details should be rather in harmony than in contrast 
 with it. 
 
 Variations in different tones of one color will be more 
 satisfactory, as a rule, than striking contrasts, and for this 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
 
 15 
 
 reason the graduated shades which are to be obtained in 
 well-assorted crewels and silks will be found a great as¬ 
 sistance in carrying out an harmonious design. Laying 
 it down as indispensable that the prevailing ground-tone 
 should regulate the colors of the entire work, it may be 
 added that it is always best to avoid strong patches of 
 vivid coloring. Crimsons, bright reds, yellows, blues, 
 and vivid greens should be used sparingly, and only in 
 such combinations as shall insure pleasant and not painful 
 contrast. 
 
 But coloring is altogether so much a matter of indi¬ 
 vidual taste and judgment that it is scarcely possible to 
 lay down any fixed rule that shall meet all contingencies; 
 at the same time a few suggestions for pleasant contrasts, 
 gathered from the work of a scientific authority upon com¬ 
 binations of color, may be of great value to the uniniti¬ 
 ated.* The contrasts which we find in nature very often 
 cease to be happy when conveyed to canvas in painting, 
 and still often er so when attempted in colored materials, 
 such as silks or wools. Green and blue, for example, 
 which are charming when represented by the sky peep¬ 
 ing through bright foliage, are by no means so delightful 
 in decorative work, for the reason that the subtile grada¬ 
 tions of shades, which we do not take into account, but 
 which, nevertheless, exist in nature, are impossibilities in 
 needle-work; in fact, we can not realize in a landscape 
 what the color-combinations really are, so deceptive are 
 the lights and shadows that surround and soften them. 
 In contrasting wools or silks, then, vermilion and any 
 deep reds give a good combination in contrast with 
 blue. Yellows are best contrasted with violet or pur- 
 
 * “ Modern Chromatics.” By Ogden N. Rood. 
 
16 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 pie. Orange in combination with dark blue is not un¬ 
 pleasant, and it is also pleasant in association with green. 
 Vivid green with violet is good upon a strictly neutral 
 background, but it is better to employ the paler hues of 
 these colors. Green and red afford a good contrast, while 
 with either of them in combination with blue or yellow 
 very unsatisfactory results are obtained. If a further 
 combination is desired, the triads which have been most 
 extensively used together are: bright red, yellow, and 
 blue; purple-red, yellow, and dark blue; orange, green, 
 and violet, and orange, green, and purple. Many other 
 combinations could, of course, be suggested, but such 
 as have been mentioned may serve as guides to others. 
 White or gray, in combination with any of these colors, 
 could be introduced with the happiest results. But suc¬ 
 cess in the matter of color must be, in a great measure, 
 the result of education, taste, and practice. It is so ex¬ 
 tremely difficult to judge of the effect produced by any 
 combination, when the result attained is dependent upon 
 such unreliable things as colored silks and wools, that 
 wise judgment in decorative needle-work is of the great¬ 
 est value and importance. In doubtful cases it is best 
 to seek advice from those whose practical acquaintance 
 with the difficulties of embroidery has taught them more 
 than can be acquired from any treatise on the subject. 
 In this, as in almost all else, a grain of experience is 
 worth more than a bushel of the wisest directions. 
 
 Painting on Wood for Panels .—Old and well-sea¬ 
 soned wood is the best for panel-painting. The natural 
 color of the wood is most effective as a background. 
 Taste and judgment are required to make such painting 
 satisfactory; and it should not be forgotten that panels 
 being at best merely decorative, to be appropriate must 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
 
 17 
 
 be subordinate to the purposes of the room. Glaring, 
 highly-colored panels are most offensive. 
 
 The implements necessary in panel-painting are, or¬ 
 dinary red sable brushes, a coarser quality for painting 
 the backgrounds, and the usual oil-colors in tubes. To all 
 novices in the art the same caution can not be too often 
 repeated. Relinquish ambitious attempts at etfect; re¬ 
 member that your painting is to play a subordinate part 
 in the decoration of the room, wherever it may be placed, 
 whether upon the door itself, upon a side-panel, or as an 
 ornament upon the mantel, or wall. Harmony, and not 
 striking brilliancy of color, should be your object, and 
 such subjects as will blend well with ordinary decoration 
 should be chosen for treatment. 
 
 Tor backgrounds, softly-toned blues, grays, or greens 
 are best, w r ith fleecy-white, touched into warmth by 
 deeper colors. 
 
 Painting on Wood in Water-colors .—The most suit¬ 
 able wood for such a purpose for amateurs is the white 
 chestnut in the natural color, and the design should be 
 first outlined in pencil. This done, the surface should be 
 thoroughly cleaned, and the colors mixed with Chinese 
 white, which renders them opaque. The darker shades 
 should be painted on first, and from them the ascent made 
 to the highest lights. A very fine luster can be given to 
 the panel if a coat of patent white glaze is applied to the 
 entire surface, the operation to be repeated as soon as the 
 first coating is dry, and completed by the application of 
 white spirit varnish with a soft, yielding brush. When 
 this, in its turn, is thoroughly dry, another coating should 
 be worked from side to side, until the requisite polish is 
 attained. 
 
 Yeneered tables can be elegantly decorated either in 
 
18 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 water- or oil-colors, tlie surface being ebonized as soon as 
 tlie colors are dry. 
 
 Painting on Silk, Satin, and Velvet .—When oil- 
 paint is to be used, it is a wise plan to begin by squeezing 
 the tube colors on blotting-paper, that it may absorb the 
 oil, as there is always a risk of staining the material. 
 The highest general color to be used should be chosen 
 first, then one rapid sweep of the brush should give as 
 much effect as can be conveyed; the brush should be 
 carried right across the material with, and not against, 
 the grain. The deepest shadows should be the last put 
 on. Blending colors upon silk or satin is so difficult that 
 it is best done upon the palette. By using a very stiff 
 brush it is possible to produce beautiful results upon 
 plush, but the color must sink well in, and it is rather a 
 difficult operation. Feathers are often very beautifully 
 painted, especially on fans. 
 
 Sateen is one of the best materials for painting in 
 water-colors, as it is soft and takes the color so readily 
 that elaborate designs are possible in its decoration. 
 
 Linens, too, take color well, and pretty designs in 
 panels are excellent for bedroom and nursery screens. In 
 painting on silk, satin, or velvet, the best materials 
 should always be selected. The surface to be decorated 
 should be stretched tightly upon a flat board, and the 
 design outlined in pencil; or, better still, transferred by 
 means of red or blue paper. The greatest difficulty in 
 water-color painting is the risk of the color spreading, 
 but this is in a measure obviated by mixing Chinese 
 white with the colors. In figure-painting it is well to 
 begin with the heads ; in landscape, with the sky. 
 
 Painting on canvas, to imitate tapestry, is coming 
 into fashion. Landscapes and bold designs are the best 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
 
 19 
 
 for this purpose, such work being executed upon pliable 
 ribbed canvas, which has undergone especial preparation, 
 and the colors are regularly rubbed into the background. 
 It is difficult to produce delicate effects, as it is almost 
 impossible to give minute touches. The colors used in 
 this work are in reality liquid dyes. 
 
III. 
 
 MATERIALS AND PRICES. 
 
 Great liberty of choice is possible in regard to the 
 materials used as foundation for embroideries, some kinds 
 being more especially appropriate to one purpose, some 
 to another, and much must depend not only upon the 
 destination of the work, but upon the choice of silks or 
 worsteds in the working. 
 
 While it is a mistake to select inferior stuffs for deco¬ 
 ration, it is an equal error to use inferior silks or crewels 
 upon handsome materials. Fine linen calls for fine 
 crewels or silks. Satin and velvet look incongruous if 
 worked in coarse worsted or crewels; for these the finest 
 silks and filoselles should be selected. It is bad economy 
 to buy inferior qualities of such materials; the best, and 
 only the best, are suitable for all the time and trouble be¬ 
 stowed upon an elaborate design. Good, firm, well-woven 
 textures, free from all irregularity, are the only suitable 
 materials for decorative needle-work. They need not 
 necessarily be expensive; it is only needful that they 
 should be the best of their kind, and that they should be 
 treated suitably, and used for purposes not out of keep¬ 
 ing with their qualities. 
 
 Satins and silks can only be properly embroidered in 
 a frame. Furniture satin with a cotton back maybe used 
 without lining, but ordinary dress-satin requires a thin 
 
MATERIALS AND PRICES. 
 
 21 
 
 cotton backing or it will pucker under the strain of 
 working. White satin embroidered in colored silks is 
 very beautiful. 
 
 As it is always worth while for good embroidery to be 
 upon durable material, linens are better than cottons, and 
 mixed stuffs are not desirable. Thick diagonal cloth or 
 serge of the best quality is very suitable either for silk or 
 for crewel work, and is, in addition, easily worked, which 
 becomes a great consideration when the undertaking is a 
 large one, as, for example, a pair of curtains. USTo highly- 
 finished or glazed surface should be selected for decora¬ 
 tion by the needle, as the stitches do not sink well into 
 the material, and the glaze is very apt to fray out. Satin 
 forms the only exception to this rule. 
 
 There are many varieties of unglazed, half-bleached 
 linens which are extremely suitable for decorative needle¬ 
 work, of which we may mention : 
 
 Flax cloth , the unbleached brown linen often used for 
 chair-covers. 
 
 Twill, a thick linen, suitable for furniture coverings. 
 
 Sail-cloth , of yellow color, admirable for screen-pan¬ 
 els. 
 
 Oat-cake and oatmeal linens , which are materials that 
 wash well. 
 
 Smock linen , which is fashionable for tennis aprons. 
 
 Crash is very much used. It is, in reality, a home¬ 
 spun, Russian linen, although other materials are constantly 
 sold under this name. The true crash is only eighteen 
 inches in width, is very coarse, and is spun by Russian 
 peasants, in lengths varying from five to ten yards. Many 
 good imitations are to be met with. 
 
 Bolton , or workhouse sheeting , is a beautiful material, 
 very much used in embroidery ; it is seventy-two inches 
 
22 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 wide, and is of soft, creamy color; it is much improved 
 by washing. 
 
 Silk sheeting , satin cle Chine , tussore , and corah silks , 
 and “fabrics known as plain tapestry , are all especially 
 suitable for the varieties of what is known as cushion- 
 stitch. 
 
 Felt, which is difficult to work, velveteen , and velvet 
 cloth, make excellent grounds for panels, portieres , bor¬ 
 ders, etc. 
 
 Diagonal cloth, serge, super-serge , and Canton flannel, 
 the latter known in the stores as “fashion drapery,” as 
 well as Genoa or Lyons velvet , all form good foundations 
 for needle-work, while the latest, most fashionable, and 
 most expensive material is plush, which can be obtained 
 in every variety of color. 
 
 Gold and silver cloths are, of course, not in ordinary 
 use, but can be obtained at high prices. A variety of 
 fabrics, in which silk predominates, but gold and silver 
 threads are interwoven, are obtainable, but are more used 
 for ecclesiastical or heraldic purposes than for home deco¬ 
 ration. 
 
 For crewel work, linen should be just coarse enough 
 to allow the worsted to pass through easily. 
 
 Crewels for working should be cut into short threads, 
 never more than half the skein in length. Long needle- 
 fuls pull the material out of shape, and are, besides, very 
 wasteful. Occasionally it is necessary to use crewel 
 double, in which case it should never be passed through 
 the needle and knotted at the two ends, but two separate 
 threads of the right length should be passed through the 
 needle together. 
 
 Crewels of the best quality only should be used. In 
 these the colors are fast, and will bear cleaning or washing. 
 
MATERIALS AND PRICES. 
 
 23 
 
 Crewels are more especially suitable for working upon all 
 kinds of linen, on plain, diagonal cloth, serge, and flan¬ 
 nel. They are very effective in combination with filoselle 
 or embroidery silk, whether for working conventional 
 designs or where flowers are introduced into the design. 
 Leaves worked in crewel and the flowers in silk makes 
 a very effective combination. 
 
 Tapestry wool is double the thickness of crewel, and 
 is only useful for coarse work. 
 
 Arrasene is a sort of chenille, and is useful in pro¬ 
 ducing broad effects, being soft and rich in appearance. 
 
 Embroidery or bobbin silk is used for working upon 
 satin and silk, or upon any fine material; it is not unlike 
 old-fashioned floss silk, and, like it, is used in several 
 threads at once. 
 
 Purse silk is less soft, but is very useful in diapering, 
 or where raised effects are desirable. 
 
 Filoselle , when of good quality, is pure silk, but, being 
 manufactured of inferior silks, is cheaper than floss or 
 purse silk. 
 
 Gold and silver threads are little used, but can be ob¬ 
 tained, if desired, for raised gold or silver embroideries. 
 
 Bidlion is fashionable, but very difficult to use with 
 skill; it should be threaded on the needle, and fastened 
 down as in bead-work. It is occasionally used for the 
 backs and seats of chairs, upon deep-toned velvet, but 
 it is so easily tarnished as to be practically of little use. 
 
 The price of material does not vary greatly from time 
 to time. The subjoined prices are those asked, at the 
 time this is written, in the stores in New York: 
 
 Cotton momie-cloth , fifty inches wide, in all the fash¬ 
 ionable shades, one dollar and ten cents a yard. 
 
 Woolen momie-cloth , three dollars a yard. 
 
 3 
 
24 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Felting which is two yards in width costs one dollar 
 and a half a yard. 
 
 Satin known %s>furniture satin is of great width, and 
 costs from six dollars and a half a yard upward. 
 
 Sateen, fifty inches wide, is three dollars and a half a 
 yard. 
 
 Turkish satin, the same width, six dollars a yard. 
 
 Satin brocatelle, sixty-three inches wide, costs ten dol¬ 
 lars a yard and upward. 
 
 Flush is the most expensive material used in decora¬ 
 tive embroidery; the cheapest single-width is four dol¬ 
 lars and a half a yard. Woolen plush is half a dollar 
 cheaper. 
 
 Bolton sheeting is imported from England, and may 
 be had for one dollar a yard. 
 
 Turcoman cloth costs six dollars a yard—wide width. 
 
 Stamped velveteen is to be had from one dollar and 
 twenty-five cents a yard upward. 
 
 Plain velveteen is to be had from one dollar a yard 
 upward. 
 
 Canton flannel, which is very much used, and should 
 be asked for as “ fashion drapery,” can be bought in 
 every variety of shade for ninety cents a yard. It is 
 double width, and alike upon both sides. 
 
 Linens can, of course, be purchased at varying prices, 
 dependent upon quality. 
 
IV. 
 
 STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 A good authority has laid it down as a principle that 
 “ the simpler and fewer the stitches in embroidery the 
 better.” This is encouraging, and at the same time true, 
 as the difference in stitches is in reality only the modifica¬ 
 tion of a certain number, and their use in different com¬ 
 binations at different times. 
 
 - Stem-stitch (called by Miss Glaisher, in her work on 
 “ Art Embroidery,” Tent-stitch) is the first and most sim¬ 
 ple stitch taught to a beginner. It consists in a single 
 long stitch taken forward, and a shorter one backward, 
 followed by another forward stitch a little in advance of 
 the first; in outline work care must be taken to keep the 
 thread well to the left of the needle, and to bring it 
 through each time exactly in the line of the pattern ; 
 otherwise the result will be an uneven, wavy outline. 
 The quickest way is to work upward from the worker. 
 The stitches should all be equal, neither too loose nor too 
 tight, and each point should be kept clear and bright. 
 (See Fig. 5.) In working “ filled-in embroidery ” in stem- 
 stitch the outline should be the last thing attempted, as 
 by this method a more natural look is given to a leaf or 
 flower. The stitches are intended to express the form of 
 the leaf, and they should take the same direction as in 
 shading with pen or pencil. 
 
26 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 In the example given (Fig. 6) of a pansy, the stitches 
 must take the direction of the outline, from the center , 
 
 while in a simple leaf they should be at an angle from 
 the middle rib, as in nature (Fig. 7). This treatment 
 
 Fig. 6. 
 
 Fig. 7. 
 
STITGEES AND METHODS. 27 
 
 should be followed whenever possible, as it gives a life¬ 
 like appearance to the representation. 
 
 No exact rule can be laid down for the length of this 
 stitch; it must depend upon the size of the object repre¬ 
 sented, the material, the fineness or coarseness of the 
 work, etc. (For ordinary crewel-work perhaps a stem- 
 stitch might be from three eighths to half an inch long. 
 In silk-work it should be shorter.) 
 
 Cross-stitch is no longer used in modern work; it has 
 gone out of favor with the old-fashioned samplers that 
 
 exhausted the patience and occupied the time of a former 
 generation. 
 
 Split-stitch is worked in a similar way to stem-stitch, 
 only in bringing the needle up through the material it is 
 passed through the crewel or silk. This stitch is more 
 suitable for frame- than for hand-work. 
 
 Satin-stitch (Fig. 8) is greatly used in white embroid¬ 
 ery, and consists in taking the needle back each time 
 to almost the spot whence it started, so that the same 
 
28 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 result is reached upon both sides. It produces a perfectly 
 smooth surface when properly and neatly worked, and is 
 very useful for petals and raised designs in small masses. 
 
 Blanket-stitcli (Fig. 9) is used for edging. It is ex¬ 
 actly like ordinary button-hole stitch, and varies only by 
 being sloped in any required direction, or by working 
 two or three stitches and then leaving a space. 
 
 Fig. 9.—Blanket-Stitch. 
 
 Chain-stitch is used occasionally in filled-in embroid¬ 
 ery, but it has a mechanical effect, and has been so ex¬ 
 actly copied by machine-work that it is no longer sug¬ 
 gestive in needle-work. It consists simply in taking a 
 stitch from left to right, and, before drawing out the 
 needle, bringing the thread round to the worker under the 
 
STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 29 
 
 point of the needle. Where the outline is required to be 
 very marked, chain-stitch may be used to replace stem- 
 stitch. (Fig. 10.) 
 
 Hope-stitch is a sort of twisted chain-stitch, and is very 
 effective for coarse work. It is managed by taking the 
 second stitch from the center of the loop, and passing it 
 to half the distance behind it, and then pushing the loop 
 on one side to allow the needle to enter in a straight line 
 with the first stitch. (Fig. 11.) 
 
 Feather-stitch , sometimes called long-stitch , or simply 
 
 embroidery-stitch , has lately been rechristened as opus 
 plumarium , from its resemblance to birds’ plumage. It 
 is a very easy, light stitch, either as worked in the hand 
 or in a frame. The stitches in both instances are the 
 same; the method consists in working the stitches of 
 varying length into and between each other, adapting 
 them to the design; in frame-wrnrk passing the needle 
 backward and forward, while in the band it is kept up¬ 
 on the surface. This is a very useful stitch for embroid¬ 
 ering flowers, whether natural or conventional. (Fig. 
 
30 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 12.) In working the petal of a flower the outer part is 
 first worked with closer stitches, to form an even edge, 
 
 while toward the center broken or uneven stitches are 
 best; then follow more irregular stitches, which, start- 
 
 JFig. 12.—Feather-Stitch. 
 
STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 31 
 
 ing from the center, are carried in among those already 
 worked. When completed, the stitches should have been 
 so worked in and among each other as to blend in an har¬ 
 monious whole, separate stitches being indistinguishable ; 
 and, when shaded silks are nsed, the gradations ought to 
 be scarcely perceptible. In leaves with uneven edges 
 these stitches are admirable for following the broken out¬ 
 line, and giving the true appearance of a serrated leaf. 
 
 The proper way to start in all such work is by running 
 the thread a little in front of the embroidery, never in 
 any case by knotting the thread. Knots are wholly in¬ 
 admissible, as are also untidy ends; the back should be 
 as neat as the surface. 
 
 All other stitches used in embroideries are merely 
 modifications of those already named, and to enumerate 
 them would only confuse a worker. But we will men¬ 
 tion a useful device for the raised centers of flowers, as, 
 for instance, the daisy or sunflower, or the stamens of 
 others. It is called a French knot (Fig. 13), and is made 
 by bringing the thread through to the front.of the work 
 and holding it in the left hand four or five inches from 
 the work, the needle being in the right hand; the thread 
 in the left hand is twisted two or three times round the 
 needle as close to the work as possible; then the point is 
 turned down into the material nearly, but not exactly, 
 where the thread came up; the needle is then pulled 
 through to the other side, and the thread carefully drawn 
 till the knot is firm. The knot will hang loose and have 
 a bad effect unless the thread is drawn round the needle 
 close up to the work before the needle is pulled quite 
 through. 
 
 Holbein-stitch is a name given to stitches used in elab¬ 
 orating designs copied from the works of Hans Holbein, 
 
32 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 and in reality it owes its name to tlie painter whose pat¬ 
 terns are taken rather than to any peculiarity in the stitch 
 itself. German needle-women bring this class of work 
 to very great perfection, using it for the borderings of 
 
 towels, and sometimes of table-cloths, which are finished 
 off with elaborate fringes of the material raveled out, the 
 strands being then plaited and knotted in various pat¬ 
 terns. It is worked in colored silks if upon linens, while, 
 if upon canvas, embroidery cotton is used, generally red 
 or blue. 
 
 Stitches for Frame Embroidery. Couching or Laid 
 Embroidery .—In this work the threads are first laid 
 evenly and straight from side to side of the space to be 
 covered, the needle being passed through to the back 
 
STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 33 
 
 and brought up again, not quite close, but at a sufficient 
 distance to allow of an intermediate stitch being taken 
 backward, so that the threads are laid, alternately, first, 
 third, second, fourth, and so on, which has a better effect 
 than if they were laid on consecutively. If the lines 
 slant much it is not necessary to alternate the rows. 
 When a layer is complete, threads of different color or 
 material are laid across at regular intervals and fixed 
 down by stitches at the back. (Fig. 14.) The chief 
 beauty of such work lies in its regularity. This stitch is 
 admirable when broad effects are needed without shad¬ 
 ing, and it is extremely useful in restoring old embroid¬ 
 ery by grounding it anew instead of transferring it. 
 This is best effected by stretching the old embroidery 
 
 Fig. 14.—Plain Couching. 
 
 upon a new backing, carefully cutting away the frayed 
 material and couching the new ground. Various dia¬ 
 pered patterns can be made by this stitch by simply al¬ 
 ternating the crossings. Sometimes the threads are laid 
 
3i 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 on in twos or threes, and stitched across at regular inter¬ 
 vals (Fig. 15), giving an effect known as brick-worh. 
 
 Fig. 15.—Three Illustrations of Diaper-Couchings—Couching known as “Erick-work.” 
 
 Cushion-stitch is simply stem-stitch , and 'oy a second 
 stitch is converted into cross-stitch, as in hand embroidery. 
 
 Cushion-stitch is a 
 name also applied to the 
 many stitches used in 
 grounding, either by tak¬ 
 ing up single threads at 
 long, even intervals, or 
 (as in Fig. 16) in waved 
 lines or zig-zags. 
 
 Stem-stitch and split- 
 stitch are also used in 
 frame-work. 
 
 Japanese-stitch (Fig. 
 17) is worked in the same way as stem-stitch, but is a 
 modification of it, and consists in various very long 
 
STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 35 
 
 stretches, which have the effect of parallel lines; it is 
 useful in representing water or ground. 
 
 Among the stitches no longer in common use are tam- 
 
 Fio 17. 
 
 hour-stitch, and what is known as opus anglicum, although 
 the latter is still used in ecclesiastical needle-work. 
 
 Applique, or cut-work, must be divided into work 
 mlaid and onlaid. 
 
 Inlaid applique consists in tracing the same pattern 
 on two materials, then cutting both out carefully and in¬ 
 laying the one into the other. This class of work is com¬ 
 mon in old Italian embroideries and in tapestries. The 
 mlaying is managed by sewing the inlaid part down with 
 thread, covered with cords or couchings of floss silk. 
 Sometimes narrow ribbons or braid is stitched over the 
 edges to keep them flat. 
 
 Onlaid applique consists in cutting out the pattern 
 in several stuffs and laying it down upon an even ground 
 of another material; care must be taken to cut the ap¬ 
 plied work even ; the back of each piece may be touched 
 with gum (very thick and dry, lest it should penetrate 
 the material), in order to keep it in its place upon the 
 material, which should first be worked out. Then the 
 applied piece should be very carefully adjusted, the edges 
 fastened down by laying a cord of silk, or silver, or gold 
 twist on the edge, and sewing it down with fine stitches. 
 Sometimes the edges are sewn down with button-hole 
 stitch, in a lighter or darker shade. In a leaf-pattern 
 4 
 
36 
 
 IIOME DECORATION. 
 
 the vein may he indicated by silk of a darker shade. 
 (Fig. 18.) ^ _ 
 
 Transferring Designs .—This process varies accord¬ 
 ing to the nature and color of the material to be used. If 
 the ground is light, a good way is to trace the design 
 carefully upon tissue-paper and fix the pattern flat upon 
 the material; then, placing between them a sheet of car¬ 
 
 bonized paper, go over the pattern with a sharp metallic 
 pencil, and the design will be accurately traced upon the 
 ground. But, occasionally, by this method, the color of 
 the carbonized paper remains behind and soils the ma¬ 
 terial, especially if it is freshly carbonized ; a piece that 
 has seen service is therefore precious. To transfer on to 
 dark grounds another method must be resorted to. 
 
STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 37 
 
 Pouncing .—By this process the design must be drawn 
 upon thick paper, and the outlines pricked through with 
 a pin. When once the pattern is pricked out, it is fixed 
 face downward upon the material, and rubbed over with 
 starch or fine powder, sewn up in a thin muslin hag, or, 
 better still, with pulverized pipe-clay, rubbed on with a 
 firmly-rolled piece of flannel or wad. Then carefully re¬ 
 moving the pattern, a pen dipped in India-ink, or a brush 
 in a solution made of pipe-clay and gum, will effectually 
 trace out the pattern. 
 
 Although we mention these methods for the use of 
 those who desire to transfer patterns, either for applique- 
 work or embroidery of any kind, we at the same time 
 recommend all who can do so to have the design traced 
 for them either by the designer or by a professional 
 stamper. The greatest care is necessary in the process, 
 and it is terribly annoying to find a delicate material 
 soiled or spoiled in tbe very commencement. Stamping 
 patterns for embroidery is quite an art, and well worth 
 the small sum demanded. 
 
 Drawn Work .—Before leaving the subject of em¬ 
 broidery we must speak of the revival of a very ancient 
 art in the drawn work which is becoming daily more 
 fashionable. Although it is terribly trying to the eyes, 
 it is yet so fascinating that the most elaborate designs 
 are now carried on by its means. This method of decora¬ 
 tion consists in drawing out the threads of fine linen, and 
 filling in patterns with every variety and combination 
 of stitch. Hemstitch is the first and easiest form of it, 
 but from this simple drawing out of one thread and 
 stitching at regular intervals, the art has progressed to the 
 arrangement of most elaborate patterns, fringes, and in¬ 
 sertions. Few dffections for such work can be given, the 
 
38 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 most elaborate being, after all, merely a matter of industry 
 and arrangement. So many more threads pulled out, so 
 many, or so few, passed over or caught together, and 
 varied by the introduction of herring-bone, button-hole, or 
 chain-stitches, or by overcasting, or darning-stitch. This 
 latter at once brings us to the darned net-work, which was 
 the foundation of later lace, and has been revived again. 
 In England, curtains of hand netting, elaborately darned 
 in patterns, are much used, and coverings of the same 
 work over colored silks or satins are very effective. 
 
 Italian and Spanish Drawn Work is beautiful, and 
 some of the ancient specimens are as elaborate and fine 
 as the finest lace. 
 
 Point Coupe includes different styles of hand-made 
 lace. An English authority defines it as “stuff gummed 
 to a net-work of threads, the pattern formed by outlining 
 with button-hole stitch the parts that were to remain, and 
 cutting the rest away ” ; and as “ threads alone arranged 
 in a frame and radiating from a common center, worked 
 in various patterns.” 
 
 Reference is constantly made to it in history. It was 
 universally used in the middle ages for the decoration of 
 dress, but is now chiefly devoted to the trimming of other 
 work. Silk and satin linings, and the introduction of 
 silk in the working, or silk laid over net, and treated as 
 above, all furnish varieties of the same style. 
 
 Lace Work .—This subject is too wide a one for a 
 small manual. We must be content to mention that from 
 the coarsest Macrame lace to the most delicate point and 
 pillow lace, every possible variety can be accomplished by 
 industrious and skillful fingers. 
 
 Frames and Framing .—The old-fashioned frame 
 with bars, upon which webbing was firmly nailed, to re- 
 
STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 39 
 
 ceive the material to be worked, which was sewn tightly 
 upon it, has been superseded by one recently patented, 
 in which the webbing is rendered unnecessary, and the 
 work is stretched by means of rollers. Mr. F. Sharpe, 
 of bio. 317 East Forty-first Street, New York, has re¬ 
 cently effected still greater improvements in embroidery 
 frames, and has succeeded in perfecting an arrangement 
 by means of which the work is evenly stretched, and so 
 firmly secured that the material does not give in the least 
 degree, even under the strain of very heavy work. 
 
 The lest Embroidery Needles for ordinary crewel 
 hand-work are Nos. 5 and 6 ; for coarse materials, such 
 as sail-cloth or oatcake cloth, No. 4; for frame embroid¬ 
 ery or very fine hand-work, the higher numbers. It is a 
 mistake to use too fine a needle ; the rule to be observed 
 is, that the silk or crewel should pass easily through the 
 eye, otherwise it is liable to become frayed in working. 
 
 Scissors should be finely pointed, and very sharp. 
 
 Thimbles which have been worn smooth are the 
 best. Some workers prefer ivory or vulcanite. Two 
 thimbles should be used for frame-work. 
 
 Prickers are necessary for piercing holes in gold em¬ 
 broidery, and also for arranging the lie of the thread in 
 some forms of couching. 
 
 Linen of every description, except that known as oat¬ 
 cake or sail-cloth, can be worked without a frame. 
 
 Gold Embroidery on velvet or satin grounds requires 
 to be worked on strong, even linen, and then cut out and 
 applied in the same manner as ordinary applique. When 
 a particularly rich and raised effect is desired, any em¬ 
 broidery may be treated in this manner; it is more 
 troublesome, but it amply repays the labor by the in¬ 
 creased beauty of the work. 
 
40 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Old Embroideries are often transferred to new ground 
 by this method, and in such work it is necessary to cut 
 away the ground close to the embroidery ; then place it 
 on the new material, which has been previously framed, 
 and the outline tacked down. The best way of finishing 
 is then to work in the edges with silks dyed exactly to 
 match the colors in the old work. If this is properly 
 done, it is impossible to discover which are old and which 
 new stitches, and it is only by examining the back that 
 it can be seen that the work has been transferred at all. 
 Embroidery so transferred is as good as it was in its first 
 days—in many cases much better, for time has often the 
 same mellowing effects upon embroideries as ivpon paint¬ 
 ings. 
 
 A less expensive, but also much less charming method, 
 is to edge the old embroidery, after applying it to the new 
 ground, with a cord or line of couching, but it is always 
 easy in such work to see that it has been transferred. 
 
 For Applique of all kinds it is necessary to back the 
 material, which is best done in this way: A piece of thin 
 cotton or linen fabric is tightly stretched on to a board 
 with tacks or drawing-pins. It is then covered smoothly 
 and completely with paste. The wrong side of the vel¬ 
 vet, satin, or serge, or whatever material is used, is then 
 pressed firmly down on the pasted surface with the hands 
 and left to dry. 
 
 The following is a good recipe for embroidery paste: 
 Three and a half spoonfuls of flour and as much powdered 
 resin as will lie on a quarter-dollar; mix these well and 
 smoothly with half a pint of water, and pour it into an 
 iron saucepan; put in a teaspoonful of essence of cloves, 
 and go on stirring till it boils ; then turn it into a galli¬ 
 pot to cool. 
 
STITCHES AND METHODS. 
 
 41 
 
 Good crewels will always wasli or clean without in¬ 
 jury, but cheap and inferior worsteds will not do so. 
 Ordinary crewel or linen may be washed at home by 
 plunging it into a lather made by water in which bran 
 has been boiled, or even with simple soapsuds, so long as 
 no soda or washing-powder is used. It should be care¬ 
 fully rinsed, without wringing, and hung up to dry. 
 When almost dry, it may be stretched out with drawing- 
 pins on a board, and will not require ironing. 
 
 Embroidery on cloth or serge may often be cleaned 
 with benzoline, applied with a piece of clean flannel; but 
 if a piece of work is much soiled, or in the case of fine 
 doyleys, it is safer to trust to a cleaner. 
 
y. 
 
 WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 Cuktains, for whatever purpose intended, afford am¬ 
 ple scope for decoration. The hangings of a room help 
 to furnish it more than anything else, and whether we 
 consider them as necessaries, as in the case of window- 
 curtains, or as additions and, in some sort, luxuries, as in 
 the case of portieres , a great deal of shill is possible „ in 
 their treatment. 
 
 In many houses a very pleasant effect is produced by 
 the introduction of drapery in the hall. The entrance 
 to a house strikes every one, and, in the majority of 
 modern homes, the first view is usually of a stairway by 
 no means too ornamental. In old-fashioned or in large 
 houses, a different arrangement is met with, and the 
 stairs seen in the background are in broken flights, with 
 a landing opposite the doorway, which, furnished with a 
 colored glass window, and made still more presentable by 
 the happy introduction of flowers in a stand, or perhaps 
 a hanging-basket, at once attracts attention. Even in 
 such a case the pleasant effect is heightened by drapery 
 which half frames the window; but, where the architect 
 has been less kind, a portiere across the entry, gracefully 
 looped, is at once pleasant and suggestive. 
 
 So many delightful possibilities are concealed by a cur¬ 
 tain ; not to mention the skillful hiding of defects made 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 43 
 
 feasible with such means, or the softening of angles and 
 happy obliteration of corners. Moreover, in the use of 
 curtains, every variety of decoration becomes possible, 
 and so much taste and skill can be shown in the selec¬ 
 tion of materials, the adaptation of patterns, and the 
 choice of coloring, that it is not surprising that draper¬ 
 ies of every kind receive increasing attention. 
 
 Window-curtains show off decorative needle-work 
 most admirably, and a great deal of the general effect of 
 a room is due to their skillful treatment. They should 
 be chosen of materials which look well in daylight, and 
 when drawn for the evening will show up equally well 
 by gas or lamplight. If heavy stuffs are selected, white 
 under-curtains are indispensable; but there are many 
 materials of light tone and make, which, edged with lace, 
 serve a double purpose. Curtains should never be too 
 full, and they are more artistic when they are only just 
 long enough to lie a few inches upon the floor. 
 
 Half the effect of handsome needle-work is lost if the 
 width of the hanging necessitates many folds; it should 
 be sufficiently wide to hang easily when drawn across 
 the window, and no wider. The design, once selected, 
 should always be worked upon the material itself, unless 
 in ther case of borderings, which may be laid on to sug¬ 
 gest inclosing lines. Although a pair of curtains repre¬ 
 sents a cumbersome piece of work, the stitches in such 
 embroidery are so large that the ground is easily covered, 
 and the effect is altogether far handsomer than when the 
 design is worked upon strips and laid on. 
 
 It is essential that curtains should harmonize with 
 the decoration of the room; and it may be mentioned 
 incidentally, that a great deal of effect will depend upon 
 the choice of the carpet, which in most cases precedes 
 
44 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 that of the hangings. As a matter of fact, a carpet 
 has no right to rule the coloring of the room; it should 
 be entirely subordinate—an accessory, as it were—that 
 which the background is to a picture, or the green¬ 
 sward to the forest; but as this is very often not the 
 case, and the carpet may be already in place, in strong 
 self-assertion, it must be considered, and the draperies 
 brought into harmony with it. Where the coloring of 
 a room is neutral, bright window-hangings are a possibil¬ 
 ity, but, generally speaking, the more sober hues are 
 better chosen for the material, and such bright coloring 
 as is thought desirable introduced into the working of 
 the design. Soft fabrics hang best. Hep is too stiff for 
 graceful effects; serge or diagonal cloth is pleasant, both 
 for its softness in work and on account of the graceful 
 folds into which it naturally falls. 
 
 Yelveteen is also suitable for hangings, being durable 
 and very accessible to ornament; worked in filoselle, cur¬ 
 tains of this material are extremely handsome ; velvet is 
 rather less manageable, and does not answer so well for 
 applied work, the pile, when it is rich, interfering with 
 the set of the stitches. 
 
 For heavy draperies, a border design is best, or one 
 with intervals, such as stars or crescents, which may be 
 worked in silks or bullion ; while for lighter material 
 a continuous pattern, carried over the whole of the cur¬ 
 tain, looks very well. Crewels, lightened by the in¬ 
 troduction of filoselle, are best for such designs. Branch¬ 
 ing patterns, too, are well adapted for curtains, and will 
 suit almost all materials, while, where dadoes are intro¬ 
 duced, a border of different material is admissible, the 
 depth of which must bear relation to that of the wall¬ 
 paper, supposing it to be in the same style. A dado 
 
WINDO W-EANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 45 
 
 may be embroidered before it is sewn on to the cur¬ 
 tain, and when it has a conventional design of upright¬ 
 stemmed flowers, the remainder of the hanging might 
 he appropriately worked in single flowers of the same 
 kind, similar in color. Curtains in two shades are often 
 very appropriate for smaller rooms, where dadoes are 
 a little out of place; a darker and lighter brown, for ex¬ 
 ample, or two shades of gray relieved by crimson bias 
 introduced where they are joined, would be both pretty 
 and effective. 
 
 Summer curtains of unbleached linens, worked in 
 crewel, admit of an almost endless variety, while there 
 is no limit to the choice of materials suited to more elabo¬ 
 rate and expensive drapery. Satins of creamy tint are 
 especially manufactured for such purposes, and silks 
 known as “ unfinished ” are of the neutral colors which 
 best bear elaborate designs, while very inexpensive cur¬ 
 tains can be made of cotton sheeting, worked in ordinary 
 worsteds or crewels. 
 
 Portieres serve a double purpose, and are invaluable 
 either to hide or to replace a door, or as a separation be¬ 
 tween double rooms ; well managed, they are exceedingly 
 effective. They should not repeat the window-curtains, 
 but should harmonize with them in coloring and style. 
 Portieres , whether single or double, should be sewn upon 
 rings and suspended upon a pole, so that they can be 
 drawn back at will; they should not be looped, but should 
 fall in easy folds. Where they are intended to separate 
 rooms of different character, they can be made double— 
 of one color and material on the one side, and of some¬ 
 thing suitable to the coloring of the other room upon the 
 reverse. 
 
 It is a very usual thing to make portieres of two or 
 
46 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 19. 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND DOR TID’D ES. 47 
 
 three different materials ; for example, in panels or with a 
 border, more or less deep, of one material, and the re¬ 
 mainder of something different. For example (in Fig. 
 19), we have a very simple design, which becomes most 
 effective when worked upon different materials—the up¬ 
 per part, for instance, in satin, the lower in plush, with 
 satin bands. The suggestions of the artist for the treat¬ 
 ment of this portiere are, that the upper panel should he 
 of whitish yellow satin, the flowers, which are peach- 
 blossoms, worked in pink and crimson, the lower part of 
 the branch in bluish gray, with brown touches, and the 
 smaller stems yellow, with reddish shadows. A delicate 
 green should be chosen for the young leaves. The lower 
 panel should be of salmon-pink plush and the vase of 
 light blue, the markings in gold thread, while the waving 
 tracery of the plush panels should be in black, and a warm 
 brown plush border complete the hanging at the bottom. 
 Just above the salmon plush a blue bordering with con¬ 
 ventional flowers in pink with deep red centers, with 
 bands above and below of yellow satin, will throw up the 
 design with admirable contrasts. 
 
 The same design could be carried out upon simpler 
 material, attention being given to the coloring suggested 
 for the details ; it would look well in almost any soft ma¬ 
 terial with neutral ground, the colors employed in the 
 rendering being bright and harmonious. 
 
 An effective design (Fig. 20) is also intended for the 
 use of satin and plush, and the suggestions for its working 
 are that the most satisfactory result would be produced 
 by “ on-laying.” Three different plushes are recom¬ 
 mended. For the upper panel, a mixed shade of brown 
 and red; the side bands to be of sage-green, and a warm 
 greenish brown to be chosen for the bottom. The treat- 
 
48 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fw. 20. 
 
WIND 0 W-HANGINGS AND FORTIN RES. 49 
 
 ment suggested for tlie center would be difficult but most 
 
 00 
 
 effective, and would amply repay the time and care be¬ 
 stowed upon it. Delicate whitish-yellow satin could bo 
 taken as a ground above the water-line, with blue satin for 
 the water itself, the ripples being suggested by darker 
 lines of blue in silk or worsted upon the surface, while the 
 mass of deeper color in the corner could be managed by 
 the introduction of a darker material of the depth of color 
 desired, and by so cutting it and inlaying it by applique, 
 that the ends of some of the rush-leaves would be shown 
 over it as if on the border, while the effect of distance 
 could be produced by cutting out, in lighter material, the 
 reeds that occupy the foreground. In treating the water, 
 the same idea of perspective can be given by making the 
 ripples toward the bottom of the panel close together, 
 and widening the distances by degrees, until, about half 
 way up to the water-line, they should cease altogether. 
 
 This design might be very well treated if the center 
 panel were painted upon satin, or worked in simple out¬ 
 line stitch in well-assorted silks. 
 
 Such materials would necessarily make a portiere in 
 this style a serious expense, and therefore another design 
 (Fig. 21) is given to show what may be accomplished by 
 the use of moderate means. It represents a hanging which 
 can be completed in every detail for a sum scarcely ex¬ 
 ceeding four dollars. The body of the portiere could be 
 of any mixed material (that stamped with a Persian pat¬ 
 tern is best), which can be bought, fifty-one inches wide, 
 for one dollar and a half a yard, while a yard and a quar¬ 
 ter of velveteen, at one dollar a yard, wall be sufficient 
 for the bands and center design. Even if simply put on 
 by applique work, this style of decoration is very effect¬ 
 ive, but designs might be worked upon the velvet, if de- 
 
HOME DECO RATION. 
 
 50 
 
 Fig. 21. 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 51 
 
 Fig. 22. 
 
52 
 
 no MS DECORATION. 
 
 sired, to suit any taste; or, again, stamped velvet, in rich 
 colors, coxdd be used upon Canton flannel, or plain ma¬ 
 terial of some neutral tint. 
 
 A design of sunflowers, with a deep plush bordering, 
 upon which conventionalized flowers of the same kind 
 are laid, is very effective for hangings. The upper panel 
 (in Fig. 22) might be of light-blue cloth, the flowers 
 worked in crewels, and the lower panel of deep-blue 
 plush, the flowers upon this having a black center, and 
 the outer circle of the leaves being worked in bright 
 yellow. 
 
 Fig. 23 is intended for an applique design, and repre¬ 
 sents conventionalized calla-lilies. In this hanging, the 
 suggestions are for a pale, greenish-blue, lusterless mate¬ 
 rial for the body of the curtain ; the leaves on the border 
 and upon the center panel to be of pearl-colored satin, 
 put on by applique work, while the flowers should be of 
 dead white , without luster, as should also the plain 
 bordering and ornament at the bottom of the center 
 frame. This would be a most delicate piece of decora¬ 
 tion, suitable for a boudoir or morning-room. 
 
 The introduction of a center panel, painted upon 
 satin, is novel and effective. Such a design (see Fig. 24) 
 might be treated either by the brush or by the needle. A 
 branch of maple, with its brilliant autumn-leaves, is rep¬ 
 resented upon a ground of pale-yellow satin, and the hill¬ 
 side is suggested by a few light touches, which, if painted, 
 are easily conveyed, and, if treated as embroidery, could 
 be outlined by the introduction of plush inlaid. The 
 borderings of this portiere should be of rich dark brown, 
 the waving design being traced in outline-stitch or crewel 
 in bright gold or yellows, or, indeed, in any bright colors 
 which might be preferred. The autumnal shades would 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 53 
 
 Fig. 23. 
 
 probably be better conveyed by the brush than by the 
 needle. 
 
 An entirely novel idea, both as to design and treat¬ 
 ment, is suggested in our next design (Fig. 25). The up- 
 
54 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 2-i. 
 
WINDOW-IIANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 55 
 
 per panel is intended to be of sea-green plush, as dark as 
 can be obtained, tlie lower to be very deep blue of the 
 same material. The upper and lower bands should be 
 of sage-green, the center panel being bordered above bv 
 light-blue satin, and below by sea-green with the water- 
 lines worked on. The meshes of the net should be of 
 yellow silk, so arranged that the shadows are well brought 
 out. This could be effectively done in couching work, 
 and a very original finish might be given if the floats 
 were represented by rounds of leather, stitched on. 
 
 The gull should be in grayish white. The border 
 design, which is a representation of sea-fern convention¬ 
 alized, must be worked in outline-stitch in gold silks. 
 
 Very often a portiere which would be rich and effec¬ 
 tive in a single curtain would hardly bear duplication. 
 Simple designs are better in the case of double doors, 
 or for a doorway so large as to require a pair of curtains. 
 For such a purpose, plain hangings with effective border- 
 ings, or with plain bands or panels without much decora¬ 
 tive work, are the best. Such curtains might be made of 
 dull gold-colored cloth, bordered with pale pink; or a 
 conventional foliage pattern, designed for the border and 
 worked in dark browns, would look well; so too would 
 upright flowers, with leaves which might appear to rise 
 from the dark border; the outlines and leaves being in 
 deeper colors and the flowers in pink. 
 
 Two shades of colors, again, are suitable for double door¬ 
 ways ; in such cases the darker shade should be the lowest, 
 the lighter one looking better above, either with or with¬ 
 out decoration; or a frieze-like border in cinque-cento style, 
 about two feet from the top, is very effective. Simple 
 and inexpensive portieres can be readily made of fashion 
 drapery with bands of darker material. Being the same 
 
56 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 25. 
 
 on both sides, it would only be necessary to duplicate the 
 bands, varying them to suit the coloring of two rooms. 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 57 
 
 Very little trimming is usually needed for portieres ; 
 but some pei’sons like fringes, or heavy laces, which can 
 always be added at will. 
 
 Book-case curtains are desirable additions in libra¬ 
 ries ; for these, soft materials with conventional border- 
 ings or severe patterns are best. A plain Grecian design 
 is admirable in dark colors. 
 
 Fig. 26 represents a very quaint and appropriate de¬ 
 sign for such a curtain, which might be used either as a 
 portiere or simply as a hanging before the book-case. 
 So, too, it can either be made a most inexpensive decora¬ 
 tion, if it is simply of thin muslin or linen, the border¬ 
 ing being of darker material, and the pattern worked 
 in ordinary silks or crewels; or, it might be extremely 
 handsome. If the latter effect is desired, velvet or plush 
 of deep chocolate-brown or maroon might be selected; 
 the center design being worked in rich blue silks, and 
 the bordering of crimson velvet or plash, embroidered in 
 gold. The value of this and other designs given in this 
 manual lies precisely in the large margin allowed in each 
 for individual taste and judgment. There is scarcely one 
 among them that is not susceptible of treatment in sev¬ 
 eral different ways, and they will amply repay the neces¬ 
 sary effort and time bestowed upon them, whether they 
 are made of the plainest or richest material, whether 
 their money value is great or small. 
 
 The Openings and Walls of a Room .—Some rooms 
 seem to be all doors; in whatever direction one turns, the 
 eye is confronted by an opening ; and it is becoming very 
 usual to drape the entire room in a way that shall make 
 such necessities, as far as possible, parts of an harmonious 
 whole. 
 
 Wall-hangings assist in producing this effect, and a 
 
58 
 
 ROME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 26. 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 59 
 
 few suggestions may serve to show how, by the use of 
 simple means, agreeable results may be obtained. 
 
 The best material for such hangings is Kentucky 
 jean, which is known in the stores as “ dennin,” and 
 which is of dull-blue color. Cloth of light dull red 
 might be used for the marginal designs, which require to 
 be stitched on. The design given in our frontispiece is 
 simple and easy ; but as other margins could equally well 
 be used with it, a variety of such patterns is given. Of 
 these, the first (Fig. 27) represents morning-glories; it 
 might be cut in cloth and appliqued on to a bordering of 
 any color selected, the leaves being veined in darker silk 
 or crewel, and if the chalices of the glories were in 
 green, the effect would be enhanced. The second margin, 
 of conventionalized buttercups (Fig. 28), might be ef¬ 
 fectively rendered in yellow cloth flowers appliqued upon 
 a dark ground, the leaves in green cloth, veined in darker 
 color. The corn in the third (Fig. 29) and the rushes in 
 the last design (Fig. 30) would serve equally well for ap¬ 
 plique work in cloths of the natural colors upon deep- 
 toned grounds. 
 
 The hangings in such decoration (excepting those 
 which lie fiat against the wall) should be lined, in order 
 that their straight hanging may be insured. Our designs 
 for such drapery (Figs. 35 and 36) represent the wall-hang¬ 
 ing as the length of the mantel. The borderings should 
 always be stitched on before the hanging is fixed upon 
 the wall. That being done, the dado is ready, and should 
 be fastened on to the wall with long bi'ass nails, which 
 will reach through the laths, both at the top and bottom 
 (see Fig. 34). To carry out the intentions of this drap¬ 
 ery, the first requisite for the mantel-piece is a pine-board 
 shelf, which will project about an inch over the edge and 
 
HOME DECORATION. 
 
WIN DO W-HA N GIN GS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 61 
 
 Fig. 82 
 
 Fts. 83. 
 
 0 > < 3 > 
 
 Fig. 84. 
 
02 
 
 HOME DECORATION'. 
 
 ends. A smaller shelf (as in Fig. 31) is easily made; it 
 should be about sixteen inches high and of proportionate 
 width. A bar and rings will be required for the hanging 
 above the mantel, and strips of pine, from three eighths 
 of an inch to an inch and a half in width, to fasten the 
 dado at the top; while the strips at the bottom should be 
 quarter round. All the wood should be stained either 
 red or black. For the windows and doors, a piece of 
 pine, stained (see Fig. 32), with brackets on either side to 
 support it, is required, and a bar for the rings of th z por¬ 
 tiere is necessary (as in Fig. 33). 
 
 The walls between the dado and ceiling might be 
 tinted a dull warm red or olive, and the same pattern as 
 that on the dado could be run round the paneling at the 
 top of the wall. The window-drapery should be managed 
 exactly like that of the doorway, and the general effect 
 will be pleasing and unique. Embroidered hangings 
 are sometimes selected to cover the entire surface of the 
 walls, and although in most cases paper-hangings appear 
 more suitable, especially with the many pictures and 
 ornaments found in modern homes, attempts have been 
 made to revive the old tapestry effects. It seems a pity 
 to bestow so much valuable work, if any of it is to be 
 hidden; but where it is very elaborate, it can be made the 
 principal decoration of the room. If this is the inten¬ 
 tion, a needle-work tapestry which has been introduced 
 may be employed ; but it is very difficult work, and could 
 only be carried out successfully under competent guid¬ 
 ance. The designs for such an undertaking should be 
 of the nature of picture-cartoons. 
 
 A more simple effect is recommended by IVIiss Glai- 
 sher, and is managed by “ a narrow, frieze-like hanging 
 above a dado, of width proportioned to it, and worked 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 
 
 63 
 
 Fig. 35. 
 
64 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 36. 
 
WINDOW-HANGINGS AND PORTIERES. 65 
 
 with stiff, upright stems of flowers, highly convention¬ 
 alized ; or, at even distances, pots in outline, with a group 
 of flowers of one sort in each pot.” “ A running, frieze¬ 
 like pattern in cinque-cento style, intermixed with birds 
 or curious devices,” is also suggested, but this requires a 
 good deal of care in both design and treatment, and, in 
 short, it is a little difficult to make wall-hangings repay 
 the time and skill which must be expended upon them. 
 
VI. 
 
 SCREENS. 
 
 From being merely unwieldy contrivances to shelter 
 from draught or the heat of the lire, screens have become 
 among the greatest ornaments of a modern home. They 
 are to be met with in every variety, from the priceless 
 inlaid structure, with its plate-glass panels, between 
 which grow rare and graceful ferns and mosses, to the 
 simply covered wooden frame, of home manufacture, 
 which has been beautified at no expense. Within these 
 limits range an infinite variety, and no useful object in a 
 home affords more scope for decoration than this. Size 
 varies as much as style, but the most serviceable is cer¬ 
 tainly the three-folded ordinary parlor-screen. 
 
 In many houses in European countries, screens answer 
 the double purpose of concealing the bed and making 
 the parlor beautiful—so often does one apartment serve 
 two purposes—and hence the height of many of the 
 screens is greater than is considered elegant in American 
 homes. The famous Louis Quinze screens are of every 
 conceivable variety, in frameworks of ebony filled in 
 with rich satin or velvet brocades, and embroidered in 
 raised silks, plushes, or even feathers. Arms emblazoned, 
 initials cunningly intertwined, portraits even introduced 
 in medallion, exquisite landscapes painted upon china, or 
 still more elaborate designs in needle-work inclosed in 
 
SCREENS. 
 
 67 
 
 glass, are all suggestive of tlie pageantry of a luxurious 
 age. But we have to do with the fashions of to-day, and 
 although the last exhibition of decorative needle-work 
 showed a marked tendency to bring extraneous materials 
 into the service (one very elegant three-paneled screen 
 having artificial flowers sewn on, and others introducing 
 feathers), artistic judgment was against the innovation, 
 and the preference decidedly given to those whose beauty 
 was due to fairy needle-work or painting alone. 
 
 One of the richest screens it has ever been our fortune 
 to behold is in private possession in ISTew York. It 
 is of white watered silk, inclosed in ivory frames, and 
 embroidered in many-colored silks with a waving border¬ 
 ing of flowers, so artistically wrought that it is more like 
 a parterre of living beauty than a mere representation. 
 This elaborate screen, however, is Japanese, and our 
 needle-workers have yet much to learn before they can 
 hope to out-rival the skill of the East. 
 
 Chinese screens, again, are fairly bewildering to the 
 eye in the variety and vividness of their design and col¬ 
 oring ; but colors that seem appropriate to the magnifi¬ 
 cence of Eastern imagery are less so in our every-day 
 lives, and we would recommend to those who propose to 
 work a screen for themselves, a selection of the more 
 subdued tints which are to be found assorted in every 
 decorative store. Cloth, perhaps, is the most satisfac¬ 
 tory material for a standing screen, while for the banner 
 screens, which so improve the mantel-shelf, or those which 
 are arranged on rings to draw round a corner or shield a 
 couch from the draught, various stuffs are equally good. 
 
 As screens afford so much scope for every variety of 
 treatment, designs are found to suit different tastes, and 
 many of those given in our manual can be appropri- 
 
68 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 ately worked either in silks or in applique work; or, if 
 preferred, may be painted upon silk, satin, or velvet. 
 
 Of these, that represented in Fig. 37 would be very 
 beautiful for a three-paneled screen, the cherry-blossoms 
 being selected as the center, and the apple-blossoms dupli¬ 
 cated for the two ends ; or the panel in Fig. 39, the corn- 
 sheaf with birds, would make a very effective center panel 
 in combination with the cherry and apple-blossoms on 
 either side. Of course, it would answer equally well as 
 it is, for a twofold screen. 
 
 The material (if the screen is intended for an ordi¬ 
 nary parlor or reception-room) should be of dark cloth, 
 and the silks in which the apple-blossoms are worked, 
 pink and white, while the center panel, with a ground 
 of lighter tone, might have the blossom clusters in scar¬ 
 let. Again, should painting be preferred, the designs 
 executed in natural colors upon white velvet, or neutral- 
 tinted satin or silk, would be very lovely. In the latter 
 case, the hill-side should be a mere suggestion, only suf¬ 
 ficiently indicated to act as memory, and not by any 
 means be given too prominently, because the branch 
 represents the motive of the design, and the hill is a mere 
 accessory. 
 
 We point this out more particularly, because a fre¬ 
 quent mistake in the work of beginners, either in artistic 
 needle-work or in painting, is a tendency to give undue 
 prominence to accessories. ' There should always be one 
 spot or point to which the remainder is subordinate ; the 
 key-note, as it were, or, in artistic parlance, the highest 
 light. 
 
 While this can not be too much insisted upon as an 
 absolute necessity, if needle-work is to deserve the name 
 of art, we are equally mindful of the fact that the other 
 
SCREENS. 
 
 69 
 
 Fig. 37. 
 
 extreme, which is often met with in the work of amateurs, 
 is almost equally bad, and that a total ignoring of snbor- 
 
TO 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 dinate facts is to be as cautiously avoided as tbe reverse. 
 Thus, in the treatment of the four designs in Fig. 38, 
 
SCREENS. 
 
 71 
 
 which are perhaps most suitable for painting upon silk, 
 satin, or velvet, a great deal will depend upon the treat¬ 
 ment of the distances. In the first panel an outlined hill 
 is presented, which by skillful treatment will gain in 
 height and distance; and, in the second, the clouds, 
 which are merely suggested, afford in reality the limita¬ 
 tions of the swallows’ flight; and here a gray effect, 
 deepening a little as the last bird is lost in it, would 
 be invaluable, for it would give a certain imagination to 
 the flight, and furnish the idea of a coming shower, 
 which the instinct of the birds has already foreseen. 
 
 The water-lilies in the lower division of the first panel 
 would be very beautiful if worked in silks, a darker shade 
 of green marking the outer edge, which the water kisses 
 as it flows; the flowers rising in dead white, with one 
 golden petal (worked in French knot), and the reeds 
 should be rendered in russet-brown silks. 
 
 The design in Fig. 39 is intended for a double 
 screen, but here again three folds can be managed equally 
 well, by duplicating the first, and making the corn- 
 sheaf with the birds the center. Anything prettier or 
 more effective than this last can scarcely be conceived, 
 or more suitable either for needle or brush. If treated 
 by the former, blue satin as a background, with the 
 birds, as far as possible, in the graduated browns, yel¬ 
 lows, and whites of their natural plumage, and the corn 
 in its own colors, would be exquisite; such a design 
 affords great scope for individual taste, and a little study 
 of the different lights required for the birds’ wings in 
 flight or at rest would enable the worker to produce 
 something really artistic, whether in water-colors or in 
 graduated shades of silk. Supposing blue to be the 
 groundwork of the center, pink might appropriately be 
 1 
 
72 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Pie. 39. 
 
 chosen as the foundation of the beautiful blossoms of the 
 side-panels, which should be worked in raised white, with 
 
SCREENS. 
 
 73 
 
 Fig. 40. 
 
 delicate green leaves, wliile the reeds in brown would 
 throw up the whites and grays of the duck and her brood. 
 
74 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 If blue satin were inserted above tbe water-line, and 
 darker silks worked in, the ripple of a sunny lake would 
 be most happily suggested. 
 
 In the design in Fig. 40, a great deal must depend 
 upon the sky effects, whether it is worked out by brush or 
 needle. A background of gray satin might suggest the 
 clouded summer sky beneath which the swallows are fly¬ 
 ing, and the blue of their plumage, with delicate white 
 tone for the breasts, would be in delightful harmony with 
 it; while, for the “ butterflies ” sunning in the warmth of 
 noon-day, blue, with only tiny fleecy flecks of transparent 
 white, would not only make the design “ alive,” but, if it 
 were the center of three, would contrast admirably with 
 the outer panels of cloudier foreboding. 
 
 The design in Fig. 41 is somewhat realistic. In 
 communicating the happy effect of waving to the field of 
 wheat, the artist has resorted to the expedient of a fallen 
 branch in the foreground, upon the treatment of which 
 much will depend. Browns, deep enough to make it cer¬ 
 tain that it has fallen recently (since the wheat has attained 
 a certain height at least), but not so nearly black as to 
 suggest an artificial coloring, are what is needed. The 
 golden brown of the wheat upon a background of pearl- 
 gray would be very pure, while at the same time, if re¬ 
 quired for constant use, a more serviceable selection of 
 dark color for the groundwork might be found in deep 
 maroon or green velvet or cloth, while the companion 
 panel could be of dark crimson or olive-green, with the 
 design in natural colors. 
 
 The design in Fig. 42 is intended for an oblong screen, 
 and the artist’s suggestion for the treatment is a back¬ 
 ground of blue, the wheat to be appliqued on in brown 
 gold cloth, and the ears suggested by points cut out and 
 
SCREENS. 
 
76 
 
 SOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 42. 
 
SCREENS. 
 
 77 
 
 worked in silk. The leaves, in- applique of green cloth, 
 would allow of light and shade, and the highest light 
 should he on the fruit, which should be worked in raised 
 silks of deepening gold. 
 
 Before leaving the subject of standing screens, a word 
 may he useful regarding framing. The effect of good 
 work is often spoiled by the use of ugly and inappropriate 
 frames. As regards color, black is preferable to almost 
 anything else, and for ordinary rooms, the simpler the de¬ 
 sign the better, while, for more elaborate purposes, a frame 
 to match the heavy furniture in style would be desirable. 
 Again, if any particular wood is in use in the decoration 
 of a room, it would he well to select that for the frame 
 of the screen ; at the same time, black will he found both 
 suitable for every kind of work, and for almost any style 
 of decoration. In screens in which birds are the princi¬ 
 pal subject, as in Fig. 40, a frame with carved birds 
 would he suggestive. Large folding screens for bed¬ 
 rooms can he made very handsomely in brown linens or 
 serge, with conventional designs in crewels, upright and 
 stiff flowers being most suitable for the purpose. Thistles 
 make an admirable design. Dadoes of darker material 
 have a good effect. Upon a brown linen screen a dado 
 of dark green, worked in field-flowers, with the pattern 
 above, on the brown linen, of tall garden hollyhocks or 
 tiger-lilies, in a mixture of crewels and silks, is very effec¬ 
 tive. Such a screen is admirable in a passage, or round 
 a bedroom door. Peacocks have always been favorite sub¬ 
 jects for screen designs, but, to be at all desirable, the 
 form must be strictly conventionalized, and the back¬ 
 ground dark, to soften the brilliant colors of the plumage, 
 which in any case it is difficult to harmonize equally and 
 well. 
 
78 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Japanese designs have had a long popularity, and 
 will probably continue to do so; but they are to be met 
 
 with in such infinite variety in the many articles adorned 
 by them, that suggestions regarding them are needless. 
 As a rule, each division of a Japanese design has a distinct 
 end and meaning, although to the uninitiated the pat¬ 
 terns have a bewildering disorder; but a little study shows 
 
SCREEN'S. 
 
 79 
 
 that such confusion is the result of the highest art, and is 
 in strict accordance with the laws of symmetry and pro¬ 
 portion. 
 
 Some of the latest designs for larger screens have 
 
 Fig. 44. 
 
 been representations of the human figure in action ; hut, 
 although great results have occasionally been obtained, 
 
80 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 and good effects produced, such representations are very 
 difficult, and a few stitches out of place here or there 
 produce such lamentable results that, as a matter of fact, 
 human beings are as well left out of needle-work designs 
 
 Fig. 45. 
 
 altogether. In ancient embroidery, we are accustomed 
 to the stiff, conventionalized features of the actors in the 
 
SCREEN'S. 
 
 81 
 
 dramatized scenes ; but in our more natural epoch, unless 
 something fanciful is connected with it, the ‘‘human 
 
 Fig. 46. 
 
 face divine ” presents difficulties which are almost un¬ 
 conquerable, and the same may be said of the figure. 
 
 There is absolutely no limit to the variety of materials 
 employed for smaller screens. Banner screens, fastened 
 
82 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 to the mantel-shelf, are best arranged upon lings to hang 
 upon a cross-bar, or very pretty fittings of ebonized 
 wood are made, with brass ends and rings. 
 
 Fig. 47. 
 
 Of the designs intended for such a purpose, that in 
 Fig. 43 is very simple and at the same time very effec¬ 
 tive. A background of dead gold velvet should be chosen, 
 
SCREENS. 
 
 83 
 
 with a strip of Macrame lace across the top, as nearly the 
 same color as possible ; the clover might be rendered in 
 light green cloth, appliqued on, and the variations, veins, 
 and shades could be worked upon it in darker silks or 
 
 crewels. This screen would be suited either for an up¬ 
 right stand of cherry-wood, or for a cross-bar with rings. 
 
 The screen designed in Fig. 44 should have a ground of 
 8 
 
84 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 light-blue velvet or silk with ball-fringe to match, and 
 the design of apple-blossoms could be either painted on 
 the silk or velvet, or worked in colored silks. Fittings 
 of black wood would be very suitable. Both the designs 
 represented in Figs. 45 and 46 are intended for ajj- 
 
 Fig. 49. 
 
 jplique work. The lovely disk designs of the first should 
 be on a center strip of pearl-blue, and the top and hot- 
 
SCREENS. 
 
 85 
 
 tom borders are intended to be of sage-green plush, 
 with cord and tassels to match. The flowers, which 
 
 Fig. 50. 
 
 are wild violets, should be purple with light centers, and 
 could be either painted or embroidered. In the second, 
 an old-gold ground is recommended, in combination with 
 sage-green; the disks should be of light-yellow satin, 
 while the flowers, “ Innocence,” might be worked in pale 
 
86 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 blue with yellow centers on the first, and the clover on 
 the second should be in pink. The cords and balls of 
 the hanging should be of yellow, and the fringe at the 
 bottom of sage-green. 
 
 Another variety is afforded by Fig. 47, in which great 
 scope for fancy is allowed. Almost any material would 
 be suitable, either in a striped pattern, or with strips laid 
 on, while the shield in the center could be worked with 
 heraldic device or monogram. Fig. 48 simply represents 
 a screen of plain stiff or dark silk, with a bouquet of 
 everlasting flowers fastened beneath a broad band of lace. 
 The color in this screen must be left to individual taste. 
 There is a good deal of novelty in the design given in 
 Figs. 49 and 50 of conventionalized sails. The material 
 for such a screen might be striped, or alternate strips of 
 different colors might be laid upon a plain ground, while 
 the back could be of stuff of some different pattern. 
 The pulleys could be represented by beads, and the ropes 
 by twisted silks or cords, while the standard or cross 
 work would be effective either in metal or wood. 
 
 A motto might be appropriately worked upon the 
 pennant. 
 
VII. 
 
 LAMBREQUINS AND SMALL PANELS. 
 
 Lambrequins play an important part in home decora¬ 
 tion. They are favorite subjects for the employment of 
 needle-work, for two reasons : first, because they are effec¬ 
 tive, and secondly, because they are easily and quickly 
 made. A set of curtains for even a small room is some¬ 
 what of an undertaking, hut a lambrequin can he at¬ 
 tempted hy the most modest worker. 
 
 The largest and most important effort in this direc¬ 
 tion is in the ornamentation of the mantel-shelf. In 
 houses and flats, where the latest improvements are made, 
 chimney-places are becoming very attractive. The use 
 of tiles, and carved or ornamental woodwork, adds charm¬ 
 ingly to the pleasant aspect of a room; hut in older houses 
 the mantel is apt to b‘e a great eyesore. Sometimes con¬ 
 structed of the commonest material, and almost always of 
 unsightly shape and harsh outline, the sooner it is cov¬ 
 ered up the better. 
 
 A good deal of judgment is required in the selec¬ 
 tion of mantel-decoration. The choice of curtains and 
 portieres , as we have seen, must he more or less regu¬ 
 lated by the carpet and wall-papering, and now the lam¬ 
 brequin, which is a distinct feature in the apartment, may 
 be made either the pleasantest or the most painful object 
 to greet an entrance into a room. Once more we must 
 
88 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 insist that a sense of fitness and harmony is the most es¬ 
 sential qualification for a worker. It is a good plan to 
 have a neutral background for a mantel lambrequin, and 
 to select such a combination of colors as shall make a 
 variety in the general effect by giving a warm spot of 
 color which may contrast with the prevailing tone of 
 the decorations of the room. Different shades of the 
 same color are often pleasant for this purpose, the man¬ 
 tel being an object which is so much and so constant¬ 
 ly in view, and, for the same reason, a quiet conven¬ 
 tional design is almost always suitable, as it is less tir¬ 
 ing when constantly in sight than a more suggestive one 
 might be. 
 
 Such conventional designs, worked in one colored silk 
 or crewel upon darker ground, are good in effect. That 
 given in Fig. 51, of conventionalized dandelions, could 
 be effectively treated in such a way ; for example, if upon 
 claret-colored or maroon velvet, the design might be 
 worked in gold-colored filoselle. A very happy idea of 
 a chain is conveyed by the links, which could be golden 
 too, or might be of emerald-green. Such a lambrequin 
 is intended to fit tightly round the mantel, the founda¬ 
 tion being made in the first instance by a plain wooden 
 shelf, projecting one inch, but otherwise exactly the size 
 and shape of that to be covered. Upon this board the 
 same kind of velvet is tightly stretched, and the hang¬ 
 ing, having been arranged to fit it exactly, should be 
 nailed on with invisible tacks, over which a narrow gimp 
 of maroon-color might be fastened with brass-headed nails 
 above each flower in the pattern. 
 
 This style of lambrequin would suit nearly every 
 room, and would be very easily worked, either in outline 
 or in filled-in embroidery. Its effect would be extremely 
 
LAMBREQUIN'S AND SMALL PANELS. 
 
 89 
 
 Fig. 52. 
 
90 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 good if the color of the velvet were dead gold, and the 
 pattern worked in bright yellow and green silks. 
 
 When the chimney-piece is long, the center depres¬ 
 sion is an improvement; otherwise, it may be omitted, 
 and the velvet cut straight along. A heavy fringe is a 
 favorite addition, but a scalloped button-hole edge is 
 quite as pretty, and in many instances more suitable, or 
 a plain band of deeper color than the ground will be 
 found very effective. A less formal design (as in Fig. 52) 
 is intended for a greater variety of colors. The flowers 
 might be pink or white, on dark-brown ground, or, as 
 such colors are delicate, and easily catch the smoke (which 
 is often an unenviable accompaniment of a pleasant fire), 
 darker tints might be selected, always with due regard to 
 the general effect and the lights and shadows. 
 
 Both these patterns could be carried round the sides, 
 while for some chimney-pieces, especially those that are 
 built high, it is an improvement to let the drapery hang 
 at the corners ; and, again, a very good effect is produced 
 by simply having the lambrequin just the length of the 
 mantel, so that, fastened to the wall at the back, it hangs 
 easily over the front. For this style the wooden shelf 
 can be dispensed with. 
 
 It is a good arrangement to carry up a background 
 of the same material as the lambrequin, which may be 
 arranged in folds, or hung from rings upon a brass rod, 
 and thus form an effective background for chimney orna¬ 
 ments. Vases and plaques show up well upon a mantel¬ 
 shelf so arranged. 
 
 A more elaborate pattern than any yet suggested may 
 be found in Fig. 53, which could be variously treated ; it 
 might either be worked upon serge in crewels, or done in 
 applique work, the shades of the foliage being conveyed 
 
LAMBREQUINS AND SMALL PANELS 
 
 91 
 
 Fig. 
 
92 
 
 HOME DECORATION'. 
 
 in different stuffs or clotli; or, it would be very beauti¬ 
 ful in raised work, in colored silks with gradations of 
 tone; the branch might be given in dull brown, the 
 leaves in shaded greens, and the fruit worked in warm 
 gold, the tints varying as suggested by the lights and 
 shadows of the engraving. Stamped velveteen would 
 make an admirable ground for this design ; so, too, would 
 heavy brown plush. 
 
 Mantel-lambrequins arranged in panels are very effec¬ 
 tive, either by squares worked in divisions in silk, braid 
 or crewel, with designs upon each square, or by the use of 
 lighter material for the panels, which can be laid over a 
 darker ground. If the panel patterns are different, they 
 should yet be of the same character in design, and should 
 harmonize well. A design in imitation of tiles worked in 
 squares of red, blue, and white would be novel. Summer 
 lambrequins can readily be made of linen worked in 
 crewels, or of the same material merely trimmed with 
 lace or fringe; and for such, the simple plan of hang¬ 
 ing them over the shelf without elaborate fixing is the 
 better, as they can then be easily removed for washing. 
 
 A pattern composed of alternate flowers in natural 
 colors worked upon a light ground, as, for instance, a rose 
 and lily, or a pansy and narcissus, would be a pleasant 
 summer design. Sometimes the decoration of the chim¬ 
 ney-piece only commences with the lambrequin, and is 
 carried on by the assistance of a cabinet-maker. Shelves 
 rise above the mantel, which in their turn receive decora¬ 
 tive hangings, and upon them knickknacks of all kinds 
 find a place. 
 
 The skillful needle-woman whose handiwork has con¬ 
 verted the harsh, unbroken ugliness of the mantel into a 
 picturesque or artistic combination, will seek other fields, 
 
LAMBREQUIN'S AND SMALL PANELS. 
 
 93 
 
 and the mantel-lambrequin will be the precursor of many 
 similar attempts. Smaller ones for corner brackets, and 
 tasty valances for shelves, will find a place. 
 
 The material and design of these must depend very 
 largely upon the places they are called upon to occupy; 
 a stiff, conventional pattern being better for a curtain 
 destined for a shelf, and a more fanciful design for a 
 corner bracket. Such lambrequins look well in cloth, 
 worked in silks, and edged round the bottom in small 
 scallops. They should never be long enough or heavy 
 enough to weigh down the brackets they adorn. A very 
 pretty little hanging, intended for a corner shelf to hold 
 rare china cups, has been made of olive-green momie- 
 cloth with a design of a flowering tea-plant, in white 
 flowers with golden centers, and it was at once pretty 
 and suggestive. 
 
 Panels .-—Panel decoration, as we have seen, must in 
 every case be subordinate; at the same time, it ought 
 not to be meaningless, and, while any very decided inten¬ 
 tion would be out of place, suggestive designs are advis¬ 
 able. 
 
 So, in Fig. 54, which provides a series of panel designs, 
 the idea conveyed by the four drawings is that of the 
 seasons. Natural wood, susceptible of high polish, will 
 be the best for the purpose, and natural colors, as far as 
 possible, should be selected for the painting. Such panels 
 would look well arranged at intervals near the mantel, 
 or might be placed in pairs—one on either side—autumn 
 with the falling leaves, and winter on the one hand, spring 
 and the summer cherries on the other. 
 
 Six little designs for smaller panels to set upon brack¬ 
 ets or mantel, or, in fact, anywhere, are given in Fig. 55, 
 and afford sufficient variety. Sea-ferns, intended to be 
 
94 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig 54. 
 
 painted in sea-green of rather a dead tone, inclose a small 
 sea-view, while coral, in its delicate twists, might be of 
 
LAMBREQUINS AND SMALL PANELS. 
 
 95 
 
 light pink, deepening as the branches meet to support the 
 little sketch of a sailing vessel. In another, a landscape 
 
 9 
 
 Fig. 55. 
 
9G 
 
 HOME DECORATION.\ 
 
 Fig. 56. 
 
 gives a view of a cottage on the cliff, while beneath, 
 sweet clover, eager birds, and a shelf with bric-a-brac, 
 
LAMBREQUINS AND SMALL PANELS. 
 
 97 
 
 are all alike suggestive and appropriate for the purpose 
 for which they are intended. 
 
 It would be difficult to find anything more generally 
 suitable for the panels of a door than the designs given in 
 Fig. 56. These represent trailing hops, one of the very 
 prettiest effects in nature, and one which by its freedom 
 and lightness is suitable for almost any position. It is 
 strange that this pattern is so seldom found in decora¬ 
 tion, for all who have seen growing hops must admit that 
 there is no plant which exceeds it in beauty and decora¬ 
 tive effect. The tender, delicate green of the blossom, 
 with a darker shade of the same color for the abundant 
 foliage, and still lighter touches for the tendrils, could not 
 fail to please, while the effect would be heightened, sup¬ 
 posing the background to be of light wood, by the browns 
 of the branch-like stems. 
 
 Panels for cabinets are often ordered of successful 
 artists, while many elegant reception-rooms are decorated 
 after designs elaborated by successful painters. Indeed, 
 panel-painting, if it is to exceed the modest limits already 
 suggested, can only be successfully attempted by a master 
 of the craft, and we would dissuade amateurs from all 
 hut the most simple attempts at such decoration. 
 
VIII. 
 
 INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 Under this heading we will consider the many oppor¬ 
 tunities for decoration by the needle and brush in the 
 less important objects of the home. Their name is le¬ 
 gion, and many a modest room has been made beautiful 
 by the industry and good taste of the lady inhabiting it. 
 
 Chair-Backs and Cushions .—The seats and backs of 
 chairs are often enriched by a skillful use of embroidery. 
 A broad strip, three inches in width, let into the material 
 that forms the covering, is effective, and, if a free running 
 pattern is selected for the back, it may be repeated upon 
 the seat. The design given in Fig. 57 offers the advan¬ 
 tage of novelty ; it represents a conventionalized sea-fern, 
 and would be effective either worked in silks upon velvet 
 or in crewels upon stuff—probably appearing better in 
 the richer material. The sea-fern in combination with 
 sea-weed in the companion design, Fig. 58, would be even 
 prettier, because it would admit of greater blending of 
 colors; deeper greens for the blades of sea-grass, and 
 greenish browns for the weed, would look well upon a 
 ground of rich, deep crimson; but, necessarily, much must 
 depend upon the dominant color of the furniture. 
 
 The effect of a handsome chair-back is thoroughly 
 spoiled if it is out of harmony with the remainder of the 
 furniture in a room, or at variance with the carpet and 
 
INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 99 
 
 hangings. An attempt has been made to introduce 
 velvet chair-coverings, worked in raised stars in heavy 
 
100 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 bullion ; but, besides being very costly in the production, 
 such efforts are ill repaid by the effect, as the bullion tar¬ 
 nishes so very soon, and needs constant attention. 
 
 The covers of large chairs look better with a more 
 general pattern, covering the entire material, but these 
 are seldom undertaken at home; good effects have been 
 obtained by the selection of handsome French cretonnes, 
 the patterns of which are worked over in raised silks. 
 But such designs, however effective, are very tedious, the 
 ground being so fully covered by the pattern. 
 
 Loose covers for chairs are pretty when made of cool 
 gray linens, with bias of decided color used as piping; 
 strips laid on down the back and across the seat, of some 
 darker material worked in silk or crewels of the same 
 tone as the bias, are very effective. Plush covers, with 
 central designs for seat and back, look handsome, and a 
 border with conventional pattern goes well with them. 
 
 Rocking-chairs can be made ornamental as well as be¬ 
 guiling by the variety of decoration that can be bestowed 
 upon them—coverings of every kind of material being 
 made to slip on over the back: velveteen, with a broad 
 running pattern worked on linen laid on down the cen¬ 
 ter ; linen, with strips of darker material; momie-cloth, 
 simply embroidered in a running pattern in twisted silks ; 
 in short, anything that industry can effect and taste sug¬ 
 gest is attempted. 
 
 Cushions for deep Cane Chairs, again, can be made of 
 almost any material, and of almost any design. Peacock- 
 blue, dead gold, or maroon velvet, harmonize well with 
 the chairs that are finished off, as so many are, with black 
 and gold. 
 
 A long, round cushion to support the head, fitting into 
 the neck, is a very essential addition to the luxury of a 
 
INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 101 
 
 rocking-chair. It may be made of any soft material, 
 shaped like a small bolster and stuffed with wool; then a 
 cord is attached to either end, by means of which it hangs 
 over the back of the chair, to be adjusted according to 
 the needs of the sitter. Such neck-cushions once used 
 are rarely dispensed with. 
 
 Sofa- Cushions admit of endless variety. Soft plushes, 
 with applique designs, look very handsome; so do silk and 
 satin covers, worked in crewels or in raised silk embroid¬ 
 ery. If a design to be appliqued on plush is selected, the 
 pattern to be laid in should be darker than the ground, and 
 should be outlined in silks of gay colors or gold thread. 
 Edgings of handsome cord are necessary to finish such a 
 cushion, and tassels to match the darker shades would 
 make a handsome addition. Squares of cretonne to be 
 worked in raised silks are very often obtained for cushion- 
 covers, or cloth of deep, plain color can be very elabo¬ 
 rately worked in a rich design covering the ground almost 
 entirely. Flowers, foliage, or fruit are the most suitable 
 patterns for such a purpose. 
 
 Table-Covers .—The material and design for table-cov¬ 
 ers must vary with the room and table for which they are 
 destined. For a dining-room table, nothing is handsomer 
 than deep crimson cloth, with a heavy bordering of dead 
 gold, finished by a conventional design in the corners, if 
 desired; and for a library the same style of table-cover 
 would be suitable, but it might be of deep maroon or 
 dark blue, with a bordering somewhat less heavy of dark¬ 
 er material worked in gold-colored silk. Instead of a bor¬ 
 der, a thick, deep fringe is sometimes preferred ; it gives a 
 look of importance and substantiality to the cloth, and the 
 fringe might be headed by a narrow line of deep-toned 
 color. 
 
102 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 The fashion of kettle-drums, or afternoon teas, so 
 largely indulged in now, has given rise to the introduction 
 of dainty little tables, just of the right size to hold the 
 necessary complement of cups and saucers. For the fur¬ 
 ther honor of the occasion, pretty cloths in endless char¬ 
 acteristic devices are brought into the service. Usually 
 of the finest linen, plenty of scope is afforded in them for 
 the use of decorative needle-work. Fig. 59 provides a very 
 quaint and pretty design for such a purpose. Worked 
 in fine blue crewels or in silks, such a pattern would be 
 very suitable. The design, if the table were large enough, 
 might be worked sufficiently far from the edge to allow 
 of a deep fringe of drawn work. Less elaborate designs 
 could be used, either running right round the edge as a 
 border, for which purpose simple flower-sprays or vine- 
 patterns are prettiest, or as designs for each corner and 
 the center. 
 
 A fanciful Japanese pattern is not inappropriate; or a 
 Chinese mandarin in one corner, matched by a branch of 
 the tea-plant in another, while quaint little cups and sau¬ 
 cers figure in the corresponding ones, would not look 
 amiss. Monograms or coats-of-arms are often elaborately 
 worked in the center. Filoselle r^pon fine linen washes 
 well, and has a richer effect than crewels or ordinary silks. 
 
 A nice cover for a little odd-and-end table, upon which 
 old china or bric-a-brac are displayed, can be made of 
 stamped velvet, edged with dark lace, and should be 
 made to fit the table. 
 
 Elaborate silk and velvet cloths are out of place if a 
 table is intended for meals, even if only for tea; for 
 such a purpose linen alone is appropriate. Expensive 
 materials, easily spoiled by a spot of butter or the spilling 
 of a cup of tea, are only a source of anxiety, and therefore 
 
IN GW ENTAL DECORA TIONS. 
 
 103 
 
 i?iu. 59. 
 
104 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 60 . 
 
INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 105 
 
 not beautiful in such a connection, however handsome 
 they may be in themselves. 
 
 Slips, to be placed upon a handsome cloth, can be made 
 pretty by the use of embroidery and drawn work. If 
 made of fine linen, a border of blue or crimson might be 
 laid on at each end and wrought in gold or crimson silk, 
 the edges being then simply fringed out, or elaborated in 
 drawn work. 
 
 Fig. 60 represents a design for the border of a table¬ 
 cloth for dining-room or library. This could be very 
 effectively worked in deep green and crimson silks upon 
 a ground of dark brown or purple. It might be treated 
 in applique work, but would be a little difficult; the 
 little branch-stumps in deep brown would relieve the 
 green and crimson if worked on a purple ground. Again, 
 it would be very handsome in velvet, with a plush bor¬ 
 dering laid on and worked in raised embroidery. 
 
 Doilies , or little round mats to place under finger- 
 glasses, are often made very pretty indeed. Elaborate 
 designs are out of place for these, and it is foolish to take 
 handsome satin or silk for such a purpose. Applique 
 lace is often used, and simple designs appliqued on to a 
 groundwork of net are appropriate and pretty ; but it is 
 more usual now to make them of fine white linen or 
 lawn, and embroider designs in outline-stitch either in 
 filoselle , silk, or crewel. Drawn work round the edge 
 is very effective, and handsome results have been ob¬ 
 tained by elaborate drawn work inclosing a center, 
 square or round, upon which a design is worked or 
 sometimes etched in pen and ink. Quaint figures, of 
 the Kate Greenaway order, are very suitable for the 
 purpose; scenes from popular operas, or little views of 
 well-known places, all find admirers. A not inappropri- 
 
106 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 ate plan is to select groups of flowers or fruit, or pretty 
 sprays of vine or creepers, to correspond with the pattern 
 usually found upon dessert-plates. The two comic designs 
 
 given in Fig. 61 might he done in outline work in blue 
 silk upon white linen. Sometimes cut work is appliqued 
 on to silk or satin of deep crimson or blue; but such 
 
INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 107 
 
 dainty doilies are very apt to receive wine and fruit 
 stains, which are difficult to remove; for this reason, sim¬ 
 ple white linen is best for the purpose. Doilies are best 
 made round, in shape to fit the plates for which they are 
 intended, but sometimes they are made square and folded 
 across. For etching purposes, the surface of the linen 
 should first be prepared by the application of gum, dried, 
 and ironed upon the wrong side. Before beginning to etch, 
 the material should be tightly stretched upon a flat board. 
 
 Window-Shades .—Crimson window-shades are no 
 longer so popular as they were, and as there is a general 
 feeling that plain holland ones are not sufficiently deco¬ 
 rative, it is becoming very usual to attempt to make them 
 less formal by embroidery. Sometimes gray linen is 
 chosen for such a purpose, and a design which covers 
 the entire ground worked in outline-stitch in crewels; 
 but the objection to this is, that the light coming through 
 varies so much upon sunshiny or cloudy days that no 
 confidence can be placed in the effect it may have at dif¬ 
 ferent times. 
 
 For this reason, we w T ould advise limiting the decora¬ 
 tion of shades to a bordering, which can be prettily worked 
 and laid on. Such a bordering might be placed not only 
 upon the ends, but up the sides, in narrow strips, and the 
 design given in Fig. 62, of morning-glories, would be 
 both effective and appropriate. It might be worked on a 
 strip of dark linen, in many colors, as far as possible in 
 the blues, pinks, and crimsons of the natural flowers, 
 while the leaves should be of pleasant green. The run¬ 
 ning border below might be of narrow blue silk braid 
 stitched on. A conventional pattern for a border is 
 always appropriate, and beneath it a cotton fringe or a 
 broad gimp gives a nice finish to the shade. Buff linen 
 10 
 
Fig. 62 . 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 
 
INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 109 
 
 shades offer advantage where the sun is very powerful, 
 as they throw a softened light into the room. Borders 
 intended for shades of that character require less variety 
 of colors in the design. Browns, crimsons, or deep olive- 
 greens would harmonize best. 
 
 Upon a nursery shade such a design as that in Fig. 
 63 would be appropriate, and would please the little ones. 
 It should simply be worked in dark brown crewels in 
 outline-stitch. 
 
 Piano Panels and Coverings .—As every article of 
 furniture that can be decorated receives its meed of atten¬ 
 tion, the piano does not form any exception to the rule. 
 It has become very usual to remove the paneling in an 
 upright instrument, and in its stead provide a piece of 
 embroidery, in outline pattern or close silk work. Such 
 a design as that furnished in Fig. 64 strikes us as singu¬ 
 larly appropriate. Two little birds in an apple-tree bough 
 are pouring out floods of melody, while a rabbit, entranced, 
 pauses in his delight, and erects his ears to their utmost 
 limit in his desire to catch the strain in its entirety. 
 This design, worked upon crimson or deep-blue satin in 
 outline-work, the blossoms only in raised French knot, 
 would be simply charming. 
 
 Square hangings to hide the unsightly back of a piano 
 when it is wheeled out into the middle of the room are 
 very commonly provided. Sometimes these are simply 
 of muslin drawn over colored calico, with a heading run 
 upon a brass rod, and fitting the width of the instrument; 
 but they can, of course, be much more elaborate. A hang¬ 
 ing of some neutral color is, perhaps, the best, with a con¬ 
 ventionalized bordering on darker material, the colors on 
 no account to be too bright. Or the back can be simply 
 covered with a plain square of sateen, or the coarse an- 
 
110 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 dressed silk now sold at the stores, with a trimming of 
 Macrame lace sewed on at the top and bottom. 
 
 A covering for the top of a cottage-piano is usually 
 only a broad strip of material with a design worked as a 
 border. Holbein-work would look very well in such a 
 position. A handsome design, finished off with plaited 
 fringe to hang over the ends, would be appropriate. 
 Heavier materials are often used, but are not so desir¬ 
 able; neither are the heavy ball and chenille fringes 
 which are sometimes seen. 
 
 For a grand piano, complete covers are made, and 
 there is plenty of scope for as much decoration as is de¬ 
 sired. Such coverings can be of any material, from cool 
 gray linen, made to slip on and off easily, and simply 
 decorated with colored pipings, to the elaborate covering 
 of satin or silk worked in rich embroidery, which is as 
 easily soiled or stained as the instrument it hides could 
 be scratched. A serviceable cover could be made of dark 
 maroon or dark purple cloth, just large enough to go on 
 easily, with a pattern worked upon a bordering in gold 
 silks or yellow crewels, and finished off with a narrow 
 worsted fringe if desired. 
 
 Tidies .—For the infinite varieties of these apparently 
 indispensable articles in modern homes, it is quite impos¬ 
 sible to give any definite directions. But a practical sug¬ 
 gestion may be offered to the effect that such accessories, 
 if they must be allowed, should b q fastened, on to the chair 
 or sofa for which they are intended. Nothing irritates 
 an unfortunate man more than the inevitable disposition 
 that tidies have to stick to his broadcloth! and nothing 
 gives a more untidy look to a room than these same 
 “tidies” when out of place. Who does not know how 
 instinctively a lady sets them straight, and how annoyed 
 
INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 Ill 
 
 she feels ever} 7 time she does it! But, at any rate, as 
 tidies seem to be considered indispensable, let them he 
 fixtures, just tacked into the place they are intended for 
 with a few stitches, or, failing that, pinned securely. 
 
 Baskets , again, are a prolific source of decorative effort. 
 Made now in very loosely plaited straw-work, they are 
 susceptible of almost any amount of ornament. Some¬ 
 times they are simply loosely lined with silk or satin, 
 which is pulled through the interstices, and gives an ap¬ 
 pearance of honey-comb pattern, Avhich is pretty ; or they 
 are embroidered in crewels, generally in raised work, 
 which is effective, and well thrown up by the color of 
 the straw. Pretty effects are produced simply by bands 
 of bright ribbon sewn on, a bunch of wheat, grass, or even 
 corn-ears, being passed through them and secured with 
 a bow. Baskets are now made for such a variety of pur¬ 
 poses, from the substantial structure intended to hold the 
 logs for the winter fire, to the dainty work-basket in 
 which baby’s fairy garments are hidden away, that it is 
 impossible to offer suggestions that can in any way cover 
 the ground. Suffice it to say that, for most of the pur¬ 
 poses that are included in so wide a range, bright, cheery 
 colors are appropriate, and there is not so much reason, 
 as in many other branches of decoration, to say, Be care¬ 
 ful in your selection of variety. Such legitimate objects 
 for ornament may well be left entirely to individual taste 
 and fancy. 
 
 Inexpensive Ornaments .—Under this heading we offer 
 a few practical suggestions to those whose means are 
 more limited than their ambition. It is quite wonderful 
 to consider how much can be done in really effective dec¬ 
 oration with the very simplest materials. Tapes, narrow 
 ribbons, buttons, leather, even brass curtain-rings, can all be 
 
112 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 Fig. 65. 
 
 surprisingly useful. Fig. 65 gives several designs for such 
 attempts. In one of them, buttons, ordinary pearl buttons, 
 
INCIDENTAL DECORATIONS. 
 
 113 
 
 are used, to produce quite an effective pattern. Such cir¬ 
 cles, with the inclosed cross, could be laid, upon any deep- 
 toned material, and would look extremely well as border¬ 
 ing for a portiere. Suppose such a hanging were of blue 
 momie-clofh, a deep crimson border with the white but¬ 
 tons would look very handsome; or the case might be 
 reversed, and crimson chosen as the body of the curtain, 
 blue for the border. 
 
 Side by side with this design is one for a combination 
 of leather and buttons, a larger button forming the cen¬ 
 ter of the leather star. Such strips of leather are easily 
 obtained, either in ordinary yellow, or in better materials, 
 as kid. or morocco. So, too, the diamond design, of leath¬ 
 er, and round “knobby” buttons, would look very well 
 over any dark material, and might be appropriately fin¬ 
 ished off by the Grecian pattern in leather with its outer 
 bordering of buttons. 
 
 Apart from these, the suggestion in the same design 
 for a use of ordinary brass curtain-rings is new and effec¬ 
 tive. The silk for fastening them together should accord 
 with the use for which the decoration is destined. Sup¬ 
 posing the ring pattern is to be placed, over dark blue 
 velvet or cloth, or deep maroon velvet or plush, the fast¬ 
 enings might be of crimson silk, worked in chain-stitch 
 and. so easily secured. Such a linking could, if necessary, 
 secure each ring to the background, or they could be se¬ 
 cured at intervals, sufficiently close to prevent their bulg¬ 
 ing out from the background. The narrow bordering 
 which completes the design could be omitted, or used, as 
 thought best. Lighter material inserted above the dark 
 ground used for the buttons would introduce a variety. 
 
 It will be readily seen that such suggestions open up 
 a field for almost infinite variety. 
 
IX. 
 
 WOOD-CAEVING. 
 
 Wood-carving presents so many pleasant possibilities 
 for ladies, that a work on home decoration would be in¬ 
 complete without some reference to it. It is a mistake to 
 suppose that this art is difficult; its rudiments are very 
 easily acquired from such directions as we shall give, and, 
 once mastered, it is always possible to obtain designs, eith¬ 
 er by copying from nature or by reproducing some of the 
 endless variety that are to be met with on every hand. 
 
 It is scarcely more difficult to indent or carve a panel 
 in low relief than it is to transfer a pattern to the sur¬ 
 face of the wood, and after a little practice in panels it 
 will be found quite easy to carve “ in the round,” that is, 
 to make complete figures. 
 
 Sets of light tools can be purchased, but ladies should 
 avoid buying those known as “ carving tools,” as they are 
 usually too heavy for small and weak hands, and ama¬ 
 teurs require simple implements. Those known as 
 “ print-cutters’ tools,” which are small copies of the 
 wood-carver’s implements, are the best, and small handles 
 are sold to which these instruments are easily fitted. 
 
 The tools required include chisels of three sizes; one 
 of them an eighth of an inch in width, the others re¬ 
 spectively a quarter and a half inch wide. After buying 
 these tools, it is requisite to get them sharpened, and for 
 
WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 115 
 
 carving in wood the chisels should be ground rather slant¬ 
 ingly, in order that the cutting edge may be at an angle 
 with the sides instead of square with them ; by this means 
 a sharper edge is obtained, invaluable in cutting the fine 
 edges of an elaborate design. 
 
 An oil-stone must also be purchased to set the edges, 
 for although this is done in the first instance where the 
 tools are bought, each worker must learn to do it as occa¬ 
 sion requires. The stone is fixed in a block, and the 
 whole process consists in pouring a few drops of oil upon 
 the stone, and passing the tool rapidly to and fro, grasp¬ 
 ing it in the right hand, and pressing the fore and middle 
 fingers upon the instrument, while the thumb supports it 
 beneath. It is only necessary to move the tool regularly 
 and keep it at the same slant all the time. 
 
 After using, the stone must be carefully wiped, or it 
 will become incrusted with the steel raspings from the 
 tools. 
 
 Next after the chisels come the gouges, which are 
 merely chisels of another kind, the surfaces being bent in 
 a position parallel with the length, so that a curved groove 
 is obtained upon using them instead of a flat cut. Gouges 
 can be bought of various sizes, and stones for grinding 
 them are sold with them. 
 
 Many other tools are often spoken of in connection 
 with carving, but in reality a lady possessed of a few 
 chisels and gouges of different sizes has sufficient stock 
 for all the preliminaries of the art, and as she progresses 
 will learn the necessary additions to be made. 
 
 For the purpose of carrying on wood-carving, a strong 
 deal table should be procured, the stronger and heavier 
 the better, as nails must be driven in and holes bored in 
 it. The table should stand in a good light. 
 
116 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 The first attempt at such work must necessarily he a 
 very simple one. An ivy-leaf is the easiest representa¬ 
 tion that can he attempted. For the purpose, a piece of 
 smooth pine-wood should he chosen, as free from knots 
 as possible, and about three quarters of an inch in thick¬ 
 ness. Perfectly dry, well-seasoned wood is necessary, 
 and old boards, such as are to be found stored away in 
 most houses, would answer admirably for a beginning. 
 A sketch of the leaf to be carved must first be drawn 
 upon paper, the back of which is then rubbed with red 
 chalk; this paper is then pinned on to the wood, and 
 pressed over with some blunt instrument—a bodkin, 
 crochet-needle, or pin-head will do—and upon removing 
 it the outline will be found upon the wood. Deficiencies 
 in the outline must be corrected in pencil, or, if hard wood 
 is used, in pen and ink. 
 
 This satisfactorily accomplished, the first process of 
 carving, known as “ stabbing-out,” follows. This can be 
 effected in two ways—either by using the chisel and sim¬ 
 ply stabbing the outline of the leaf, by holding the tool 
 upright and pressing directly downward, or by the use of 
 a little notched instrument called a “ pattern-wheel,” 
 which turns on pressure and with its little points dents 
 out the pattern as it is pushed along the outlined edges. 
 
 When once the design is thus distinctly outlined into 
 the wood, it is a good plan to deepen the depression 
 made by the chisel by running the curved gouge round 
 the edge, until a groove about the sixteenth of an inch in 
 depth is made. 
 
 The next operation, of cutting away the wood be¬ 
 tween the outlines, requires caution. The chisel should 
 be held in the right hand, the wrist of the left being held 
 firmly on the panel, and the tool guided by the forefinger 
 
WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 117 
 
 of the left hand. As little wood as possible should be 
 removed at first, until the operator thoroughly under¬ 
 stands how to cut with or against the grain of the wood. 
 To clear the wood between the outlines, it is best to 
 work across, that is, not in the direction of the fibers. It 
 is better to begin the operation of cutting out the wood 
 about a quarter of an inch from the outline, and to shave’ 
 very gradually toward it, relieving the wood at each cut, 
 and setting the leaf free; experience will soon teach the 
 best method for securing accuracy in the outline. 
 
 All this should be done very carefully and slowly, 
 until the wood is entirely removed between the pattern 
 edges, leaving the pattern in relief; and care must be 
 taken always to cut thoroughly, and never to tear away 
 or dig the wood. A great authority upon the subject 
 says: “ Leave no rags, jags, or fragments ; clear out com¬ 
 pletely every angle and corner ; get your work as smooth 
 as possible with whatever tool you may be using, and let 
 every stroke of your chisel or gouge be regulated by de¬ 
 sign.” This, of course, can only come by practice; but 
 by following these simple rules, by cutting slowly and 
 carefully, a little at a time, by holding the tools firmly 
 and leaving the pattern sloping outward to be finished, 
 the amateur will be surprised at the results obtained after 
 very little practice. 
 
 The mid-ribs of the separate lobes of the leaf now 
 call for attention. These must first be stabbed out, as in 
 the case of the outline, and then the surface of the lobe 
 be slanted down to them from side to side. 
 
 The second stage is merely a repetition of the first 
 process, the ground being uniformly lowered, and then 
 the appearance of the leaf claims consideration. Certain 
 portions of the surface must be lowered to present an ap- 
 
118 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 pearance of reality, parts remaining at tlieir original ele¬ 
 vation, others being cut or shaved away to present an un¬ 
 dulating surface. Here a knowledge of art is useful in 
 suggesting the right distribution of light and shade, 
 which must be conveyed by the ingenious use of the 
 gouges of different degrees of curvature. Some begin¬ 
 ners, distressed at the unequal appearance of the carved 
 surface, have recourse to artificial means for smoothing 
 and leveling, and employ glass-paper, or sand, or even 
 small sticks glued and dipped in sand, which they use as 
 polishers; but wood-carving ought to depend upon no 
 such artificial aid—it should remain as the tools leave it. 
 
 In carving, the study of nature is very important; by 
 this means a knowledge of the different fibers in various 
 leaves is acquired, and wood-carving, from being merely 
 mechanical amusement, becomes in reality an art. 
 
 Such simple instructions suffice to prove how much 
 might be accomplished for home decoration by mere 
 beginners in the art of wood-carving; it is not our pur¬ 
 pose to offer directions for the more elaborate work 
 which can be studied in schools, and which requires 
 more preparation and the use of more complicated in¬ 
 struments than are easily procurable. The first principles 
 once learned, it is easy for a lady to adapt them to orna¬ 
 mentation, and, from the use of the chisel and gouge, she 
 Avill very probably have recourse to the fret-saw, for the 
 elaboration of designs for brackets, book-stands, shelves, 
 etc. 
 
 The fret-saw is an instrument consisting of a frame 
 made up of two side-pieces and a cross-bar. The blade 
 or saw is kept in its place by two iron pins which pass 
 through the handles, and a cord is wound round the 
 upper ends of the side-pieces. Before using it, a hole 
 
WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 119 
 
 must be cut in the wood winch, is to be operated upon, 
 into which the end of the saw is introduced, and then, 
 by very gentle pressure upon the handles, it is worked 
 over the outlined design. Yarious sizes can be obtained, 
 and the fret-saw can be bought in connection with 
 treadles which are worked by the foot; but it must 
 never be forgotton that the saw only works as it is 
 pressed forward, and it can only be drawn back by being 
 lightly lifted. In designing a pattern to be worked by 
 the fret-saw, it must be borne in mind that an equal 
 distribution of form and of space is indispensable, that 
 there may not be too great a space in one part, or too 
 much wood in another. A very good way of testing the 
 design before attempting to cut it out, is to fill in all the 
 parts that are to be removed with Indian ink, leaving the 
 pattern itself white; by this means it is easy to judge of 
 the proportions of space and wood. Another thing to be 
 considered is that the pattern for fret-sawing must always 
 be connected with the border at certain points. 
 
 When finished, carving may either be left in the 
 natural condition of the wood, or it may be thought desir¬ 
 able to polish or stain it. Sweet-oil mixed with umber 
 will both polish and darken the surface of oak, and vari¬ 
 ous dyes can be obtained at the stores. For ordinary 
 black stain, the best ink applied three or four times with 
 a brush is excellent. Different woods take different 
 dyes, and this must be a matter of individual taste and 
 experience. 
 
 Sometimes, in carving or sawing, a crack or hole 
 occurs; in such a case, it is a good plan to make some 
 dust with a coarse file from the wood and convert it into 
 paste with glue, filling the cavity with it. Directions 
 are always given with the different machines for fret- 
 11 
 
120 
 
 HOME DECORATION. 
 
 sawing tliat are now in use. Work done by machines is 
 necessarily more perfectly accurate than that accom¬ 
 plished by the hand-saw or chisel; but it is also less 
 artistic, and most ladies who attempt decoration in wood¬ 
 carving will be content with the beautiful results they 
 can obtain by the slow but satisfactory use of ordinary 
 implements. It must not be forgotten that in wood¬ 
 carving, more than in almost any other art, the stages 
 from simply indenting or cutting patterns, up to the 
 more perfect execution of objects in high relief or “ in 
 the round,” are so easy and gradual that the amateur 
 who can master the first may easily aspire to the last, 
 and from simple carving intended for the lid of a box, 
 or the ends of a book-stand or a bracket, proceed to the 
 elaborate ornamentation of the larger objects that go to 
 make up the beauty and comfort of a home. 
 
 THE END. 
 
AD VERTISEMENTS. 
 
 Artistic Wall Papers, 
 
 ON HAND AND MADE TO ORDER BY 
 
 ER. BECK & CO., 
 
 At their Factory, corner Twenty-ninth St. and Seventh Ave., 
 
 NEW YORK. 
 
 COLORS of CARPETS and DRAPERIES MATCHED. 
 
 THE ENTIRE WORK OF INTERIOR DECORATION 
 DONE UNDER OUR SUPERVISION. 
 
 Ceiling Decorations a Specialty. 
 
APPLETONS 
 
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 AMENITIES OF HOME. 
 
 HOUSEHOLD HINTS. 
 
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 THE ART OF SPEECH. Vol. II. Studies in Eloquence and Logic. By L. 
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ALL AROUND THE HOUSE; 
 
 OR, 
 
 HOW TO MAKE HOMES HAPPY. 
 
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