sf. Z. GRAVES & CO. 161-163 WATER ST, NT. Y, CITY, U. vS. A.. Hit ... i ,v.' /Hfe Ai t, /, A-. Respectfully Dedicated to All Who Love a Lovely Home I N D El X Whether You Read Anything Else or Not , Do Not Fail to Read Our Personal Letter to You on Page 4 Advice and Inquiry — Special Department 5, 7, 8 Alphabet of Zenith Art Lus- ters - 24 Aluminum 26, 34 Applying the Luster - - 31 Automobiles 25 Baby Buggies 25 Bicycles 26 Bric-a-Brac, Scroll-work, etc. 26 Brushes — Care of 32 Burlap-- 26 Calcimines — 11 Carriages 29 Ceilings 10 Charges Prepaid 33 Color Card 18, 19 Color Schemes 21, 22, 23, 24 Copper Bronze — 26, 34 Covering Capacity 34 Crack or Crevice Filler 30 Dealers’ Names 36 Directions — 30, 31, 32 Drying--- 31 Dry Tinting Powders, Calci- mines, etc — 11 Easy Improvements with Zenith Art Lusters 33 Enamel — H w to 15, 32 Fillers — Crack or Crevice — Paste - 30 Floors - 12. 30. 31 Foreign Orders — 35 Front Doors 26 Furnace Pipes — 26 Furniture — Beautiful — Well Kept 16 Gas Pipes - 27 Gloss Wall Surface II Gold Leaf, Aluminum, Cop- per Bronze 26, 34 Home Department - 7, 8 Home Lovers Who Read This Booklet 7 Home of Zenith Art Lusters in New York 35 Hot Water Tanks — - 27 Imitation Tiling 26 Important Notice - 33 Invitation — Mrs. Potter’s 8, 9 Iron Bedsteads — 26 Page 26 36 Label Linoleum and Oilcloth 26 Mattings 26 Metal Work Secrets 27 Mission Oak 15.16 Natural 12 New Floors — 30 Oil Cloth - 26 Oil Paints 1 1 Our Object Paste Filler- 1 1 30 Perfect Floors 31 Personal Letters- 4. 8 Photographs - - - 7 Porch Furniture 27 Preparation of Surface 30 Prices — - 35 Radiators, Water Pipes, Gas Pipes, Hot Water Tanks 27 Registers 28 Remove Any Old Finish — To 31 Sanitary Surroundings — Im- portance of-- - 6 Screen Doors, W l n d o w Screens 28 Sizes - 35 Storm Doors, Storm Windows 28 Students* Rooms, Dormitories, 29 Tid-bits of Interest 25, 26. 27, 28, 29 Tinting Instructions - - 20 To Women from Mrs. Pot- ter — A Personal Word 8 Undercoat — 32 Vehicles : Carriages, Station Wagons, Cabs, etc. 29 Wall Finish — The Perfect — A Gloss 11 Wall Paints 11 Wall Paper - 10 Walls and Ceilings - 10 Water Pipes - - 27 Weathered Oak - 15 What We Wish to Say to You Personally 4 Where Zenith Art Lusters Are Used 24 White Lead Paints 10 Woodwork— Polished 14 Woods — Open Grained 30 Graves’ Zenith Art Lusters The World Over FOR The Artistic Home If you covet for your own home the air of gentle dignity and good taste which makes the charm of the room above, read Mrs. Potter s offer, entirely free, to every home-maker, on page eight. Read Our Personal Letter to You on Page Four N. Z. GRAVES & CO. Department “R ” 161-163 Water Street New York, N. Y. U. S. A. Page Three PREFACE SQbat Sic SUsb to Say to ‘tou Personally Dear Friend: — W e have prepared this book solely for your convenience. We have tried to make it as brief as possible and yet full of just those things that you need to know about Zenith Art Lusters. Outside of personal temperament, the interior decoration and furnishing of the home exert the one influence which has most to do with our com- fort and happiness. In these, most of all, we display our characteristics, tastes, and degree of refinement to those of whom we think enough to invite them into our homes. It is, too, the hardest element in all our sur- roundings to make harmonious and artistic, and to accomplish this is very often beyond the limit of the time or money one has to expend. It is always a serious problem to obtain satisfactory results in this direction without unlimited re- sources at one’s command. To easily create harmonious and artistic homes, with small expenditure, Zenith Art Lusters have been developed. They have been brought to the highest degree of perfection. There is nothing else like them on the market or that even nearly approaches them in adaptability for trans- forming every portion of the home into beauty and harmony. We study earnestly at all times to discover superior products — to develop more splendid col- ors and decorative schemes — and we consider this book the finest we could offer you. It is worthy of serious notice by all in any way interested in home decoration. We take a personal interest in every firm or individual who buys Zenith Art Lusters, and appreciate g'reatly the chances for personal acquaintance that we very often get. We are always glad also, of an opportunity to carry on a personal correspondence with each individual, especially where he feels a little in doubt as to how any particular work he is thinking of doing should be finished. We very often get in- spirations for our greatest improvements in this way. You help us by showing us just what Page Four ZENITH ART LUSTERS people want, and how the public taste is gradually changing, and we appreciate your assistance. On the other hand, we knoxo we can help you, of which this book is evidence, and we have no higher ideal. We make it the foundation of all our business dealings to treat as a personal friend, you who place your confidence in us to the extent of buying our goods, or who take a share of your time to read our letters and look over carefully the line which we have to offer you. Turn through the following pages very care- fully and look over the views of homes showing how Zenith Art Lusters may be used. We will appreciate the courtesy of this brief consideration which we ask of you. At your first opportunity try the help we offer. You will get the full equivalent of your invest- ment in right treatment, honest goods, full meas- ure, superior quality, and service of the highest artistic merit, besides our personal interest in your welfare and satisfaction, upon all of which we relv to keep you using Zenith Art Lusters year after year. N. Z. GRAVES & CO., Department “R 161-163 Water St., N. Y. By F. E. Latta, Manager Dep’t “ R ” "Oh wad some power the giftie gie us To see oursel’s as others see us ! "— Robert Burns Page Five ZENITH ART LUSTERS Importance of Sanitary Surroundings Correct methods of living and sanitary surroundings are today the great secrets of immunity from dangerous diseases, and the higher degree of healthfulness which may be easily secured by all those who will give the matter sufficient thought. To this end modern methods are offered at actually less cost than the old defective and dangerous ones. To eradicate all dirt and especially dust from the person and living places is the first great principle of health. Dust is the greatest of all enemies against good health. All human beings above the beast level keep their persons clean. Dirt of the more solid types in our surroundings may be seen or smelled and avoided or disposed of, but dust is always present and lightly enters our lungs and our whole system in every breath, without notice or warning. Hence the urgent necessity of offering it no lodging place where we live. To this end many great changes in methods of decorating homes have taken place in recent years. Tacked carpets, lying undisturbed and full of dust for months or a year at a time, have given way to rugs easily moved, and cleaned in a moment. Underneath, are varnished and polished floors easily and quickly wiped up and so freed from all contamination. Papered walls in all their figured and hideous ugliness, and “full of all uncleanness and dead men’s bones,” give way to bare plastered walls with artistic tints and shades, which offer only places of harmonious beauty and healthfulness. Woodwork is smooth and polished and easily cleaned and receives the due attention which it richly deserves and amply repays. To foster modern happy health, there has been noth- ing developed better than Zenith Art Lusters — for floors, walls, woodwork and furniture. A few cents secures for you the greatest decorative genius of the artist and the triumph of the scientist’s search for the secret of health in our homes. Of the great plagues, which have in the past devas- tated the world and its nations, none has failed to yield completely to the simple remedies of cleanliness and pure food — the black plague, small pox, yellow fever or ty- phoid. The last great terror — the “great white plague,” tuberculosis or consumption — is gradually faltering in his hitherto impregnable trenches and towers before the slow approach of knowledge, cleanliness, and the ap- preciation and fear of the danger of contaminated dust. Leave dust no foothold in your home and you have joined the forces that are fighting this and other plagues of sickness and death. Zenith Art Lusters for any and all corners of the artistic home, have the heartiest commendation and earnest endorsement of all physicians and health scientists. It is the most vital assistant of this nature that has ever appeared on the market, upholding them in their efforts to overcome sickness and to educate the masses to the dangers surrounding them. Zenith Art Lusters are an important adjunct to the modern hos- pital, asylum, invalid room, public building, etc., as well as in the home, and are widely acknowledged as such. p a«e Six ZENITH ART LUSTERS To Rome Lovers ((I ho Read Oris Booklet You will be interested to know that the young woman who is photographed in the following pages is a typical and practical young American housekeeper whose assistance in developing Art Lusters, and in the preparation of this service- able booklet and the many artistic color schemes we offer you, has been invaluable. The photo- graphs were taken as she was actually at work. We know they will be treated as if in the hands of friends. The development of the many prac- tical daily uses of Art Lusters has been the result of similar assistance of many gifted, progressive young housekeepers of artistic, home-loving tastes ‘‘the world over.” We have most happily succeeded in persuad- ing Mrs. Potter to give a share of her time to answering any inquiries from the women who read this book in regard to beautifying their homes. Mrs. Potter’s education has been that of an artist partially (not enough to spoil her as a housekeeper and home-maker as we hope you will have occasion to discover) and this together with her practical experience in her own home and with the simple use of paints and varnish stains as a means of beautifying the same makes her especially capable of giving advice in matters of this kind, which will be both technical and practicable. No one will touch or open any of these letters of inquiry but Mrs. Potter herself. Any woman who thinks she might make her home look brighter and prettier by proper use of colors, or a little attention to the furniture, and who would like careful advice how to go about it is invited to write to her. On page 8 is her per- sonal letter to you. Page Seve,. ZENITH ART LUSTERS MRS. FREDERICK C. POTTER H personal fcGord to (Aomen from jVIrs. potter Dear Friends: — I anticipate a great deal of pleasure in hearing from you and in planning beautiful things for you, as I have always been intensely interested in finding ways of improv- ing and beautifying my own home. I think I can sympathize with you in every re- spect, for I have kept my own home and done all my work for six years. I always look at one of my rooms which I furnished almost out of nothing, with a great deal of pleasure and satis- faction, for it is one of the very prettiest rooms in the house. I have found by experience that however inexpensive the materials one has to work with, if good taste and some ingenuity and thought are expended, the result is sure to be beautiful. I most sincerely invite you to write to me in regard to anything about the home. If you have any plan for a room, and you will write to me, I shall be glad to think it over carefully and work it out for you. You have no idea how easily and with what little cost you can furnish an entire room out of old pieces which you have I Page Eight ZENITH ART LUSTERS put in the attic as worthless. After all, it is in the heart of all we women to make our home full of such charm as no other place in the world can offer to our loved ones. And if I can help you do this, do you wonder that I am glad to hear from every one of you? I hope that this letter will be the means of establishing a confidence and friendship between us, as strong as though 1 could meet you personally and take your hand. I want to assure you that anything you may write me will come directly to me and will never, under any circumstances go out of my possession. Please let me ask you in writing to me to g'o as much into detail as possible, telling me what you wish to accomplish and what you have to work with. For instance, suppose you have an unfur- nished room which you wish to furnish entire. Tell me whether you have any pieces to use in the room, what they are and how they are fin- ished, whether oak or walnut, or old pieces with the finish all spoiled ; tell me what you wish to use the room for and who is to use it ; give me a rough sketch of the room, showing the location of windows, doors, etc. ; and tell me any ideas you may have for the furnishing of the room. Or, if it is a room that does not satisfy you alto- gether and you wish to know just what to do to make it pleasing and attractive, tell me what the furniture is and its finish, what the curtains at the windows are, and the colors of the rug, etc., and by studying it carefully I will try to show you what you can do. The more clearly you explain the room, the easier it will be for me to help you. Hoping to hear from you soon, I remain, Sincerely your friend, MRS. FREDERICK C. POTTER, Care of X. Z. Graves & Co., Department “R.” 161-163 Water Street, New York, N. Y. Page Nine ZENITH ART LUSTERS “There is nothing I know of that will give the same soft, beautiful colors for the walls as the tints I make with Zenith Art Lusters.” Better (flails and Ceilings ABOUT DANGERS TO BE AVOIDED AND AN ARTISTIC FINISH The largest surface to be taken care of in considering the artistic decoration of the interior of your home, is that of the walls and ceilings. The great question for walls and ceilings to-day when people understand so well the danger of unsani- tary surroundings is : “With what shall they be fin- ished?” | Wallpaper? Wallpaper is known to be a hotbed where germs which produce all kinds of disease breed and thrive. Pasted in, they live for months and years waiting an opportunity to come out; and are escaping at all hours of the day and night. A former tenant may have had typhoid, consumption, dyphtheria, or other contagious disease, the germs of which are thriving in loose cor- ners and holes and joints in the paper. Or, blown into the home from the outer air and carried in with the j dust of the streets, from which none are safeguarded, they lodge in just such places. Paste of such kinds as are used for papering walls is the very thing a scientist uses in which to develop a culture of bacteria and germs to make them feed and multiply. It is just as good when dry as when moist. Pick loose the corners and joints, rotten places in the plaster underneath, or where the paste has failed to J fasten the paper down solid. You will find them splendid j places of refuge for bed-bugs, roaches, or vermin that, j given a foothold, will hide away and multiply in spots where you cannot reach them, or become so numerous that they cannot all be found. In an old house in the city or country, your predecessors may have left this host behind them. This is not a fancy write-up merely for the purpose of advertising, but a recitation of scientific facts, or ! statements which are self-evident and open to your i own instant verification. White Lead Paints? Dry powder dusting off any paint, enamel or other j finish containing white lead, is as poisonous as the ZENITH ART LUSTERS germ-fostering wallpaper, or worse, and daily, scores of deaths result from its work in unsuspecting homes. It is constantly starting children into the world with weak constitutions or chronic diseases of various organs of the body by its unknown and unsuspected influ- ence. Oil Paints — “Wall Paints”? Oil paints and so-called "Wall paints” (even if free, as they seldom are, from white lead dangers), have a gloss which you rarely want and which makes them unsuited to practically all wall uses. Dry Tinting Powders, Calcimines, etc.? The many dry powders to be mixed with hot or cold water for tinting rooms, all come short of that perfec- tion which you are earnestly seeking. They all look cheat \ They spot with every drop of water. They rub off. They fade and in many cases gradually disappear, or with steam they sink into the wall, and leave the dirty, streaked, pastey sizing showing through from underneath. They scar easily when furniture is scraped against the wall. They are made so as to be easily washed off, and each Spring and Fall must come off and be done over again. An amateur cannot put them on so they will not show streaks and laps, nor match colors with any certainty of satisfaction. The Perfect Finish. The only perfect, sanitary finish for walls and ceil- ings, which is simply and easily applied and which avoids the many pitfalls in the way of the inexperienced person and imperfect materials — which makes it impossible to get inharmonious effects and which studies to aid you in producing an artistic home, is found in the flat tints (those without the gloss) of Zenith Art Lusters. Look over the attached color card and the color suggestions. A (iloss Wall Surface. Where you need a highly polished or gloss surface on a wall (so that it can be washed off like glass when soiled and be as good as new), use the same tints and color-plans, then when thoroughly dry put on one or two coats of "Natural." This is the way the profes- sional painter or decorator does his enameling. Flat coats are applied first, then the varnish. This treat- ment is for rooms that are much or badly used : as the kitchen, with its occasional smoke or grease or splashing water ; the laundry room, with water and steam; the children’s rooms — nursery and schoolrooms; hospitals and perpetual sick rooms. If Zenith Art Lusters for the above purposes have their drawbacks we have not found them, neither have our customers, and our nearest competitors with substi- tutes or other goods have been unable to point them out. On the pages that follow, are planned out a host of beautiful schemes providing a wide range of harmonious decorations. If you desire to enter the very absorbing pursuit of stencil decoration, we will be glad to send you perfectly free an elementary but comprehensive little article entitled “Stencilling — When and How,” which will be very helpful to you. Our object is to aid you in making the home a place that is irresistable to the home circle — comfortable, artistic, well kept and charmingly dainty and attractive. Page Eleven ZENITH ART LUSTERS “ The part which appears varnished, 1 did yesterday. 1 was interrupted and could not finish until to-day.*’ floors AS THEY APPEAL TO THE HOUSEKEEPER The floors in the home are of great interest and im- portance. They form one part of the home for which Zenith Art Lusters are specially intended. » The constant desire of every home lover is to find something beautiful for the floors; something which for new floors may be put on the finest, most carefully se- lected woods, and not in any degree obscure or alter the most delicate and beautiful grainings. It must give the highest polish and best wearing surface, be waxed, if necessary, on the dancing floor and afterwards cleaned, and still retain its original beauty. It must serve for old floors or new, be equally relied upon for all the varying requirements of the different rooms, from the serviceable workrooms (kitchen and living rooms) to the elegant and more ornate parlor and reception hall. Determined to always please everybody, our first and absolutely indispensable requirement has been a totally colorless floor finish ; one that contains no rosin and that will stand the hardest wear without showing scratch or heel mark or marring white; one that will not spot or turn white with water or soap. We have produced a finish that will be equally satisfactory for the economical and durable requirements of the rooms ! of hardest wear — as the kitchen floors — or the even, smooth texture, the elegant polish and the soft, trails- j parent beauty, necessary to enrich without coloring, j the exquisite graining of the choicest and most expensive woods. “Natural” on the attached color card, fills this highest ideal perfectly, and is the only floor finish made that so combines the delicate Qualities and utter transoarency of the highest grade varnishes, with the necessary wear- ing toughness and elasticity as to produce the ideal finish for floors. It is very economical, and both for quality and price, no dealer need ever carry any other Page Twelve ZENITH ART LUSTERS Zenith Art Lusters are the finishing touch in any artistic home. finish for floors in stock. Anything better it is im- possible to produce. You can get results just as good as shown in our pictures or on our sample boards. The different colors showing a gloss surface are simply “Natural," containing stains to match any desired color scheme. Stained Lusters are especially desirable where an old, rough, or abused floor must be covered, for a floor that has been painted or stained, but which you wish to avoid scraping to uncover the natural wood, or if you wish to carry out some color scheme and match decorations, walls, or furniture. One of the grandest things about finishing floors with Zenith Art Lusters, aside from DURABLE SURFACE, BEAUTY OF FINISH, SPLENDID POLISH, SANITARY HEALTITFULNESS, ETC., is the alluring simplicity of keeping them clean. They never can get so they look grimy, or really appear dirty. Occasional treatments with Zenith Art Lusters keep floors smooth as glass or tile and all they ever need is simply to be wiped up with a damp cloth. \\ hen you do this, you do away with sweeping even. There are no splinters or roughness to injure the hands. Back-breaking, health-destroying, much-dreaded scrub- bing, with its constant, extravagant waste of life-cur- rent energy, is absolutely unnecessary. It is one of the evils that sap the youth and pleasure out of life for the home-maker. For seventy-five cents, far less labor, and only as much time as it takes to scrub once, scrubbing may be a thing of the past forever. For one who has never had Art Luster floors, there is no means of knowing the greatness of the burden which may be so easily lifted from stooping shoulders. It is a sin for any man to allow his wife to scrub a floor which might, with no appreciable effort, be so finished that scrubbing need never be done again. Page Thirteen ZENITH ART LUSTERS Nothing is so beautiful in a bath-room as pure, unspotted white. polished (tloodworh NEW IDEAS OF ARTISTIC VALUE You have more or less naked woodwork in every room, in most rooms a great deal, such as doors and door jams, window frames and window seats, wains- coting, baseboards, stair-rails, panels, etc. Look at any room. The color of the woodwork is I the trimming color for all the rest. It may either set off the room and give it tone and style, or it may destroy all sense of harmony and the pleasure of getting any general effect, no matter how well planned the other parts may be. The impression a room gives may be good or bad, according as the woodwork therein shows evidence of attention and har- monizes with the surroundings, or oppositely", jars on the nerves, perhaps unconsciously, as the result of failure to give it due consideration. Under these circumstances the treatment of j the woodwork, though really" requiring but a i small amount of time, must be regarded as very- important. It should present a clean, smooth, polished surface, free from soiled or worn spots or a marred and scratched look. It amply repays the small attention really necessary after all, to get the right results, and which it so richly deserves. A little j attention here secures a most beautiful finish throughout i your home, and may easily" alter the entire effect, chang- j ing a glaring abuse of good taste and harmony into soothing, homelike surroundings, at the expense of but | a few cents and a little time or trouble. It is so easy I that there is no excuse for lack of beauty and a refined air about the home. There is no reason why all the woodwork should not have the beautiful finish found and so much admired i and prized on the most highly polished pieces of furni- i ture. With a little care or labor, y r ou may easily change the common, cheap, or old appearance of your wood- I work into a rich and highly polished surface. Genuine solid mahogany wood, for instance, is originally a very | light reddish brown and the beautiful dark, rich color so much admired, is obtained by applications of stains I and varnishes rubbed down very smooth. Page Fourteen ZENITH ART LUSTERS Zenith Art Lusters on your woodwork will match any of the beautiful and expensive woods shown by the card. The secret lies in getting a very smooth sur- face to start with. Then apply the desired luster direct. It will varnish and stain with one operation, giving a rich, deep, highly polished surface. Or, flat Zenith Art Luster may be used, and if desired, a gloss surface given by a final coat of “Natural,” al- though the soft, unvarnished surfaces are just now much admired. The whole is a beautiful, artistic set- ting for the further furnishings of the room. 44 JMission Oak ” “Mission Oak" Luster produces the mission or weathered oak effect on furniture or woodwork, either on new work or work that has been finished before. The popularity of this beautiful style of decoration indi- cates that the true artistic sense has taken hold of a great proportion of the people. It is not often that so pronounced an appreciation of the truly artistic shows itself so widely among the general public. Such things are sometimes caught in the public fancy in that way which creates "fads." This is no doubt partly responsi- ble for the present craze for weathered oaks, “Mission Oaks" and similar finishes. But seldom are "fads” backed with so much reason for being. And in this particular instance the “fad" has so successfully brought to the general attention a thing of such great beauty and decorative value, that it must of necessity stay with us as one of the standard articles. And no manufacturer has yet produced anything which will permit one to make this weathered or "Mis- sion Oak" effect for himself except “Mission Oak" Zenith Art Lusters. It is splendid to finish one room in this way — a reception hall, a living room, dining room, bedroom, den, library or a cosy, artistic parlor. A beautiful "Weathered Oak" on new open grained woods, such as oak, chestnut, ash, etc., may be secured by applying a coat of "Ebony” flat without first filling the wood, and after standing a few minutes wiping it off across the grain with a coarse cloth while still wet. Row to €namel There is no place that an enamel finish may be de- sired, where Zenith Art Lusters do not supply the best means of getting really fine results. There is no finish superior to enamel in many cases, and usually no job harder for the amateur to accomplish. It is solely because he does not know how to go about it. Nothing is easier to him who knows. The professional decora- tor does not use enamel for such work. He gets his color first with flat paint having no gloss whatever and makes it extremely smooth by sandpapering and rub- bing. Then he obtains the finest kind of gloss with one or two coats of perfectly colorless varnish, using the ut- most care to avoid dust or rough particles settling in it. The essentials are : Smooth surface -with a!! coats, Freedom from dust and rough specks settling in the varnish, Selection of a pleasing color, The soft depth and luster of the varnish. The flat tints of Zenith Art Lusters are specially adapted to this work. With fine sandpaper and a rub- bing stone, a surface as smooth as glass can be made. On this, one or two coats of “Natural” bring out a soft, deep gloss. No more beautiful or perfect enamels can be made. The smoothness of the surface before the "Natural” is applied is the thing of great importance. Page Fifteen ZEN I T H ART LUSTERS “I make it a point to freshen up all my porch furniture when the first warm days of Spring begin to come.” Beautiful furniture, (Hell Kept FOR EVERY ROOM AT SMALL COST Is your furniture entirely satisfactory to you in every room? Is it altogether beautiful, as it should be, giving an impression of comfort, good taste, ease and refinement? Is there a note of harmony running throughout the furnishings of the home, so that a guest feels at once the good taste and artistic skill of the home-maker? If not, we want to show you that by re- finishing an article here or there, or perhaps by re- finishing the furniture of an entire room, the home may be made beautiful throughout. It is here that our Zenith Art Lusters pro- duce a most beautiful result. You may change a cheap looking piece of furniture into one of solid beauty by an application of one of the rich colors shown. V ery old and much used pieces, where the surface is badly marred but where the shape is good, by first applying a ground color and then one of the Art Lusters, will be changed from an eyesore into a thing of rare beauty and of much use. Forget the ugly finish. Simply notice the shape, whether quaint, dainty, or massive — and try it. We assure you, you will be more than pleased. Through Zenith Art Lusters, we have made possible to you the rich, rare beauty of the most expensive woods com- bined with the high polish and soft luster so much admired by everyone. You cannot possibly finish your furniture with any- thing else that will so well resist scratches, scars and mars of all kinds, as our Zenith Art Lusters. Take particular notice of our “Mission Oak,’ the finish which is more popular than any other at present and which cannot be surpassed for durability. By using “Mission Oak,” you will obtain the highly prized, soft Page Sixteen ZENITH ART LUSTERS "A short time ago I completed refinishing another bed-room in White, Blue and Gold. It is the daintiest room I have. dull browns which are so beautiful, and which have re- ceived and merited so much praise from artists the world over. Ill most homes the furnishings are the result of accu- mulation. Additions made from time to time as found convenient, with variations in color, style, finish, age and expensiveness, result in utter inability to procure any- thing like a consistent and harmonious whole. See the many color schemes on the following pages for ideas of harmonious combinations, giving ceilings, walls, floors, woodwork and furniture a cover of harmonizing Lusters. If it is desired to refresh the furniture, use "Natural.” To make a beautiful, fresh piece of furniture out of old, use the other stains. The most beautiful decorative effects can be obtained, making all harmonize with a uniform idea or match the more expensive pieces. This develops unsuspected beauties ; it makes dain- ty rooms ; it shows artistic simplicity or produces a rich luxury suited to the different tastes of the occu- pants or the style desired. In almost every house, old furniture may be found consigned to the attic or stored away as useless. Many times rooms can be furnished entire with pieces of furniture which had apparently lost their usefulness, by adopting some color scheme in Art Lusters for the room, and with most surprising and delightful results. I remember the daintiest, prettiest bedroom I ever saw, every piece of furniture in which came out of an attic whence it had long been consigned as perfectly use- less. The room itself and all the furnishings were done over in a beautiful plan of light blue, white and gold. Single pieces or entire sets are thus equally to be im- proved. You will first perhaps try it on a single piece that you wish to improve in appearance, and later on entire rooms or through the entire house. Many new houses are finished throughout with Zenith Art Lus- ters. Whether it is furniture which is beginning to show wear, old furniture long disused but still sound and strong, or furniture which simply does not har- monize, Zenith Art Lusters remedy the difficulty quickly and easily. Page Seventeen GRAVES’ ZENI READY FOR USE ART LUSTERS SEE DIRECTIONS PAGE 20 PINK TINT LIGHT GREEN LIGHT BLUE MURAL GREEN GREEN TINT LIGHT OLIVE SUNSHINE MEDIUM GREEN WARM RED ! ZENITH ART LUSTERS Tinting Instructions. The colors shown in the first two columns of the color card are carried ready for use as shown. The colors in the third and fourth columns are tints which you make yourself by combining two others ac- cording to directions green below. Even if not shown on the card, you can easily produce any desired tint or shade of color using “ Pure White” fiat, “Ebony” fiat and the three primary colors of the spectrum , namely, “Spectrum Red,” “Spectrum Yellow ” and “Spectrum Blue” Zenith Art Lusters. Make I’ink Tint from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Spectrum Red.” Make Light Green from “Pure White” flat timed with “Moss Green.” Make Light Blue from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Spectrum Blue.” Make Ivory from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Spectrum Yel- low.” Make Pink from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Spectrum Red.” Make Silver Gray from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Ebonv” flat. Make Old Rose from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Spectrum Red.” Make Golden Yellow from “Spectrum Yellow” tinted with “Pure White” flat. Make Gray Tint from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Ebony” flat. Make Mural Green from “Moss Green” tinted with “Spectrum Yellow.” Make Green Tint from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Moss Green.” Make Light Olive from “Spectrum Yellow” tinted with “Spec- trum Blue.” Make Sunshine from “Spectrum Yellow” tinted with “Pure White” flat. Make Medium Green from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Moss Green.” Make Blue Tint from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Spectrum Blue.” Make Mural Blue from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Spectrum Blue.” Make Special Green from “Pure White” flat tinted with “Moss Green.” Make Old Rose-Dark from “Spectrum Red” tinted with “Pure White” flat. Make Olive from “Spectrum Yellow” tinted with “Spectrum” Blue.” Make Warm Red from “Spectrum Red” tinted with “Ebony” flat and it contains also one-sixth as much “Pure White” flat as “ Spectrum Red.” In mixing, thoroughness is of greatest importance. Every unmixed particle will make a streak. It is not difficult to do perfect work if one will be a little patient. It is best to mix in a round bottomed vessel so no unmixed color can escape by sticking in a crease. Always select one color to use as a base. The first color in ciuotation marks above is the base color in each case. Mix a small quantity first, adding to the base color more of the other color than you wish in the final tint. When this is thoroughly mixed add it in small amounts to the base color in another vessel, gradually drawing nearer to the desired result. As you approach the exact tint wanted, go very slowly until an exact match is made. The tint will change a trifle in drying, so in mixing spread a little on white paper and let it dry before being sure you have obtained the correct tint. A sufficient quantity for the whole job should be tinted up before the work is begun, to avoid danger of laps showing up in the finished work on account of eyes which may be inaccurate in telling exact matches in color. A rough plastered wall will take about twice as much as a smooth wall or other smooth surface. Covering capacity at the close of this booklet is figured for smooth surfaces. Brush all parts evenly, not rubbing one more than another. An almost unbelievably small quantity of one tolor will make a material change in another, especially if they are widely con- trasting. For instance: a single drop of “Ebony” will make a “Gray Tint” of a half pint of “Pure White.” Cover a small space on white paper with a thin coat of “Pure White” and beside it a thin coat of that to which the drop of black has been added, let it drv a moment and the difference can be readily seen. With “Spectrum Blue,” “Spectrum Red,” “Spectrum Yellow,” or “Moss Green” in “Pure White” it is the same. In making the light tints a single 1-8 pint can of the Spectrum color or of “Moss Green” will tint several gallons of “Pure White” flat. Reds and yellows combined in various proportions produce terra cottas and orange; reds and blacks combined produce browns and tans; reds and blues combined make purple and violet; yellows and blues combined make greens; yellows and blacks combined produce olives. An addition of white to any color or combination of colors produces a “tint”: for example, red and white, pink; black and white, gray; yellow and white, cream. An addition of black to any color or combination of colors produces a “shade.” Page Twenty ZENITH ART LUSTERS “This had been put away in the attic as worthless years ago. But I always had a lingering fondness for it on account of associations. Now it is just as good as new again.’ * COLOR SCHEMES Parlors, Reception Halls, Dens, Dining-rooms, Libraries, Living-rooms WOODWORK WALLS &. CEILINGS FLOORS FURNITURE Mission Oak Old Rose or Warm Red Blackheart Walnut Mission Oak Pure White Gloss Old Rose California Redwood or Natural Pure White Gloss trimmed with Gold Leaf Silver Gray W arm Red Golden Birch or Natural Oriental Mahogany Forest Green Mural Green Blackheart Walnut or Bronzed Oak Mission Oak or For- est Green Bengal Blue or Mis- sion Oak Light Blue Bengal Blue Blackheart Walnut or Japanese Cherry Bronzed Oak, Jap- anese Cherry or Blackheart Walnut Mured Green Golden Birch Oriental Mahogany Ivory Mural Green Golden Birch Oriental Mahogany Japanese Cherry or California Red wood Light Green or Old Rose Dark Bronzed Oak Oriental Mahogany Oriental Mahogany Olive Natural or Golden Birch Oriental Mahogany or Pure White Gloss Pure White Gloss or Ivory Mural Green Bronzed Oak or Blackheart W'alnut Mission Oak * Ebony Flat W arm Red Blackheart W^alnut or Natural Ebony Flat — Chairs upholstered in Red Leather *This scheme is especially suitable for a Dining-room Page Twenty -one ZENITH ART LUSTERS "This piece belongs to my quaint, beautiful ‘ Mission ’ room where all the furniture is finished with Zenith Art Lusters." COLOR SCHEMES Especially Suitable for Bed-rooms, Boudoirs, Etc. WOODWORK WALLS &. CEILINGS FLOORS FURNITURE Pure White Gloss Sunshine Golden Birch or Blackheart Walnut Pure White Gloss trimmed with Cop- per Bronze Pure White Gloss Blue Tint Blackheart Walnut Pure White Gloss, draperies Blue and White Ivory Light Blue Mission Oak Ivory Gray Tint Blue Tint Blackheart Walnut Oriental Mahogany Silver Gray Old Rose Blackheart Walnut Pure White Gloss, draperies Old Rose and White California Redwood Green Tint Natural or Golden Birch Oriental Mahogany Bengal Blue Ivory Bengal Blue Ivory, trimmed with Gold Leaf Pure White Gloss Ivory Bengal Blue Oriental Mahogany Bengal Blue Gray Tint Japanese Cherry Mission Oak Ebony Flat or Mis- sion Oak Silver Gray Bengal Blue Mission Oak or Pure 1 White Gloss Pure White Gloss Ivory Bengal Blue Bengal Blue trimmer with Pure White Gloss Forest Green Light Green Forest Green California Redwooc Mission Oak Silver Gray or Med- ium Green or Spec- ial Green Blackheart Walnut Mission Oak Pure White Gloss or Flat Pink Tint Bronzed Oak Pure White Gloss i Silver Gray Pink Blackheart Walnut California Red wool Page Twenty-two ZENITH ART LUSTERS COLOR SCHEMES Yellow Bed-rooms To show how you yourself can alter or make up variations of color schemes as you [ please. Choose the color tone you desire first. Then decide the degree of dark or light the room demands in decoration. This depends on the location of the room and the j amount of light it receives ; darker schemes in light rooms, lighter schemes in dark rooms. WALLS CEILINGS WOODWORK FLOORS FURNITURE Sunshine Pure White or Sunshine Pure White Flat or Pure White Gloss Japanese Cher- ry, Golden Birch, Bronz- edOak, Black- heart Walnut, California Redwood, or Natural Pure White Gloss trimmed with Copper Bronze, Oriental Mahog- any, California Redwood, Mis- sion Oak, Black- heart Walnut, Japanese Cherry or Bronzed Oak Pure White or Sunshine Pure White or Ivory Ivory Pure White Golden Yellow Sunshine Sunshine Ivory Sunshine Ivory “ Pure White Flat Golden Yellow Sunshine Walls and Ceilings similar to any of the above Blackheari Walnut Blackheart Walnut or Natural Blackheart Wal- nut, Mission Oak or Ivory Mission Oak Blackheart Walnut or Natural Mission Oak or Ivory Golden Birch Golden Birch or Natural Golden Birch, Blackheart Wal- nut, Pure White Gloss, Mission Oak or Ivory Japanese Cherry Japanese Cherry or Natural Japanese Cherry, Pure White Gloss, Ivory or Mission Oak Especially Suitable for Kitchens WOODWORK WALLS &. CEILINGS FLOORS FURNITURE Golden Birch Light Olive Natural Golden Birch Bronzed Oak Medium Green Bronzed Oak Golden Birch Forest Green Silver Gray Blackheart Walnut Pure White Gloss Japanese Cherry Sunshine Golden Birch Japanese Cherry Mission Oak Mural Blue Natural or Black- heart Walnut Mission Oak Blackheart Walnut Golden Yellow Blackheart Walnut Blackheart Walnut Golden Birch Gray Tint or Ivory or Light Blue Golden Birch Bronzed Oak Forest Green Mural Green or Medium Green Bronzed Cak Forest Green Japanese Cherry Ivory Japanese Cherry Blackheart Walnut Mission Oak Silver Gray Blackheart Walnut Mission Oak Page Twenty-three ZENITH ART LUSTERS COLOR SCHEMES Combinations for Walls and Ceilings WALLS CEILINGS Pink Pink, Pink Tint or Ivory Old Rose Old Rose, Pink, Pink Tint or Ivory Old Rose Dark Old Rose Dark, Old Rose, Pink or Ivory Warm Red Warm Red, Old Rose Dark, Old Rose, Pink Tint, Pink or Ivory Pink Tint Pink Tint or Ivory Ivory Ivory or Pure White Sunshine Sunshine, Ivory or Pure White Mural Green Olive, Light Olive, Ivory or Pure White Olive Light Olive Medium Green Medium Green, Light Green or Green Tint Light Green Light Green or Green Tint Special Green Medium Green, Light Green or Green Tint Green Tir.t Green Tint or Light Green Blue Tint Light Blue, Blue Tint, Ivory or Pure White Light Blue Light Blue, Blue Tint, Ivory or Pure White Mural Blue Mural Blue, Light Blue, Blue Tint or Ivory Silver Gray Silver Gray or Gray Tint The color schemes you can plan are innumerable. For instance, the ceiling is usually of a tint differing from, but harmonizing with that of the wall, often only a slightly lighter or darker tint of the same color. If the room is high, the ceiling tint often comes down on the side walls a certain distance. Do not put a tint on the ceiling darker than that on the walls except in a very well lighted room. In dark rooms use light ceilings, the darker it is the stronger may be the contrast. H few places GClbere Zenith Hrt Lusters Hre Used THE ALP Andirons Automobiles Baby Carriages Banisters Baseboards Baskets Bath Tub Rail or woodwork Bicycles Bird Cages Book Cases Bric-a-Brac Bureaus Burlap Cabinets Candelabra Canes Carriages Ceilings Chairs Chandeliers Chests (outside or inside) Chiffoniers Children’s Toys Cupboards Desks Door Jams Doors Dormitory Rooms Dressers Farm Implements and Tools Fire Fronts Floors Front Doors (Out- side or Inside) Furnace Pipes Furniture of Every Description HABET OF ZENITH ART Gas Pipes Flail Trees Hinges Hot Water Tanks Imitation Tiling Interior Woodwork Iron Fences Iron Beds Iron Brackets Ironwork of All Kinds Kitchen Ranges Kitchen Sink (wood top) Lamps Lawn Swings Letter Boxes (Iron or Wooden) Linoleum Mattings Metal Music Racks Metal Work Morris Chairs Offices Oilcloth Old Candle Sticks Open Plumbing of All Kinds Ornaments Opera Chairs Picture Moldings Plaster Surfaces Plate Racks Plate Shelves Pantry Shelves Picture Frames Porch Chairs Porch Furniture Public Buildings — Churches LUSTERS Colleges Halls Hospitals Libraries Opera Houses Schools Radiators Refrigerators Registers Residences (New or Old) Satchels Screens (Wirework) Screens ( Woodwork) Scroll Work Settees Sewing Machines Stair Floors Stairways Station Wagons Statuary Storm Doors Storm Windows Students’ Rooms Tables Tabourets Trunks Umbrella Handles Vehicles of Any De- scription Wainscoting Walking Sticks Walls Water Pipes Wicker Furniture Window Frames Window Seats Wooden Bedsteads I Page T wenty-four ZENITH ART LUSTERS ” This is the baby’s special domain. ’ Od-Btts of Interest Automobiles. Automobiles are finished the same as carriages and other vehicles explained elsewhere and the same treat- ment will renew their youth. Some of the gloss colors will give splendid results for color work on such jobs, using same without graining effect. Or, use a flat color, sandpapered very smoothly and covered with two coats of “Natural” producing a fine enamel and a highly polished surface. Where it is not desired to change the color in any way but simply to restore the original high polish where it has grown dull or is be- ginning to look shabby perhaps, clean the job up well, removing all trace of oil or grease and give it one or two coats of Zenith Art Luster “Natural.” You will get enough more satisfaction and pleasure out of your use of the car to pay yem many times over for the trouble. Baby Buggies. When the body of the carriage is wicker work, after being well cleaned “Natural” will give a beautiful fin- ish without discoloring in the least. Some of the deli- cate tints also are very pretty and suitable for the baby’s surroundings, either flat or enameled by covering with “Natural." A fine enameled white is obtained with either the flat white covered with “Natural” or with gloss white alone. It is of course always easier and pre- ferable to use the Luster which is already glossed where you can, as it varnishes and colors at the same opera- tion. Bicycles. These are easily and beautifully enameled in any color by giving a coat of the flat tints, covered when thoroughly dry with one or two coats of “Natural.” Page Twenty-five ZENITH ART LUSTERS Zenith Art Lusters are especially adapted to this work and there is nothing more durable. Bric-a-Brac, Scroll-Work, Etc. Whenever they show age, such articles touched up with “Gold Leaf,'’ “Aluminum,'’ and "Copper Bronze,” are made as good as new and very ornamental again. » Burlap. When you desire to change the color scheme of a room paneled in Burlap, you can stain the Burlap with Zenith Art Lusters thinned with turpentine one- half. If the old color has been very dark, use "Under- coat” first. Directions are given for producing any de- sired color not shown on the Zenith Art Luster color card. Front Doors. A front door that looks scarred and gray from the weather and wear, gives the outside impression that, in the home within, general neglect reigns. If your doors are finished with either the “Natural” Art Luster or one of the stains, you can feel sure that you have not only obtained a beautiful surface, but that it will resist the sun, rain, heat and cold. Furnace Pipes. These are kept from rusting if given an application of Zenith Art Lusters. “Gold Leaf,” “Aluminum,” and “Copper Bronze.” A small can of these colors will go a long ways and fix up beautifully many a small article about the house. Imitation Tiling. Imitation tiling should receive frequent coats of “Natural” Zenith Art Luster to maintain a constant gloss and keep it easy to clean. If well smoothed first, “Natural” Zenith Art Luster will make it practically impossible to tell it from genuine glazed tiling. Iron Bedsteads. For these, “Ebony” flat produces a soft, dull, wrought iron finish much in vogue, and trimmed with a touch of “Gold Leaf,” “Copper Bronze,” or “Aluminum," is very artistic. Where there is a prevailing color in a bed- room, say blue or pink, it is an easy matter to refinish the iron bed with flat tints to match. Iron beds in colors are very pretty with a gloss enamel finish ob- tained by putting a coat of “Natural" over the flat tints. You will be delighted with the ease of making improve- ments of this kind, of keeping off signs of wear and age and of changing colors of which you are tired. Iron Fences. Prolong their life, keep off the rust and keep them looking fresh and bright with “Ebony” gloss, a brilliant, jet black, glossy, varnish finish, tough and elastic. Linoleum and Oilcloth. For everything of this kind, “Natural Zenith Art Luster is a means of renewing and prolonging life, protecting places of exceptional wear and keeping con- stantly in a neat, sanitary condition, easily cleaned. Soap and water do not effect it. For this use, thin “Natural” with one-eighth its quantity pure turpentine. Mattings. All kinds of mattings should receive an occasional application of “Natural” Zenith Art Luster thinned the same as for Oilcloth and Linoleum. This keeps them from wearing out so rapidly. It keeps them look- ing bright and fresh. And it prevents their harboring dust so easily. Page Twenty-six ZENITH ART LUSTERS First impressions are always lasting. Metal Work Secrets. Few things aid you more in giving an impression of thoroughness and neatness about housework, than care of the little things which are so apt to be neglected — the locks and hinges on the doors, the grates about the fireplace, handles to drawers, the exterior of sinks and bathtubs, the registers where there is a furnace, and all manner of metal work on chandeliers, lamps, stoves, etc. Care, or the lack of it in details such as these, may make or mar an otherwise beautifully finished room. For all metals, we especially recommend our “Ebony” flat, which produces the wrought-iron effect so much admired, although any of the flat colors are suitable and are often very beautiful in matching the pervading colors in the room. For much of the metal, especially the decorative work, such as chandeliers, lamps, etc., “Gold Leaf,” “Aluminum” or “Copper Bronze” is an exceedingly beautiful finish. Porch Furniture. On account of increasing popularity of out door life, porches are more in favor than ever before, and the demand for out-door furniture has grown enormously. For the porch furniture there is nothing more desirable than the “Forest Green,” “Moss Green” or “Bengal Blue,” as these are especially harmonious and cool-look- ing for Summer weather. Either the “California Red- wood," “Japanese Cherry,” or “Bronzed Oak” are very effective and pleasing. Any of the colors are especially suited to withstand wear of this kind. Try “Ebony” flat and "Gold Leaf” or for dainty effects, white or blue and gold. Radiators, Water Pipes, Gas Pipes, Hot Water Tanks. These are handsome finished in either our “Gold Leaf,” “Aluminum” or “Copper Bronze” Zenith Art Lusters, or one of the flat tints to match the color of the walls. When properly finished with Art Lusters they will not scale or peel, spot or fade, rub off or rust. The hard, elastic finish produced withstands the heat and moisture and will be sure to please and satisfy you. Page Twenty -seven ZF.NITH ART LUSTERS Jusl touching up to cover scratches. Registers. These finished in “Ebony,” either flat or gloss, are pleasing to the eye and will not scale, wear off or rust. Screen Doors, Window Screens, Storm Doors and Storm Windows. For the wire of the screens, use the “Ebony” gloss Art Luster thinned one-third to one-half with pure turpentine and you will more than treble the life of your screen doors and windows. Give them a coat in the Spring before they are put up, and a coat in the Fall before storing them away for the Winter, and you will keep them constantly looking like new — it guarantees that at all times they will be free from rust. On woodwork of screens, storm doors and windows, use “Ebony” gloss as it is in the can, or any of the gloss colors, or the flat colors with a final coat of “Nat- ural.” In this way they harmonize with or match the trimmings of the house. However, “Ebony” gloss is alzi'ays good, whatever the other colors may be. When you realize what a dilapidated air it gives to put up shabby, old looking screens or storm doors and windows, the few cents necessary to make all fresh and bright as new is not worthy of consideration. It is surprising what a great part these little details have to do with giving a splendid, well-kept appearance to the outside of the house. Stairways. The steps and risers should be finished the same as a floor and should match the floor of the hall. Follow the directions for floors and you will be delighted with the beauty and wearing qualities of Art Lusters. The banisters should be finished similarly to the rest of the woodwork in the hall. The stairway is very important as it is sure to get hard and constant wear. Page Twenty -eight ZENITH ART LUSTERS Students’ Rooms, Dormitories, Etc, At schools and colleges or wherever people live in dormitories or rented rooms, it pays the room owner to go over the floors, walls, ceilings and the woodwork frequently with a coat of Zenith Art Lusters. The same applies to the furniture which is always more or less abused in such places and which rapidly gets to looking scuffed and unattractive. This keeps everything fresh and clean. One of the Zenith Art Luster color schemes will guarantee a display of excellent taste and make rooms neat and artistic. Such quarters are in this way kept enticing and so are quickly rented. They are easily kept and there is no danger of an accumula- tion of dust. It helps to guard against vermin. Stu- dents often like to do this work themselves to aid in decorating their rooms and to surround themselves with an air of homelikeness, in keeping with the rest of their , belongings or to please their own taste. It makes an agreeable change where one stays long in one place. | The cost to either the one who owns or the one who hires is practically nothing. Vehicles: Carriages, Station Slagons, Cabs, 6tc. When stained, dull, or old, such vehicles should be given a thorough cleaning and should be refreshed by use of Zenith Lusters. "Ebony” flat, sandpapered and rubbed smooth, with one or two coats of "Natural” | over it, makes a splendid job with little trouble. Or a single coat of “Ebony” gloss alone over a clean, smooth surface will surprise you with the immense improve- ment, and while it will not wear so long, will make the I job look like new. If you desire to try striping the job, you must use "Ebon}-” flat and stripe with any flat color desired before applying the “Natural.” You can do work such as the professional carriage painter would do if you wish to go to the necessary labor. Good carriage work in I the best factories receives forty or more differ- ent coats of paint and varying treatments. First sandpaper thoroughly, removing all roughness, using several grades of sandpaper and finishing with the finest grade. (New carriage work is at this stage primed, then given several coats of paint called “Rough Stuff,” and sandpapered and rubbed after each. But this is not necessary on a job that has been previously finished.) Next fill all nail holes and cracks with “Graves’ Crack and Crevice Filler" or with ordinary putty containing enough Art Luster “Ebony” flat to darken it. Putty will not be apt to stay in cracks or holes that are too large, as it does not contain a sufficiently strong cement for this purpose. After this filling has been allowed to , thoroughly harden, give one, two, three, or four coats of “Ebon\ - ” flat, according as your time or patience will permit, sandpapering each when thoroughly dry with ' two grades of fine sandoaper, the finest last. Follow this each time with a rubbing paste of water and fine powdered pumice stone on a cloth. Always remember that the beauty and dura- bility of the final job depends chiefly on producing a solid, dead black surface of extreme smoothness, covered with two perfectly transparent coats of “Natural,” the first rubbed the same as the coats of “Ebony” flat. The varnish coats must be kept absolutely free from dust, finger marks, or streaks of any kind. Any striping must be done with flat colors after the last “Ebony” flat coat has been finished and rubbed and before any varnish has been applied. The striping must not itself be rubbed and must be very thoroughly dry before varnishing. I J Page Twenty -nine ZENITH ART LUSTERS Directions Always read the following general directions care- fully before undertaking any job, and by pursuing them you will be sure to get satisfactory and pleasing results. Always stir thoroughly, especially the colors without gloss. The colors which have a gloss surface varnish and stain at one operation. The graining effect is secured by the bristle marks of the brush stroked in as the finish is just on the verge of being set hard, or by use of graining rolls or a graining comb. Equally beautiful effects are obtained without graining. In the majority of cases, one coat is all that is necessary. Where new work is to be finished, it will require two coats. New Floors. On new floors, best wearing results are obtained by giving three coats, in which case, thin first coat with one-sixth its quantity of turpentine. Let each coat dry thoroughly, and go over the first and second coats lightly with fine sandpaper, cleaning off the dust thoroughly be- fore applying the next coat. Preparation of the Surface. Where more than one coat of gloss colors are to be applied, each coat before the final coat, after thoroughly dry, should in all cases be lightly sandpapered with a fine grade of sandpaper, or sandpaper first where the first coat is being put on an article that already has a gloss finish, the purpose being to destroy the gloss yet leave a fine, smooth surface. Never can paint or varnish be applied over a gloss surface without running and often it re- mains stick}'. Surfaces with a flat finish (dull or without gloss) do not need sandpapering, except to smooth out roughness, take off settled dust, etc. For walls and ceilings, scrape and thoroughly wash off all old material. Put on a first coat of the color de- ! sired, thinned with one-fourth its quantity of turpentine, and following coats as the goods come in the can. The surface to be finished must be clean and free from dust, dirt or grease. After cleaning a surface with soap, always rinse well with clear water and allow to dry thoroughly. A surface not thoroughly dry will cause any finish to remain sticky or wear very poorly. On a waxed or oil-polished surface, wash off the old finish first with a cloth soaked in benzine. A shellaced surface must be scraped or the shellac otherwise thoroughly removed. No finish will wear well or give satisfactory results if put on over wax or shellac. Open Grained Woods — -Paste Filler. Mahogany, oak, walnut, chestnut, ash, butternut, etc., are open grained woods in which you can see the surface full of open pores. In finishing such woods when they have never been finished before, they must first be treated with Graves’ “Excelsior” Hard Wood Paste Fil- ler, thinned with turpentine until about as thick as cream. Brush on well, let stand twenty minutes or until it sets white, then wipe off with excelsior or rags, rubbing across the grain. This leaves all the little pores filled I and makes a smooth surface. Let this dry 24 to 36 hours, then proceed with the Luster. The commoner close grained woods, which do not need a filler, are white and southern pine, whitewood, maple, birch, cy- press, cherry, basswood, hemlock, etc. Cypress is a very unreliable wood to finish when new. Tt holds sap a long j time and it is rare that it is not full of spots holding j sufficient moisture to make satisfactory results difficult, j Crack or Crevice Filler. N. Z. Graves Co.’s Crack and Crevice Filler should be Page Thirty ZENITH ART LUSTERS used on all surfaces full of large cracks, knot holes, nail holes, crevices, etc., filling up and making a level surface. This greatly improves the appearance of the finished job. The Perfect Floor. If a Moor is made perfectly smooth and this filling work is done carefully, a surface like polished marble showing neither crack nor flaw can be obtained on either an old or a new floor. It may be necessary to first stain the Crack and Crevice Filler to match the wood. If there are only two or three nail holes to be filled, there is no need of buying something special. Use a little putty and let it dry. To Remove Any Old Finish. Should it be necessary, on account of heat blisters or other extremely marred condition of the surface, to remove an old paint or varnish coat, use N. Z. Graves Co.’s Zenith Paint and Varnish Remover. Brush on the same as paint. Let it stand just long enough to soften the finish down to the wood. Then scrape off with a broad blade until the wood is entirely exposed. Do not scratch the wood. Wash thoroughly with tur- pentine or benzine to take off all trace of the remover. The surface is then ready to be finished the same as new wood. Applying the Luster. Zenith Art Lusters are easily applied. Apply in the same manner as paint or varnish, using a camel’s hair brush or a flat bristle varnish brush of any size convenient for the work, stroking with the grain of the wood and taking care to keep the brush fairly full at all times. Apply in one direction only and do not brush back and forth. Do not apply the gloss lusters too thick, as the best of varnish will mar under such circum- stances. If the liquid becomes too thick, thin with benzine. On a large surface, finish a strip not more than twelve inches wide at a time or the finish is apt to set hard before being well brushed out and show laps and brush marks. Drying. For drying different coats or the final coat before using, allow 24 to 36 hours, if possible. Where abso- lutely necessary, as is sometimes the case with a floor or stairway, a surface finished with Zenith Art Lus- ters can usually be used after drying over night. In such a case the work should be done early in the evening and should not be used before eight to ten o’clock in the morning. The best possible circulation of air must be allowed and a small amount of turpentine or japan drier may be added to the Luster to aid quick drying. FIow- ever, longer time is better, giving better gloss and better wearing qualities. The freest possible circulation of air should always be allowed to aid drying. Whenever you can, leave the windows open and let in as much outside air as convenient. Very often where varnish remains sticky, after sufficient time has been given it to dry properly, it is because of no air circulation. Occasion- all)' in closed, tight, stuffy rooms, varnish absolutely refuses to dry right. This is rarely the case in any ordi- nary living room or house, but it is well to take pre- cautions and make sure of getting a nice job. Wet weather is bad for such work as the great amount of moisture in the air is apt to prevent the work from drying properly. The gloss finishes are especially adapted to floors, furniture, etc., the flat finishes, to ceilings and walls, but if the colors suit your purpose they may be inter- changed. "Undercoat” is intended to help make a smooth surface and to cover a dark color to prevent it Page Thirty-one ZENITH ART LUSTERS “ I got my dining table spoiled with hot dishes. This is making it as beau- tiful as when new. I took off all the old finish first.” from showing through. “Natural,’’ “Golden Birch,” “Bronzed Oak,” “Japanese Cherry,” “California Red- wood,” “Oriental Mahogany,” “Blackheart Walnut,” “Forest Green” and "Bengal Blue” are transparent or semi-transparent. The other colors are solid colors, the same as “Undercoat.” In putting one of the transparent or semi-transparent Lusters over a color that is very dark, first use “Undercoat” to cover the old color and I make a ground to build up the new color on, giving each time to dry thoroughly. In actual use, the colors give the identical effect shown on the color card, either gloss or the beautiful, much admired, soft dull finishes. Undercoat. It will often be found desirable to use “Undercoat” over old work which is very rough, and then sandpaper it lightly with fine sandpaper, merely for the purpose of aiding to secure a smooth foundation with which to start. Two applications of “Undercoat” may be found neces- j sary on a very bad ground. Always after sandpapering, dust very carefuj|y. Where you find it wise to use “Un- dercoat” befoc®bpplying a very dark color, add to “Undercoat” oiiWiuarter to one-half its own quantity of the final color desired. This gives greater depth and richness. Where such articles as the clothing rubs against, are finished with “Ebony” flat, the work should be rubbed 1 gently with a soft flannel cloth after it is perfectly dry, to take off any coloring matter which the wood may not have absorbed. Enameling. See the article “How to Enamel,” page 15. This gives directions for the very finest enamel work, such as the professional enameler would do. Care of Brushes. When not using the brush, let it stand in benzine j sufficient to cover the bristles ; or to wash it out j thoroughly when you wish to change from one color to 1 another, use benzine. If the brush has become hard, I use benzine to soften it. Page Thirty-two ZENITH ART LUSTERS The crib was a very old heir-loom. By refinishing it the genuine solid mahogany was made to show all its rich beauty. Important Notice To duplicate exactly the beautiful results we show you is simple, even for the most inexperienced person. You often see beautiful things advertised and would like to get the same effects for your own home, but your experience has taught you it is difficult, often im- possible, to secure the same results when you try to do it yourself. With Zenith Art Lusters we show you noth- ing but what you yourself can do easily. Little special preparation is necessary to accomplish desirable ends — we emphasize the simplicity and ease with which Art Lusters can be applied. If you have a painter do any work for you refinish- ing walls, floors, woodwork, furniture, etc., insist that he use Zenith Art Lusters. Or if you are building a new house, demand that Zenith Art Lusters be used throughout on the interior. It is your right, and only in this way can you be sure of the very best results for walls and beautiful floors — for high polish and dura- ble finish on woodwork, — for bringing out the beautiful grain or imitating the most expensive woods. Insist on getting “Graves' Zenith Art Lusters." If your paint dealer does not carry them in stock, order direct of us. We will prepay charges on all retail or- ders of 75 cents or over to any express office in the United States. Page Thirty -three ZENITH ART LUSTERS The puppy knows a good thing and is constantly going after my can of Zenith Art Lusters.” Covering Capacity ZENITH ART LUSTERS WILL COVER ABOUT THE FOLLOWING AMOUNT OF SURFACE SIZE PACKAGE, i Gallon / Gallon J 4 Gallon i Pint Pint FOR ONE COAT. 450 Sq. Ft. 225 Sq. Ft. 1 12 Sq. Ft. 57 Sq. Ft. 2S Sq. Ft. FOR TWO COATS. 300 Sq. Ft. 150 Sq. Ft. 75 Sq. Ft. 38 Sq. Ft. 19 Sq. Ft. On account of the varying kinds and conditions of surfaces, it is inaccurate to say that each will take the same amount, but the above figures are approximately correct for an average surface. One that is very soft or porous, or in a very bad condition, or full of cracks and holes, or that requires a specially thick, heavy coat to cover, will take more Luster and it will therefore not go so far. On some surfaces on the contrary, it will go farther, and a skilled workman would use some- what less than an amateur. In our experience, how- ever, there is nothing that will go as far as Zenith Art Lusters on corresponding surfaces and under equal conditions, or be so economical in covering. In many cases, it is practically impossible to measure or estimate even approximately, the amount of surface. To give some idea useful in estimating the amount needed for household articles : one quarter pint will cover a me- dium sized table or two ordinary chairs; one quarter • gallon will cover a floor 12x12 feet, one coat, unless very rough or soft and porous. All cans except the one gallon size have a friction lid which is self-sealing. There is no cutting required to open the can. Just pry up the cover. Any amount desired can be used and the lid put on again, pressed down and it is sealed as tight as when it leaves our factory. The amount unused will keep in perfect condi- tion until you are again ready to use it. This makes it very economical. Different cans of the same color al- ways match perfectly. “Gold Leaf,’’ “Aluminum,” and “Copper Bronze” are put up in special double compartment cans, keeping the powder and liquid separate until ready for use. Place the can firmly on the table, holding the upper part con- ; Page Thirty-four mining the liquid with one hand, and detach the lower can by means of a screw driver or chisel, slightly turn- ing the can at the same time. This easily separates the two cans without danger of spilling the powder. If \ou do not wish to use the entire contents of the pack- age at one time, pour out the amount of liquid required into a separate vessel, and mix a sufficient quantity of the powder with it to flow .out properly and cover the surface to be painted. The mixture should be about as thick as cream. PRICE LIST - Zpnttlj Art SittHterH PRICES IN U. S. GOLD LEAF, ALUMINUM & COPPER BRONZE Size No. 5 $2.50 Size No. 4 1 .35 Size No. 3 75 Size No. 2 4C Size No. 1 25 ALL OTHER COLORS 5 Gallon Can, per gallon $2.40 I Gallon Can 2.50 A Gallon Can 1.35 J Gallon Can .75 I Pint Can 40 A Pint Can 25 i Pint Can 15 5 Pint Can 10 Special prices are made for orders outside of the United States. “Natural” alone is carried in stock in five gallon cans, but any color can be supplied in five gallon cans with a few days’ time to allow for putting up and shipping at the factory. All colors are carried in stock in 1 gallon, i gallon, £ gallon, 1 pint, ^ pint and i pint cans, except “Gold Leaf,” “Aluminum” and “Copper Bronze” which are put up in special cans numbered 1 , 2, 3, 4 and 5 from small to large, which correspond closely in size to ^ pint, i pint, ^ pint, 1 pint and 4 gallon cans of the other colors respectively. Besides these “ Moss Green,” “Spectrum Red,” Spectrum Yellow,” “ Spectrum Blue,” “ Ebony ” flat and “ Pure White” flat (and no others) are put up in ^ pint cans as very small packages of these latter colors will often be desired for tinting. N. Z. Graves Sc Co. DERARTM KNT “r" 161-163 WATER STREET NEW YORK, U-S.A. Page Thirty -Eve ZENITH A R T LUSTERS “The puppy knows a good thing and is constantly going after my can of Zenith Art Lusters.” Covering Capacity ZENITH ART LUSTERS WILL COVER ABOUT THE FOLLOWING AMOUNT OF SURFACE SIZE PACKAGE, i Gallon Yi Gallon Gallon i Pint y 2 Pint FOR ONE COAT. 450 Sq. Ft. 225 Sq. Ft. 1 12 Sq. Ft. 57 Sq. Ft. 28 Sq. Ft. FOR TWO COATS. 300 Sq. Ft. 150 Sq. Ft. 75 Sq. Ft. 38 Sq. Ft. 19 Sq. Ft. On account of the varying kinds and conditions of surfaces, it is inaccurate to say that each will take the same amount, but the above figures are approximately correct for an average surface. One that is very soft or porous, or in a very bad condition, or full of cracks and holes, or that requires a specially thick, heavy coat to cover, will take more Luster and it will therefore not go so far. On some surfaces on the contrary, it will go farther, and a skilled workman would use some- what less than an amateur. In our experience, how- ever, there is nothing that will go as far as Zenith Art Lusters on corresponding surfaces and under equal conditions, or be so economical in covering. In many cases, it is practically impossible to measure or estimate I even approximately, the amount of surface. To give 1 some idea useful in estimating the amount needed for household articles : one quarter pint will cover a me- I dium sized table or two ordinary chairs; one quarter 1 i gallon will cover a floor 12x12 feet, one coat, unless veryj I rough or soft and porous. All cans except the one gallon size have a friction I lid which is self-sealing. There is no cutting required!! to open the can. Just pry up the cover. Any amount 1 1 desired can he used and the lid put on again, pressed | down and it is sealed as tight as when it leaves our; factory. The amount unused will keep in perfect condi- , tion until you are again ready to use it. This makes it very economical. Different cans of the same color al-j I ways match perfectly. “Gold Leaf,” “Aluminum,” and “Copper Bronze” are! I put up in special double compartment cans, keeping the 1 I powder and liquid separate until ready for use. Place ; I the can firmly on the table, holding the upper part con- I Page Thirty -four The New York Home of Zenith Art Lusters after May 1st, 1907 N. Z. GRAVES & CO. Department “R” 161-163 Water St., New York City, U. S. A. Per F. E. LATTA, Manager Department “ R ” Page Thirty-Eve Wr Th is is the Label on the ZenitH Art Luster Can WHETHER YOU READ ANYTHING ELSE OR NOT, DO NOT FAIL TO READ OUR PERSONAL LETTER TO YOU ON PAGE FOUR 2. draitrs Sc (Ea. Department “ R ” 161-163 Water Street New York, N. Y. U. S. A. avert library COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY