A Book of Distinctive Interiors

by Unknown

The Proper Treatment for the Nursery

Furnishings for the modern child's room, like everything else that belongs to that important personage, are as complete in the smallest detail as skill and ingenuity can make them, and every feature of a well-appointed bedroom may be duplicated in miniature for the youngsters.

The wall-papers and draperies especially designed for nurseries and children's rooms are in a way more distinctively juvenile than the actual pieces of furniture, and are a most important consideration in fitting out such apartments. If one does not care to go to the expense of furnishing a nursery completely, paper and curtains that will leave no doubt as to the identity of the room may be had at small cost, and from this simple touch the scheme of decorations and the furniture, to say nothing of the cost, may be indefinitely extended.

Strictly hygienic parents who scout the idea of wall-paper as being unhealthy and will have nothing but painted walls in a bedroom are confronted by a bare expanse that may be sanitary, but is neither attractive nor interesting for the child. With walls treated in this way a decorative frieze may be used with good effect. The friezes, which come in panels varying in depth from fourteen to nineteen and one-half inches, are printed in gay colors on backgrounds of blue-gray, ivory-white, drab, and other neutral tones that can be matched exactly in the color of the walls. The designs include processions of Noah's ark inhabitants, farmyard animals, chickens and ducks, Normandy peasants going to market, toy villages with stiff little soldiers and prim-looking trees, hunting scenes, and a row of Dutch kiddies indulging in a mad race across the paper.

If wall-paper is used it also matches the background of the frieze, the paper being either in a solid color or with a figure so inconspicuous that it gives the impression of a single tone.

One of the new papers for children's rooms is a reproduction of the quaint Kate Greenaway figures that are quite as fascinating to little people in these days as they were years ago. The background is a pale yellow and the figures are printed in rather delicate colors, each group representing one of the calendar months. The effect is particularly dainty and the designs are diverting for the children without becoming tiresome from too great contrast in color. Another paper that shows groups quite as charming is printed from designs by Boutet de Monvel, the famous French illustrator of child life.

A new idea, and one that is proving popular, is a decided departure from the conventional wall-paper, with its figures at regularly repeated intervals. This consists in first putting on the walls a paper of solid color to be used as a background for single figures or groups that are cut from friezes and pasted on to suit one's individual taste. The figures, of course, must be quite large, in order to be effective, and in some favorite groups cut from a frieze showing little Dutch girls and yellow chicks the latter are even larger than life. For nurseries, when the children are very small, the figures are often arranged in a frieze just above the foot-board, so that they come on a line with the child's eye, and are therefore vastly more entertaining than when placed at the infinite distance of the top of the wall.

Blue and white seems to be the favorite combination of colors for nursery draperies, and among the all-over patterns are a lot of roly-poly children picking gigantic daisies on a pale blue ground, and also a Delft design on a white ground covered with black cross lines that are far enough apart to give a tiled effect. A number of other colors and patterns may be had as well as the gay printed borders that come two strips to a width of the material. When figured wallpaper is used, draperies of solid color with the printed border are rather more satisfactory, as one set of children or animals tumbling over the walls, and another set chasing across the draperies, create a bewildering impression that is anything but restful and quieting for the small occupant. The borders are particularly attractive for curtains made of plain scrim or some soft white material, and are stitched on in strips or cut out and put on in silhouette.

The playroom in this house was to be made use of by the grown folks occasionally for their handicraft work. Special attention was paid to built-in closets convenient for toys and tools

Floor coverings especially suitable for children's rooms are to be found in the more or less recently revived rag carpet rugs, either plain or with figured borders. Almost any of these rugs with their decorative strips showing queerly constructed landscapes are suitable, but most appropriate is one that has a solemn procession of geese across either end, or another that is ornamented with a family of black and white bunnies lined up against a red brick wall. They come in various sizes, from the small hearthrug up to the one that is large enough for the center of an average size room.

A new rug for nurseries that is rather more practical than pretty is woven in the same way as the rag rugs, but instead of cotton materials, strips of oilcloth are used, rolled so that the glossy side is uppermost. The idea was first employed in making small rugs for bathrooms, as they are waterproof and easy to keep clean, but they are quite as serviceable and sanitary for children's rooms, and are cleaned by wiping off with a damp cloth. They are made in different sizes, and in a mixed design, like the ordinary rag rug, or with white centers and borders of solid color.

In the way of furniture, chairs and beds are to be had in a much greater variety than the other pieces, and the miniature Morris chair is no doubt the most attractive piece of furniture that is made for the little folks. It comes in almost as many different styles and prices as the grown-up variety, and may be had in light or dark wood, with cushions of velour or leather or figured cotton material, and is a perfect reproduction of the large chair. Little sets consisting of table and two chairs, one straight, the other with arms, are decorated with juvenile figures in color, and may be had for prices that are quite reasonable. They are especially useful when no attempt can be made at arranging a regulation nursery. One of the most serviceable of these sets is of dark wood with leather seat chairs and a table of good size, the top of which is hinged and may be raised disclosing a receptacle for toys or books.

Small willow and wicker tables and chairs are made in attractive shapes, many of them copies of the larger pieces, and are used either in the natural color or stained to harmonize with the color scheme of the room. Less substantial than the pieces made of solid wood, they are rather more practical for older children than for small ones who are no respecters of furniture, and, while designed for use all the year round, they are particularly suitable for summer rooms or to be carried outdoors.

In spite of the fact that the little white bed is always associated with the child's room in story and song, to say nothing of the popular imagination, there are various kinds of brass and wooden beds made in small sizes that are thoroughly in keeping with one's idea of a typical nursery. The white enamel beds, which may be had as plain or as elaborate as one desires, are always dainty, and have the advantage of harmonizing perfectly with furniture and hangings of almost every description. Brass beds have the same characteristic, but they are much more expensive than those of iron, and seem to require rather more elaborate surroundings. The newest brass beds for children are quite low, only about half as high as the ordinary bed, which is a distinct advantage, as it is much easier for the child to climb into, and less dangerous in case he falls out.

The sense of possession that the child has in its own room produces much satisfaction. Substantial furniture may be purchased in small sizes and a variety of wall treatments are suggested with interesting friezes

A recently designed wooden bed of attractive appearance shows severely plain lines in the head and foot boards, and in the sides long narrow panels are cut out, through which the covering of the box spring is seen. This bed is made only to order, and is intended for elaborately decorated rooms in which a definite color scheme is carried out. It may be had in any desired width and stained any color to match the other furniture, while the box spring and little pillow and mattress are covered with the same material as the draperies of the room.

Japanese prints are being received with increasing favor and thousands of beautiful designs are particularly appropriate for the children's room. The subjects are chiefly natural history figures and they serve as an inspiration to have stories woven about them

Furniture of a special size for children's rooms is made in a design that is substantial and handsome, by the manufacturer of a well-known and widely used type. There is a wardrobe just five feet high, with compartments for hats, clothing, and shoes; a bureau twenty-nine inches high, with a twenty-inch mirror on it; a bed with high sides, the simple decorations of which match those of the bureau; rocking chairs and straight chairs with leather seats, a settle, and tables of different sizes and shapes. Nothing could be more attractive or complete than a room furnished in this way for a child of six or seven years who has outgrown the daintier surroundings of the nursery. It has all of the dignity of a well-appointed grown-up room, but with everything in proportion to the size of its owner.

Even washstand sets, suitable as to shape and decoration, may be had for the child's room in which no detail is to be omitted. They are little if any smaller than the usual sets, but the decorations are in keeping with those of the other appointments, and the pitchers are designed with a view to their being handled easily by small hands. They are not unlike milk jugs in shape, with a substantial handle over the top and another at the back, so that there is small chance of their slipping while in transit, and the mouth is a definitely formed one that will not fail to pour in the direction intended.

For a comparatively small amount a room may be fitted up with enough distinctive juvenile furnishings to impart individuality and to give the child a sense of possession that it will never have in grown-up surroundings. Even though circumstances are such that it has not had an elaborate nursery, as soon as a child is old enough to have a room of its own there is no reason why the furnishings should not be in keeping, and with the expenditure of a little money a dainty and attractive room may be arranged. High-priced beds and other pieces of furniture are by no means necessary, and, as is often the case, the most reasonably furnished room may be the most satisfactory if a little ingenuity and good taste are brought into service.

There are various ways that Japanese prints may be used in the child's room. This and the opposite illustration show prints put on the wall and held by a molding at top and bottom. This also may contain a glass to protect each picture

There are decorations such as this that have an educational value and that take the place of toys. These little figures on the left are really companions, while the plaster plaque illustrates Stevenson's Verses

These bas-reliefs make interesting decorations and at the same time serve as object lessons in illustrating good poetry

Thirty to thirty-two dollars can be made to cover the cost of wall-paper, curtains, bed and mattress, a rug and a bureau, all in sizes and designs suitable for children. The wall-papers in juvenile patterns are not expensive, and the cost of papering a room of average size would be about five dollars. A little white iron bed may be had for as low as five dollars, with seven dollars additional for the mattress, and a rug 3 × 6 feet in size with a decorative border is $3.50. A bureau of small size, such as comes in an inexpensive grade of the so-called antique oak, costs about $8.00. For the very reason that the furnishings of the room are only temporary, and soon to be outgrown and discarded, it is quite satisfactory to buy a cheap grade of furniture whenever possible, if price is a consideration. A small bureau is less expensive than one made especially in a child's size, and is equally practical if not so substantially made. Such a bureau can be done over in white enamel to match the bed, or in any dark color that may be preferred in place of the shiny oak finish.

For curtains that hang straight from the top of the window to the lower edge of the sash, scrim at twenty-five cents a yard would cost two dollars. Allowing four yards for each of two windows, and enough printed cretonne to make a decorative border, it would cost a dollar and a half additional.

These figures are of the very lowest for which a child's room can be fitted up, but even with everything of the most inexpensive grade it will give more real pleasure than one on which a much greater amount has been spent if the room is nondescript in its furnishings and fails to impress the child with a sense of ownership.

Sarah Leyburn Coe