Cheese cloth, bunting, Swiss muslin, cretonne, and Swiss curtains are used for window drapery. These may be trimmed with the same fabric or antique lace. They are hung on poles above the windows and draped back with ribbons.
The appointments of a bedroom are a low couch, a large rocker, a small sewing-chair, a workbasket, footstools, a toilet table prettily draped with muslin, or a dressing-case, brackets for vases, flowerpots, a few pictures, small table, hanging shelves for books, etc., and the bed.
The washstand should have a full set of toilet mats, or a large towel with a colored border may be laid on it; also, a splasher placed on the wall at the back of the stand is very essential. A screen is a very desirable part of the bedroom appointments. A rug should be placed in front of the bed and dressing-case.
THE DINING-ROOM.
The dining-room should be furnished with a view to convenience, richness, and comfort. Choose deep, rich grounds for the walls—bronze-maroon, black, Pompeiian red, and deep olive—and the designs and traceries in old gold, olive or moss-green, with dado and frieze to correspond. Or, the walls may be wainscoted with oak, walnut, maple, etc. Some are finished in plain panels, with different kinds of wood; others, again, are elaborately carved, with fruit, flowers, and emblems of the chase.
The floor is the next point for consideration. It may be of tile or laid in alternate strips of different colored woods, with a border of parquetry. Rugs or carpets may be used on these floors or dispensed with, according to taste. If a carpet is used, the dark, rich shades found in the Persian and Turkish designs should be chosen.
The window drapery should be those deep, rich colors that hold their own despite time and use—the pomegranates, rich crimsons, dark blues, dull Pompeiian reds, and soft olives. These curtains may be hung on poles, and should fall in heavy folds to the floor, then looped back with a wide embroidered dado.
Screens of stained glass are now used in the windows. They are both useful and ornamental, for they exclude the strong rays of the sun, and the light filtering through them beautifies the room with its many mellow hues.
Dark wood should be used for the furniture. The chairs should be chosen in square, solid styles, and upholstered in embossed or plain leather, with an abundance of brass or silver headed nails which are used for upholstering leather and add much to the substantial appearance of the articles.
The dining-table should be low, square or bevel cornered, heavily carved, and when not in use should be covered with a cloth corresponding in shade to the window drapery.