THE ARCHITECT AND THE HOUSEWIFE.
CONVENIENT HOUSES.
CHAPTER I.
THE HOUSEKEEPER AND THE ARCHITECT.—FLOOR-PLANS AS RELATED TO GOOD HOUSEKEEPING.—LABOR-SAVING DEVICES.—ECONOMY AND GOOD CONSTRUCTION.—COMPACT HOUSES NOT NECESSARILY CROWDED.—WOOD-WORK THAT IS READILY CLEANED.
There is a definite relation between the work of the housekeeper and that of the architect. This is the text of this book. It is a part of the business of the architect to do what he can to make housekeeping easy. He can do a great deal. He should understand the principles and practice of good housekeeping. This knowledge is something which cannot be derived from the architectural schools or offices; it must come from a home. The public press of the country has had a great deal to say about the artistic qualities of domestic architecture, a great deal to say about house decoration, and, altogether, has furnished much valuable matter. Little, however, has been said as to the relation of architecture to good housekeeping. The artistic element should not be neglected. There must also be considered the question of convenient arrangement, economy and ease, for the housekeeper.
Washing dishes is disagreeable work, but the architect can do his part toward making it easier. If we take a conglomerate mass of china, knives, forks, and spoons, pots, pans, and kettles, and bring them together on one small kitchen table, which has a dish-pan on one end and a wooden water-bucket at the back, with a scarcity of everything to facilitate the progress of the work, we have a condition quite different from that wherein there is a roomy sink with a table on each side of it, and plenty of hot and cold water above. An architect may plan a kitchen so that all of these conveniences are possible. He may plan it so they are impossible.