Second Floor.
Design I.—(Elevation, [page 8].)
COLORS.—For Exterior and Interior.
As your house nears completion, it is well to decide upon colors. That is a distinctive feature which is to give tone and beauty, and make your house in some respects different from all others. The question of painting is often a mere matter of preserving the structure, and not a question of beauty or harmony of colors, or what would be best suited to the surroundings; it is too often the case that but little regard is paid to those nice perceptions that make one man’s work many times more valuable than another. Strong contrasts of color should be avoided. Light tints are preferable to strong colors. Think of a house painted black, red, yellow, or green.
Let the surroundings suggest what the exterior colors should be. A house surrounded by trees and shrubbery will admit of white, with white tinted trimmings, such as cornices, corner-boards, window and door frames; but for half the year the green foliage of the trees is turned to brown, which but partially relieves the glaring white. This is why that color is not a favorite for exteriors. As a rule, select a light color for the body of the house, and darken that for the trimmings.
For interior wood-work select light wood colors; let none be darker than walnut. Oak, chestnut, ash, white walnut, maple and cherry make a beautiful finish by simply oiling, and varnishing if a gloss is preferred. Very light shades of ochre make beautiful ceilings which can be ornamented with suitable designs, using darker but delicate shades of other light colors. Here is where the taste and skill of the painter comes in, and unless you are an adept, don’t fail to consult an experienced decorator for your inside walls.
For houses of moderate cost we think nothing is equal to solid colors for inside walls. Let the colors be light and cheerful, and the rooms of different shades. ([See page 48]).
