Types of the Antiques which are Reproduced - Consistent Use of Period Styles in the Various Rooms of the Home - Bisymmetric and Occult Balance -Comfort.

Antiques And Reproductions

There are a very few families at the present time where rare old furniture has descended from generation to generation in any considerable quantity, and the purchase of genuine antiques is often out of the question. Indeed, the seeker after old furniture must ever be on guard, for the manufacture of so-called antiques has come to be a most clever and flourishing industry. As with the antique oriental rug, antique furniture should be purchased only from a reliable dealer. Unlike the oriental rugs, however, which have never been satisfactorily imitated, the period furniture which is turned out in our factories to-day is in every way as beautiful as the rare old pieces of our forefathers. The designs are good, and true to type, and the wood is strong and beautiful in grain, while the masterful polishing which brings out the exquisite markings is far ahead of the ancient finish.

The More Simple Types Best

In the reproductions of old furniture, it is noticeable that the manufacture of the most beautiful and suitable styles is becoming greater year by year, while the types of lesser merit are gradually disappearing. The elaborate and heavily carved furniture of the early Italian and French days is not now often reproduced, and of the later periods, the most simple designs are retained. Each one of the old masters made many designs, a few of which were good, and many of which were poor. The finest furniture was usually built on plain, strong lines, and it is from these pieces that the manufacturer of to-day selects his models.

Consistent Use Of Period Styles

Furniture of different periods is adapted to various types of homes. The greatest sense of unity can often be obtained in a home by planning garden, house, and furnishings to conform to one certain period. The absurdity of a Japanese garden and a house built on the lines of a Swiss chalet and filled with colonial furniture is apparent at once, and yet mistakes equally great are often made. The landscape gardener of to-day is fortunately furthering a sentiment for unity between house and grounds, and the interior decorator carries that idea one step farther to the inside of the house as well.

The Use Of Different Styles Of The Same Period

Each type of furniture of the chosen period contains enough styles to furnish all of the different rooms of a home. There are heavy and more formal pieces which are suitable for the hall, dignified chairs and tables for the dining room, and lighter furniture for the living rooms and bedrooms. There is the greatest economy in the purchase of furniture of one period for the entire house, because the pieces are interchangeable between the various rooms. Articles from the bedrooms may be used in the living room when desired, and the chairs belonging to the dining room suite, when not in daily use, may serve the purpose of straight chairs in living room and hall. The sense of unity given by similar furnishing also adds greatly to the apparent size of the house, as the observer passes from room to room. Some of the manufacturers of this country are making a specialty of designing period furniture for the entire house. The complete list of furniture may be purchased from the one firm with a minimum of expense and worry, and additional pieces may easily be obtained whenever desired. The same firms will also make special adaptations in design, woods, and stains to suit the needs of the particular house which is to be furnished.