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Beauty in the Home

January 30, 1930
Detroit News Quilt History Project; Michigan State University Museum; Susan Salser
Detroit, Michigan, United States
A portion of a Beauty in the Home column discussing a 12 year old girl's bedroom.
Beauty in the Home
By Edith B. Crumb
This department seek to give assistance to all who are interested in beautifying their home and will be glad to answer questions pertaining to interior decoration. In order to serve all who, seek advice promptly, no more than three problems will be discussed in any one reply. Readers are invited to write in this department as often as they wish, but to limit each letter to three questions. State your questions clearly, write only on one side of each paper, enclosing a self-address, stamped envelope and will be published for the benefit of all homemakers, but names and addresses will not be made public.

Frills and furbelows may embellish the majority of current fashions but, strangely enough, pillows hew to more or less tailored line. A restrained simplicity pervades both patterning and color.

Many clever ensemble effects are worked out by matching the pillow or pillows to a lounge throw, bedspread, or an important chair in the room. Patchwork pillows, for instance, are very smartly combined in bedrooms which boast colorful patchwork quilts- this is a charming note for the Colonial Room.

Glazed chintz, brocade, satin, velvet, and taffeta alone or in combination are the favored fabrics used to fashion the smartest pillows. Recent imports have introduced some very unique shapes and color combinations. Sausage and football shapes in particular are quite new.

One of the most popular types of boxed pillow is shown in the center of the lower row. It is of hand blocked linen n bright and dark colorings bound in the darker shade. The pillow at the upper right is of the pattern suitable for either bedroom or living rom. It is fashioned in rectangular shape and is made of taffeta ribbon.

Another pillow unmistakably reveals its destination with its froth of soft marabou.
A convenient handle makes possible a quite traveled existence for another pillow fashioned of colored patched suede. A zipper opening admits one to a useful private compartment.

One of the cleverest and most artistic of the recently imported pillows is one which is quilted in sections like a comforter. The one sketched at the lower right is taffeta with the quilting going through from back to front, giving a somewhat tubular effect.
Two other little pillows which may be used in almost any room are of colorful silk rep with all over wool embroidery and fringed edge and a round sating pillow with a bit of color embroider at one side.

Twelve Year Olds Room
Will you kindly give me a suggestion on how to paint my bedroom furniture? The bed and dresser are now ivory color; the wallpaper has large sprays of yellow flowers with a cream background. I also wish to paint the chair. What color would you suggest? There are two windows. What kind of curtains over draperies and bedspread can I use? I am twelve years old. Miss V.M.

Well, Miss Twelve Year old you have a very pretty background for your bedroom and now ig you will put some light green and more yellow in it, you will find it very cheery.

The glass curtains may be of cream French marquisette, made with one-inch side hems, a three-inch bottom hem, and long enough to reach the sill.
For the over draperies, select a flowered chintz with a light green ground and bouquet design in yellow, apricot, blue, green and a touch of rose.

These may be made long to reach to the bottom of the apron and hung from beneath a simple shirred valance.
The bed, dresser, and chair may be finished in light green to match the ground of the draperies. If there is a mirror attached to the dresser, have this removed, store the supports if you do not wish to discard them, and hang the mirror from the picture molding with a pair of light green cords. Do not have the kind that reach from each side to one hook, making a triangle, but two which run parallel.

For the bedspread you may use a yellow crepe or muslin with design in white or green candle wicking.
The cover for the dresser may be made of yellow handkerchief linen finished with a cream lace edging and the lamp shades may be of yellow Swiss with a white dot. These should be pleated. This type of shades is very inexpensive ready made in the stores.

The covering for the chair may be of yellow and cream or yellow and green plaid gingham. This little touch of something different will make your room more attractive.

If you do not wish curtains and over draperies both, you may have one set of curtains only, these being of light green organdie or point D'Esprit, finished with four inch ruffles of the same and caught back with ruffled bands.

Courtesy of The Detroit News Archives.

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