Wall And Floor Finishes And Coverings.
1. The Various Kinds Of Wall Finishes.
Backgrounds
For rooms facing north, the best colors are the yellows, ranging from a cream color to a deep pumpkin yellow.
For rooms facing south, use light grays, which might range to a deep putty color. In sunny rooms it is possible to use any colors except those which fade easily.
On the walls of rooms with northern or eastern exposures, or a combination of both, use warm colors; southern and western exposures demand cool tones.
In the rooms of uncertain exposure, for example where windows on the west conflict with windows on the east, use neutral tones, which are neither warm nor cool colors.
[Note: Although exposure doubtless is the most important factor which influences the choice of color, such considerations as size and shape of rooms, type and size of furniture, and individual preference also should be kept in mind.]
Warm Tones Red, light or dark Rose, light or dark Pink, light or dark Brown, light or dark Orange, light or dark Yellow, light or dark Gold Neutrals Ivory Cream Buff Putty Tan Cool Tones Blues, light or dark Greens, light or dark Violets, light or dark Grays, light or dark Silver .
The best way to treat adjoining rooms, with a wide doorway between, is to have the walls of both rooms alike, preferably in a neutral color, allover design paper, or plain flat-tone paint.
1 A flat-tone paint is a paint which contains more turpentine than oil and gives a velvety, smooth finish to walls.
2 An allover design paper includes any of the mottled types or those showing a repetition of a small, close design which lends a soft, cloudy appearance to walls as background.
There are numerous types of finish for woodwork, such as paint, enamel, stain, waxed or a rubbed finish, and each, in turn, is in good taste, providing it is in harmony with either the furnishings or the wall decoration.
Where walls are lightly colored in either a paint or paper, it creates greater harmony to paint the trim white, cream, or ivory. These colors are suitable forColonial houses, and are agreeable in living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms.
Dark woodwork and light walls are not usually in harmony, excepting in the case of all dark furniture; for example, if the furniture is dark mahogany or walnut, and the house is not strictly of a period; it would be permissible to have mahogany or walnut woodwork.
If the furniture is dark oak, woodwork of the same wood and tone would be in harmony. Painting woodwork in any of the light tones creates harmony with light painted or papered walls, whilefinishingthe wood in darker and natural tones makes a contrast, and should be used in connection with the more mellow-colored wall paints or papers.
Highly varnished light oak and pine woodwork is the most difficult and trying to make harmonize with either walls or furniture, and should not be considered. Mahogany, walnut, oak and all hardwoods should be finished with either oil, wax or varnish, and rubbed down and finished dull. This helps the woodwork to blend with the furniture and hangings.
Color, tone, and texture are the elements of the background treatment. A familiar principle in their use is that the walls should be lighter than the floor and darker than the ceiling. This customary treatment reflects the out-of-door tonal relations of dark earth, lighter foliage, and luminous sky. But no rule-of-thumb can be applied to so variable a problem; in a high-ceiled room the proportions may appear favorably changed by darkening the ceiling several shades below the tone of the walls.
The color and tone of the walls, as well as being in harmonious relation to the furniture, should be chosen with referenceto the exposure and size of the rooms, the warmer buffs and yellows being in favor for rooms with little sunlight, and lighter shades for small rooms than for spacious ones. ' Neutral shades, such as buff, ivory, and gray, are safe enough, and often form the most attractive possibility; but one should not rely too completely upon the neutrals, because equally suitable and infinitely richer effects may be obtained through more original color-treatments.
Another situation of equal importance is the question of Texture - will the effect sought in the room we are planning be best secured through a smooth painted wall, a rough plaster finish, the finer and less varied texture of wall paper, or the richness of a textile? Ingeneral, a rough texture or pronounced pattern on the wall diminishes the apparent size of a room. It absorbs the light and makes one more conscious of the nearness of the walls, just as a dark ceiling usually seems lower than a light one. An exception to this statement is found in the skilful use of old-fashioned landscape papers, which lend their distance and perspective to a small room. In general, tone and texture which often pass unnoticed - through lack of conspicuous qualities - tend to make the room seem larger than it would with a striking wall-treatment. It
is well to realize the importance of these and other interlocking details which at first seem obvious and hardly worth mentioning, for they should all be given consideration in choosing the wall-treatment. Before making the finalselection, the householder should know the possibilities which lie before him.
Plaster Walls And Painted Finishes
Plaster walls may be varied by two means, texture and color, and with the possible variations of these two qualities many different effects are attainable. In many rooms the severity of plain plaster walls in neutral tone provides the most successful foil for tapestries or paintings of rich color, while some rooms which lack such distinctive decoration welcome the addition of more perceptible texture and color in the plaster. The modern use of rough plaster finishes, with soft color in plain or stippled effect, can be decorative and satisfactory, but it is easy to overdo uneven-ness. Moderation, here as elsewhere, is a wise rule. Moreover, where uneven finishes are used, the unevenness should not be mechanically regular. Avoid extremes in designing a finish of plaster or plaster-substitutes. To increase the soft and uneven effect of hand finishes, the corner-bead is sometimes omitted from the process of making the corners, and they are molded as squarely as may be by hand. This seems in pleasant scale with the roughness of the wall surface, but is more liable to chipping from careless treatment.
Whatever the texture and color of plaster walls, the contractor should be called upon for samples from which selection may be made before work is begun. Actual samples should be required for all wall treatments except plain plaster. For color, a row of shingles, for example,paint the different shades under consideration and observed in the very room where the color is to be used - to see the truelight-conditions of daytime , and so forth - will save much expense and energy. See for yourself. If you cannot be sure of your visual imagination, try an actual sample in the proposed environment.....
Color may be given to plaster walls in two ways: By adding dry color to the plaster before it is applied to the wall, or by painting or calcimining the finished wall. The first method has so far been less practicable than the second, as it requires experience to be sure of obtaining the color desired, and fading has been considered due to the "eating" of the color by the lime in the plaster. Modern materials and methods are removing this problem.
Wall Paint
The use of flat wall-paint- dull surface without gloss - on plaster walls is a practical finish which may be readily washed and kept clean. In most rooms it is preferable to any of the enamel-paint finishes, although in kitchen or bathroom a glossy enamel is clean-looking and easily cared for. As a background for pictures and hangings, in plain color, the mat surface of flat paint is the more harmonious. The degree of roughness of the wall surface, rather than the applied color, determines the texture in this case. By stippling - dabbling on the paint from the end of a coarse brush - a smooth wall may be given more texture, or a rough wall an appropriate finish; but this, like unevenness of the plaster, is a practice which should be followed in moderation. Avoid much contrast in the tones of color used; only a slight variation is
pleasant. The same is true of the various other two-toned finishes by which smears of another color than the background are applied with wadded newspaper or similar vehicle.
For maintenance, painted walls on account of their washableness are usually preferable to a calcimined finish. Calcimine, however, is perhaps simpler to apply, and is less expensive in preliminary cost. It is often practical to calcimine new walls, then later, after a settling period of a year or two, to wash off the calcimine and apply the permanent treatment. This lowers the first cost without obtrusive economy. To patch either plain paint or calcimine is a difficult process, for which a perfect match in tone is requisite, and a light hand on the brush strokes. Calcimine - cold-water paint - is usually considered inexpensive enough to make an entire new coat more satisfactory than an attempt at patching. It is generally used in light tints, and always in plain colors.
Obviously, the roughness of a wall surface will govern to a certain extent its dust-catching proclivities. But this is not serious enough to alarm . Another practical aspect of rough surfaces is their scratchiness. For livableness, choose a finish which has no sharp particles adhering to it, although it may look comparatively rough.
An attractive possibility in adding a decorative note to plaster walls in modern non-period rooms is the use of large figures, small patterns in relief, usually arranged unconventionally in the area to be decorated. This is an inheritance from old Englishwork, and the designs in use are largely descendants of rather primitive and naive Tudor animals, flowers, and so forth, but include as well more diffuse patterns of vines and scrolls. Special designs are adaptable for use in this way, the figures being usually cast first and imbedded in the plaster as it is applied, although in some of the old work the plasterer molds the figure as he spread the plaster. Originality in simple effects is attainable with pargeting, and although the informality of the spotting of the small figures may appeal to comparatively few people, the suggestions of ornamental relief may be carried out more conventionally. For instance, an over-mantel decoration in relief is most appropriate in rooms of Spanish as well as of classic inspiration, and gives a satisfying feeling of permanence and individuality.
Stenciling
Another decoration appropriate to plaster walls is the application of color with a stencil pattern. The misuse of stenciling has given many of us unpleasant associations with it, which may easily be dispelled by a fair consideration of its possibilities. The importance of a design suitable to the mechanical limitations should be realized, as wide "ties"-the connecting links of the pattern which hold together the perforated design - in most stencils are much to blame for the frequently rudimentary effect of such work. Possibly some design in the upholstery or hangings of the room will provide a motif which can be adapted to its use as a stencil, permitting a judicious distribution of the ties and at the same time adding pleasantly to the decorative unity of the room.
The preparation of the pattern and its alignment for use, as well as the preparation and use of colors, demand both good workmanship and good materials. Border patterns are used in numerous ways: Around doors and windows, in decorative panels, or as horizontal borders in the room at any desired height. The majority of stencil patterns are bold enough to be applicable to plaster surfaces of rough texture, and gain in interest from the variation of background.
Wall-stenciling should be carefully designed to take its proper place in the decorative scheme, and removable samples showing the proposed effect should always be passed upon in advance. An attractive, unobtrusive form of stenciling is done in flat paint and enamel paint of the same tone; with the pattern done in gloss on the dull background, an effect is more suggestive of damask.
A decorative treatment may be given to smooth plaster walls by PANELING. These panels may be made of wood or of plaster molding. Common picture molding is often used, and provides an inexpensive and effective treatment. The difficulty, however,is in the laying-out of plaster walls into panels, by the use of these moldings proper balance and proportion is achieved;and the room should be properly divided with consideration for doors and windows. For good results in paneling, the plaster should be smooth. If it is not, a canvas usually is applied in order to hide cracks and other defects. This canvas is then sized. Generally, it is not considered advisable to panel a wall which has a number of openings as paneling in such a case would give the appearance of over-ornamentation. Consideration also should be given to each panel as a unit in itself, as well as its relation in size to other panels.Painting is usually advisable for a wall which has been paneled, and in accordance with other principles of decoration, the moldings and woodwork should be of the same tone, particularly in small rooms. Paneling is inexpensive and is commonly used in inexpensive houses, as it provides a satisfactory decorative wall treatment. The use of canvas is also effective in reconditioning as it hides shabby and worn plaster. If the plaster is too worn, it may be covered with plaster board and then paneled.
Antiquing which has been commonly used has not proved highly satisfactory. The results often are "dirty looking," and the walls do not have the desirable fresh and clean appearance. Antiquing is accomplished both with flat paint and with water color. A common method is to apply a second coat of transparent color over a first coat of flat paint, after the former has become dry. The second coat is then wiped off while still wet. The result is a two-toned effect. Another finish for plaster is a treatment which results in the appearance of natural wood.
Treatment of Damp Walls
A good and simple remedy to obviate this evil is caoutchouc glue, which is prepared from rubber hose. The walls to be laid dry are first to be thoroughly cleaned by brushing and rubbing off; then the caoutchouc size, which has been previously made liquid by heating, is applied with a broad brush in a uniform layer—about 8 to 12 inches higher than the wall appears damp — and finally paper is pasted over the glue when the latter is still sticky. The paper will at once adhere very firmly. Or else, apply the liquefied glue in a uniform layer upon paper (wall paper, caoutchouc paper, etc.). Upon this, size paint may be applied, or it may be covered with wall paper or plaster.
If the caoutchouc size is put on with the necessary care—i. e., if all damp spots are covered with it—the wall is laid dry for the future, and no peeling off of the paint or the wall paper needs to be apprehended. In cellars, protection from dampness can be had in a like manner, as the caoutchouc glue adheres equally well to all surfaces, whether stone,glass, metal, or wood.
The walls must be well cleaned before painting. If the plaster should be worn and permeated with saltpeter in places it should be renewed and smoothed. These clean surfaces are coated twice with a water-glass solution, 1.1, using a brush and allowed to dry well. Then they are painted 3 times with the following mixture: Dissolve 100 parts, by weight, of mastic in 10 parts of absolute alcohol; pour 1,000 parts ofwaterover 200 parts of isinglass; allow to soak for 6 hours; heat to solution and add 100 parts of alcohol (50 per cent). Into this mixture pour a hot solution of 50 parts ofammoniain 250 parts of alcohol (50 per cent), stir well, and subsequently add the mastic solution and stand aside warm, stirring diligently. After 5 minutes take away from the fire and painting may be commenced. Before a fresh application, however, the solution should be removed.
when this coating has dried completely it is covered with oil or varnish paint, preferably the latter. In the same manner the exudation of so-called saltpeter in fresh masonry or on the exterior of facades, etc., may be prevented, size paint or limepaint being employed instead of the oil-varnish paint. New walls which are to be painted will give off no more saltpeter after 2 or 3 applications of the isinglass solution, so that the colors of the wall paper will not be injured either. Stains caused by smoke, soot, etc., on ceilings of rooms, kitchens, or corridors which are difficult to cover up with size paint, may also be completely isolated by applying the warm isinglass solution 2 or 3 times. The size paint is, of course, put on only after complete drying of the ceilings.
Wall-Papers
Like all transient fashions of dress or ornament, where the material is comparatively cheap, the patterns or colors of wall-paper are constantly changing, and new patterns and fashions are brought out every year. The small expense attending the decoration of a house enables each new occupant to choose the styleof his mural adornment at frequent intervals. It is our aim here to present certain principles according to which a person may be able to select such mural andceilingdecorations as may be best adapted to the rooms he wishes to adorn. Nothing more keenly excites homesickness than the dismantling of a room where our life is usually spent. A sense of loneliness is produced by the removal of our paintings, book-case, and hanging shelves in an ordinary housecleaning, which is only effaced by a complete restoration after the cleaning is over. Wallpapers add as much or perhaps even more to our pleasure and comfort, at home, than pictures or other ornaments. The favorite painting may be dispensed with, but the harmony or disagreeable tints and figures on the wall-paper become a part of the room, and are not so easily be to disposed of.
They either possess the richness and repose suitable for a pleasing background to furniture, mirrors, and paintings, or their glaring, patchy colors kill the effect of the best pictures; and to many a nervous invalid they render his hours and days miserable, as he counts and combines over and over again the meaningless recurrence of a marked angle or curve, or the ever-repeated misshaped flower.
The first principle that should be considered in the choice of wall-paper, is that the decoration of the sides of a room ought always to be a background more or less rich, according to the circumstances, for the usual occupants, furniture, and ornaments, relieved against it. The choice of a pattern then becomes of secondary importance. A pattern that would be agreeable to, and suitable for, a large room, would not be for a small room, because little groups of objects on a wall-paper, covering a limited space, take pleasant, general figures, which, if they are seen scattered over a large surface, make combinations that destroy the effect of the most attractive patterns in detail.
In looking over a vast number of paper-hangings, one is apt to be impressed with the fact that the beauty of the paper arises much more from a successful combination of colors than from any special loveliness of design.
Patterns may be observed where, in a small set of squares, grave and rich effects are produced by a skillful variety of tints of olive and bronze, enlivened here and there by small touches of red. In some of these little squares are leaves of plants; in others, simple circles; and in others, some formal, geometrical patterns. Yet as a result of them all, we have a quiet and perhaps brilliant shadow, relieving against its rich hues, positive tints in clothing, or bright china, or brilliant glass, as well as the people and furniture in the room.
A person is almost always able to find in any stock of paper-hangings, a kind of paper so simple in its attempts at form and color, that any one is sure to be pleased if he covers his walls with it. These papers consist of narrow, simple stripes, tiny clover leaves, or it may be little star-shaped figures, grey or white, upon a background scarcely different from itself.
A cool and pleasant effect is always given to an apartment thus covered; and if rich oil-paintings could not bear the contrast with so chilly a color, no headache was ever aggravated by it, no ornament ever obscured. A paper so neutral is not positively offensive, though it may be of an antiquated style.
It must be borne in mind that the paper must not be the most ornamental part of the room, but must serve as a background for the general furnishing and objects the room contains.
If the general furnishing of the room is rich and elaborate, the paper should correspond; still it must not be too conspicuous, but form a rich background to harmonize with the various rich objects which are presented against it.
If the furniture is plain, it will be entirely out of place to have a rich paper upon which it shall be outlined; for then the richness of the latter will tend to give a cheap appearance to all the furnishings of the room. Consequently, care must be taken not to give too rich a color to the walls of a room, and one not in harmony with all thesurroundings. A gold paper is not needed to add to the richness of a room.
Anotherconsideration in choosing paper is as to how light or dark the room is. If a room has many windows, and is therefore well lighted, it will bear a paper with a darker background than though it was poorly lighted; and a dark room should, on the otherhand, have a light paper.
Parlor Or Drawing-Room Papers
For parlor or drawing-room paper, those with light or medium backgrounds are regarded in best taste, introducing but few colors and those of rich and delicate tints, and distributed as evenly as possible, so as to avoid any strong contrasts.
The patterns for parlor papers are subject to frequent change, the latest styles running more to curved lines than to any distinct patterns. The choice of patterns, however, is a matter of taste, and must in most cases be determined by the size and general appearance of the room.
Dados are rarely used upon parlors or drawing-rooms. A frieze or border is always used, and these are of widths varying from six to twenty inches. The width of the frieze upon any room must be determined by the height of the room and by other accessories. This is usually of the same color as the background of the paper, or, possibly, in most cases a little lighter, but seldom of a darker hue. The idea of the frieze is to give an appearance of greater height to the room, and the frieze and paper should be separated by a dark band or a band of gold color. A gilt molding is often used at the junction of the wall and ceiling.
In this connection it might be suggested that a French pearl-grey, a warmstone color, a pale buff, or a delicate green, are all beautiful for parlor walls. The faintest suspicion of pink, like the inner lining of some lovely sea-shells, is both pretty and becoming, and will go well with most things in the way of furnishing.
A frieze of flowers and butterflies would not be inharmonious with this tint. Pale lemon-yellow is a pleasing tint, or a fuller apricot-yellow is very effective, especially with blackwood-work.
In speaking of the color it is not meant that the wallpaper must be of one single tint, but reference is made to the predominating hue, which exists even when pattern and coloring are complex.
The shape of a room has much to do with its general effect. A long, narrow room lacks the capabilities of one square, or nearly square. A broken line of wall is by no means a misfortune, and may be converted into prettier surprises than could possibly be effected with straight lines.
The Library
For a library, more antique patterns may be used in wall-papers, and the prevailing style at present is the use of Pompeian colors, of somewhat sombre hues, but not enough so to make the room appear gloomy.
Dados are used in the library. These are not less than 26 inches wide, and sometimes as high as four or five feet, but oftenest run from 30 to 40 inches. Dados are either of the same shade or somewhat darker than the wall-paper, but never of a lighter shade. Friezes are also used, which are usually of a lighter shade.
The Bed-Rooms
The choice of wall-paper must be determined greatly by the amount of light to which they are exposed. If the room be somewhat dark, a paper with a very light background should be put on, and generally speaking, light papers should be used on bed-rooms, but considerably darker for a well-lighted than for a poorly-lighted room. Where there are floods of sunshine, French grey, blue, or cream color may be used to advantage.
If friezes or bordering can be found of roses and buds, morning glories, daisies, or primroses, according to the paper, the effect will be very good. Patterns of flowers are especially appropriate for bed-rooms. A cottage bed-room, papered with small pink roses on a white satinyground, is exceedingly pretty.
The Dining-Room
The paper for the dining-room should have a background of a medium, or from a medium to a dark, color. If a dado is used, then rich colorings may predominate in the dado while the wall may be left comparatively free of colors and quiet in tone. The dado may be from 30 to 40 inches in height.
If no dado is used, the walls themselves may partake of bright and cheerful colors, and well-defined patterns. The ceiling should be light and delicate, and near thecorniceone or two lines of harmonious but contrasting color with that on the walls.
One of the handsomest wall coverings for a dining-room, where it is at all suitable, is a dado of rich maroon, with gilt figures, and a gilt and maroon molding in lines; above this, a very pale tint of olive-green with the cornice of maroon and gold.
Bricks And Brickwork.
Another mode of keeping out weather is to cement the face of the brickwork. But this hides up the work, and so tends to promote bad work, besides being often very unsightly.
Among other peculiarities of brickwork are the facilities for introducing different colors and different textures of surface which it presents, the ease with which openings and arches can be formed in it, the possibility of executing ornament and even carving, and the ease with which brickwork will combine with other building materials. It cannot be well made use of for columns, though it may readily enough be turned into piers or pilasters. It cannot, generally speaking, with advantage be made use of for any large domes, though the inner dome of St. Paul's and the intermediate cone are of brick, and stand well. But it is an excellent material for vaulting arcades and all purposes involving the turning of arches.
Brickwork must be said to be durable, but it requires care. If not of the best, brickwork within the reach of the constant vibration caused by the traffic on a railway seems to be in danger of being shaken to pieces, judging from one or two instances that have come under my own observation. The mortar, and even in some cases the bricks themselves, will rapidly deteriorate if moisture be allowed to get into the heart of a brick wall, and in exposed situations this is very apt to happen. Care should always be taken to keep the pointing of external brickwork in good order, and to maintain all copings and other projections intended to bar the access of water coming down from above, and to stop the overflowing of gutters and stack pipes, which soon soaks the wall through and through.
Of course, if there is a failure of foundations, brickwork, as was pointed out earlier, becomes affected at once. But if these be good, and the materials used be sound ones, and if the other precautions just recommended be taken, it will last strong and sturdy for an immense length of time. In some cases, as forexamplein the Roman ruins, it has stood for 1,500 years under every possible exposure and neglect, and still shows something of a sturdy existence after all, though sadly mutilated. If we now return to the question, What can be well done in brickwork? no better answer can be given than to point to what has been and is being done, especially in London and within our own reach and observation.
Great engineering works, such as railway via ducts, the lining of railway tunnels, the piers and even the arches of bridges, sewage works, dock and wharf walls, furnace chimneys, and other works of this sort are chiefly done in brickwork. And notwithstanding that iron is far more used by the engineer for some purposes and concrete for others now than formerly, still there is a great field for brickwork. The late Mr. Brunel, who was fond of pushing size to extremes, tried how wide a span he could arch over with brickwork. And I believe the bridge which carries the G.W.R. over the Thames at Maidenhead has the widest arch he or any other engineer has successfully erected in brick. This arch has, it is stated, a span of 128 ft. It is segmental, the radius being 169 ft., and the rise from springing to crown 24 ft., and the depth of the arch 5 ft. 3 in. Nowadays, of course, no one would dream of anything but an iron girder bridge in such aposition. Mr. Brunel's father, when he constructed the Thames Tunnel, lined it with brickwork foot by foot as he went on, and that lining sustained the heavy weight of the bed of the river and the river itself.
If you leave London by either of the southern lines, all of which are at a high level, you go for miles on viaducts consisting of brick arches carried on brick walls. If you leave by the northern lines, you plunge into tunnel after tunnel lined with brickwork, and kept secure by such lining. Mile after mile of London streets, and those in the suburbs, present to the eye little but brick buildings; dwelling houses, shops, warehouses, succeed one another, all in brickwork, and even when the eye seems to catch a change, it is more apparent than real.
The white mansions of Tyburnia, Belgravia, South Kensington, and the neat villas of the suburbs are only brickwork, with a thin coat of stucco, which serves the purpose of concealing the real structure--often only too much in need of concealment--with a material supposed to be a little more sightly, and certainly capable of keeping the weather out rather more effectually than common brickwork would.
More than this, such fine structures, apparently built entirely of stone, as are being put up for commercial purposes in the streets of the city, and for public purposes throughout London, are all of them nothing more than brick fabrics with a facing of masonry. Examine one of them in progress, and you will find the foundations and vaults of brickwork, and not only the interior walls, but the main part of the front wall, executed in brickwork, and the stone only skin deep. There are, however, two or three ways of making use of brickwork without covering it up, and of gaining good architectural effects thereby, and to these I beg now to direct your attention.
The architect who desires to make an effective brick building, which shall honestly proclaim to all the world that it is of brick, may do this, and, if he will, may do it successfully, by employing brickwork and no other material, but making the best use of the opportunities which it affords, or he may erect his building of brickwork and stone combined, or of brickwork and terra cotta. Mr. Robson, till lately the architect to the School Board for London, has the merit of having put down in every part of the metropolis a series of well contrived and well designed buildings, the exterior of which almost without exception consists of brickwork only.
If you examine one of his school-houses, you will see that the walls are of ordinary stock brickwork, but usually brightened up by a little red brick at each angle, and surmounted by well contrasted gables and with lofty, well designed chimneys, rising from the tiled roof. The window openings and doorways are marked by brickwork, usually also red, and sometimes moulded, and though I personally must differ from the taste which selected some of the forms employed (they are those in use in this country in the 17th and the last centuries), I cordially recognize that with very simple and inexpensive means exceedingly good, appropriate, and effective buildings have been designed.
Chapter VI. The Significance Of Texture
THE statement thatformandcolorare the two media of decorative expression requires qualification; for texture, although in an accurate sense simply form and color interwoven, is in effect a distinct medium of expression, and one of great importance.
The word texture comes from a root meaning to weave, but its primary meaning has been so widened that the term is used in the arts to express structure, or the manner in which the parts of a material are united or interwoven. In this sense all decorative materials have texture, and their texture is the most characteristic and in some respects the most significant quality they possess. Through it form and color, essentially impersonal attributes, become individualized. Without it decoration would be meaningless and beauty impossible. Thus cinnamon brown, simply as a flat color, is uninteresting and unpleasant, being in fact little more than a dirty yellow-orange. But when it appears in an interesting texture, as in oak or walnut, in silk, wool or paper, in close or open weaves and flat or pile fabrics, it becomes significant and beautiful. Similarly the dead gloom of black and the dead glare of white are relieved and endowed with life and animation, as the heat of red, the cold of blue, and the brilliancy of yellow are tempered, by texture.
The esthetic value of texture lies first of all in the fact that it makes gradation of color possible. Flat colors are never beautiful. Broadly speaking, they appear neither innature nor in good art. A flat tone is often useful in decoration, as when painted woodwork or furniture is employed to set off by contrast the gradated tones of rug, walls and hangings; but of itself it is monotonous and unbeautiful. Texture gives a surface unevenness, either actually, as in woven fabrics, flock papers, or wrought iron, or in effect, as in the grain of hardwoods, and this unevenness causes the surface color to be broken into an infinitude of minute gradations oflightand shade, banishing its hard, lifeless, obvious quality, and investing it with the charm of vitality and subtlety.
The importance of gradation in color is thus finely emphasized by Ruskin in the third letter of The Elements of Drawing: "And it does not matter how small the touch of color may be, though not larger than the smallest pin's head, if one part of it is not darker than the rest it is a bad touch; for it is not merely that the natural fact is so, that your color should be gradated; the preciousness and pleasantness of the color itself depends more on this than on any other of its qualities, for gradation is to color just what curvature is to lines, both being felt to be beautiful by the pure instinct of every human mind, and both, considered as types, expressing the law of gradual change and progress in the human soul itself. What the difference is in mere beauty between a gradated and ungradated color may be seen easily by laying an even tint of rose color on paper, and putting a rose-leaf beside it. The victorious beauty of the rose as compared with other flowers depends wholly upon the delicacy and quantity of its color gradations, all other flowers being either less rich in gradation, not having so many folds of leaf; or less tender, being patched and veined instead of flushed".
Because large areas of flat color are not only tiresome and unbeautiful in themselves, but also totally unsympathetic backgrounds for the people and things that appear against them, all background surfaces should reveal a marked effect of texture. Walls and ceilings ought not to be tinted with calcimine unless they have a relatively rough surface, and when smooth walls are painted they should be covered with canvas or muslin first and stippled afterward, or otherwise roughened in order to ensure the effect of texture and the beauty of gradated tones. The great decorative value of wall paper lies largely in the fact that it makes possible almost any desired effect of texture, and this at almost any desired price. Costly papers like the grass-cloths and flocks possess great individuality and distinction in texture, while such inexpensive papers as the jaspes and imitation grass-cloths simulate it by the skillful use of dots, dashes and hair-lines of color printed upon a plain or embossed surface.
Quite apart from their hue and tone, textures possess emotional values due to the association of ideas. The decorator will accordingly seek to group textures with other textures, as he groups forms and colors, in such a way as to produce convergences of effect and to ensure decorative unity through likenesses either in appearance or in significance. Instinctively we associate the texture of oak with what is strong and vigorous and a little crude. Hence we group it in general not only with relatively low tones of color and relatively large and simple shapes, but also with textures which are relatively firm and heavy, as tapestry, velvet or leather. Similarly the texture of satinwood is associated by the mind with what is smooth and delicate and refined, and is therefore grouped in practice with textures like damask, brocade or taffeta, which are light, smooth and lustrous, as well as with light colors and relatively slight and graceful shapes. Instinctively the texture of silk is associated with what is rare and costly and that of cotton with what is commonplace and inexpensive, as the texture of lustrous deep-pile weaves is associated with richness and luxury and of lusterless flat weaves with a strait simplicity. Doubtless the emotional significance of texture has roots that lie below mere association, in states too purely metaphysical for discussion here. In any case it is certain that the consistent use of texture is for some reason felt to be even more essential in good decoration than consistency inornamentor style. Some textures, used together, are felt at once to be unsympathetic and even antipathetic; while others seem to be related by subtle affinities.
