found in one piece with plain colors or novelty weaves emphasizing the
colors of the figured fabric; for example, a room may have a blue sofa
with a tiny pink figure worked into the tapestry. One of the chairs,
then, could be pink in the same tone as the small figure; the other
chair would then be one of the yellow tones, and could be either beige,
or brown.
Some decorators repeat the floral colors of printed draperies in the
room setting. Some combine the plain colors of the sofa and chair in a
figured third chair which has a neutral background and picks up the
colors of the other two pieces. It is well to mix the patterns in a
room, a stripe combining nicely with a plain color, and a small figured
mixture carrying out the third color and blending the striped and plain
tones.
By referring to your chart you will discover many interesting color
combinations. Just remember that adjacent colors take the opposite
complement as accent. Complementary colors may be used with adjacent or
with a third primary color, or with a combination of two primaries on a
neutral background of the third color.
LINE AND FORM
Straight lines create an effect of strength, virility, and seriousness,
and, if exclusively employed, of austerity or hardness; while curved
lines create an effect of flexibility and joyousness, and, if,
exclusively employed, the effect is one of weakness.
Horizontal lines and shapes arouse a sense of calmness and repose;
vertical lines and shapes, of activity and life; diagonal lines and
shapes, of movement. Long straight lines create an effect of dignity.
When two colors are used together a line is created and these lines
have a distinct effect upon the room in which they are used.
PROPORTION
Proportion, which is simply the relation of one dimension to another,
applies throughout the house to walls, floors, ceilings, doors,
windows, chairs, bookcases, tables, and other furnishings. Good
proportions are never top-heavy, squatty, or uninteresting. Large
size and thick proportions suggest strength, weight, permanence,
and dignity; small size and slender proportions arouse the idea of
delicacy, lightness, and grace.
It is well for the furniture salesman to understand a few simple facts
which every good interior decorator knows.
Walls and floors, plus ceilings, determine the proportions of a room as
a whole. Suppose a badly proportioned room is too narrow for its length
and height--something common, for instance, to halls and dining rooms.
The apparent width of this too narrow room may be increased by--
1. Hanging a mirror, or using a picture in which the perspective
is such that the eye follows a stream or broad expanse into the
distance.
2. Using scenery wallpapers.
In well-proportioned rooms the wall decorations are lighter than the
floor and the ceiling decorations are lighter than those of the walls.
SOURCES OF INSPIRATION
There are many avenues of study available to anyone who seeks the
real enjoyment which comes with planning his own environment. Fashion
ever has been a keynote in the purchase of home furnishings. The
key, however, still remains in the custody of the owner. When she
intends to buy a new gown, coat, or hat, she reads magazines and
newspapers, shops around, studies styles and trends, thinks of uses and
requirements for the gowns or coats under consideration. Probably she
needs to understand that she may use as much conscious discrimination
with furniture as with coats if only she will use the same sources of
inspiration and information. She should try any one or all of these:
1. Monthly magazines with their superb color features, illustrating
articles of great diversity.
2. Books from the public or from a rental library.
3. Model rooms set up in department and furniture stores, and in
furniture shows.
4. Museums containing replica rooms done in the historical periods.
5. Paintings, as guiding one's thoughts for color schemes.
6. Newspapers which record style trends in attractive merchandise
priced to meet the family budget.
If these studies are good for the prospective customer, how much more
valuable they are for the progressive salesman who seeks to understand
customer needs and desires in terms of human satisfactions.
SUMMARY
The results of studies of emotional values may be summarized as follows:
1. Variations in light, color, line, shape, and size affect the
mind in certain fairly definite ways. When these variations
are understood and controlled a group or a room may be given
atmosphere which not only adds to its beauty, but also greatly
helps in arranging it to meet the needs of the people who use it.
2. These emotional values of light, color, line, shape, proportion,
and texture must be employed in such a way that the effect of
each is increased by the effects of all:
_Effects of restfulness and tranquillity result when_--
_a._ The amount and intensity of illumination are reduced.
_b._ The tone of all colors is lowered.
_c._ Horizontal lines are predominant.
_d._ Large size is emphasized.
_Effects of animation and activity result when_--
_a._ The amount and brilliance of illumination are increased.
_b._ The tone of all colors is raised.
_c._ Vertical lines are predominant.
_d._ Small size is emphasized.
COLOR MANAGEMENT IN DECORATION
The moment anyone undertakes to furnish a home, that moment he begins
to use color. Ross Crane, when conducting experiments in which color
schemes for complete rooms were planned and executed step and step,
determined that there are only four steps to take in building a color
scheme.[15] These four steps are:
1. Decide on a dominant or controlling color.
2. Decide on the colors to go with it.
3. Bring these colors into the room in everything.
4. Accent the scheme by means of small objects (flower bowl and
flowers, lamps, pictures, smoking trays) in high intensities of
the leading color. These are the high lights that produce life
and sparkle.
Another writer puts it this way:
In deciding on a color scheme for a whole room, fix on some
foundation color, and then introduce relief and contrast.[16]
PLANNED PROCEDURE FOR THE SALESPERSON
With this information well in mind the home furnishings salesman will
do well to leave learned and scientific discussion of color management
to the scientists and concentrate on a few principal facts which will
be dominant throughout the sales procedure.
He may be assured that his customer's decisions to buy furnishings for
a complete room, a few pieces only, or none at all, will be conditioned
by her likes, by the family budget, by the size and use to be made of
the room, and by the necessity to use "left-overs."
He certainly will profit by having a rather definite knowledge of
chromatic scales, complementary colors, adjacent colors, nuances, and
concentric circles as devices which he may use to show how we get the
many varied colors. It is the opinion of leading experts that the
average salesman will find it far easier and more satisfactory to talk
convincingly of color management for any given room or combination of
rooms by using a simple color story which starts with the six basic
colors, and which may be understood easily by the customer. If a simple
color chart is close at hand and ready for use at any time, the sales
talk will deal with facts, not generalities.
He must be able to take an inventory, by personal inspection or through
questions, of the color possibilities in the decoration problem
presented by the customer. Such facts as room exposure, size and type,
wall color, floor covering, furniture already in the room; use to be
made of the room, number, sex, and characteristic traits of those who
will live, eat, work, or sleep in the room; and approximate price
ranges must be known if real help is to be given.
He must know the stock so thoroughly that within the given price range,
the designation of the proper color schemes will be comparatively
easy. He must use his knowledge of color through the furnishings, to
interpret, as needed, two different sets of ideas:
1. One in which the color scheme is daring, with unusual
combinations, startling, gay, and sophisticated.
2. The other, with a color scheme recognized as gentle, restful,
and never monotonous.
If he has a feeling of intimacy with both and will use his knowledge
consciously to produce definite emotional effects, in a progressive
series, he will see sales come as a reward for his effort.
THE SALESPERSON AS INTERPRETER OF APPRECIATIONS
When next you find a room in the home of a friend, in a model house,
or illustrated in a magazine that awakens a response of pleasure when
you first see it, stay with it long enough to find out why. Study the
handling of color in curtains, rugs, chair upholstery, lamps, and
bits of pottery; ask yourself where the abiding interest of the room
is centered. Seek to uncover the secret of the spell this room casts
over your senses. Unconsciously, you thrill to the thought that you,
yourself, would never tire of such a room. It is the ultimate in color
management.
This glorious adventure must be experienced by you, yourself. To you is
given a power to enrich your appreciation of lovely things, and in turn
to convey similar appreciations to your customers.
The salesman who has learned to exercise this power is far from being
an order taker or even an order solicitor. Literally, he is counselor
and guide--an interpreter of the store services which exist to help the
customer, and the one to show the store management the need for expert
customer guidance in color management.
If once, you, the salesman, have experienced the personal satisfactions
of studying a room which has unmistakable distinction, which literally
glows with the light of a personality reflected against a background of
culture, understanding, and sympathy, you in turn will seek eagerly to
share your adventures in color management with those who come to you
seeking to express their desires and aspirations in terms of usable,
lovely surroundings.
Difficult? The difficulty is in deciding to make the effort.
PRINCIPLES OF FURNITURE ARRANGEMENT
"Next in importance to the actual selection of furniture and
accessories is a skillful and sensible arrangement of it all in a room.
Every salesman should understand that in the placing of the furniture
you may make a small room appear more spacious; a large barn-like one
seem more cozy; express the idea of formality or informality; quiet
restfulness or agitated confusion, sedateness or gayety, order or
disorder."[17]
One secret of getting a homelike quality in the arrangement of
furniture is to assemble it in small groups or units which suggest
specific uses, as for instance a reading group, a writing or business
nook, a rest corner, or a music section.
GET A CENTER OF INTEREST FIRST
If you are arranging furniture in the living room, decide on a central
interest. Often this is called a built-up composition--table, be
grouped. A fireplace with its cheerful fire-glow may well be a natural
center of interest. (See fig. 31.) A window or group of windows opening
upon a lovely vista may serve equally well. If the family is musical,
the grand piano may be so placed as to become the pivotal point of
interest.
_Secondary centers of interest_ naturally are created once the
fireplace, a window, or the grand piano is assigned to the major role.
There may well be more than one of these secondary centers, i. e., a
writing corner, and a reading group.
_Objects of central interest._--Every wall should have an object of
central interest. Often this is called a built-up composition--table,
desk, cabinet, or couch standing against the wall--with, in each case,
a picture, mirror, hanging bookcase, or tapestry above. The focal point
may be a single tall piece of furniture such as a secretary or highboy.
The pictures, mirrors, or tapestry hangings tend to build up a kind of
"skyline" and the furniture is united with these wall decorations to
create the necessary feeling of orderly stability which proper balance
and color harmony can give.
BALANCE AND COLOR HARMONY
An effect of balance in the arrangement of the furniture is as
essential to the comfort of the occupants of the room as proper
lighting, easy chairs, or unobtrusive orderliness. In fact, it is a
species of order. It gives a feeling of repose.
[Illustration:
Courtesy American Walnut Manufacturers Association.
Figure 31.--Living room showing harmonious arrangement. View from
living room to hall in a city apartment. Interior woodwork, mantel, and
furniture are of wood in tones which range from the dark chest to the
blond chair.]
A room, or a group, is in balance when it appears to be at rest; that
is when the total imaginary weight, or pull, on the attention, of
everything on one side of a center appears to the mind to equal the
total weight of everything on the other side. An accurate feeling for
balance can be acquired easily by experiment and practice. There are
two kinds of balance: Even or formal, known as _bisymmetric_ balance;
and uneven or "off center" known as _occult_ balance.
_Formal or bisymmetric balance._--The simplest form of balance is
produced by placing two things exactly alike on either side of a
center and at exactly the same distance from it. This is called either
bisymmetric (double symmetrical) or formal balance--usually the latter
because such an arrangement is somewhat stiff and precise in its effect
upon the mind. To test it, exactly in the center of a piece of paper
draw a rectangle 1 inch long and one-half inch wide. Imagine this to
be a console table. Equidistant from this rectangle, in a straight
line, draw two small squares (one on each side of the rectangle) to
represent a pair of chairs. If you successively place a circle over the
rectangle to represent a mirror, you will clearly see the bisymmetric
balance. The effect of formality becomes more marked as you add more
units to the group. While too many formal groupings will make the room
seem stiff and unlivable, at least one formal grouping may be desirable
in every room since formal balance affects the mind with a sense of
stability and repose.
If the motive of formality is to be emphasized, the number and
importance of formal groupings should be emphasized; if informality is
desired, the use of formal balance should be limited.
"_Off center_" or "_Occult balance_."--There is another kind of
balance, usually called "occult" because it is less easy to see or to
create. It is produced by arranging a number of unlike things with
reference to a center on the basis of the mechanical formula that the
"weight" of each will increase directly with its distance from the
center.
As an experiment in occult balance, draw a rectangle 2 inches long and
1 inch wide to represent an imaginary fireplace. One-fourth inch to the
left of the exact center, and at right angles to the "fireplace," draw
a small rectangle 1 inch long and one-fourth inch wide to represent
a love seat. Now, one-fourth inch to the right of the center, and at
right angles to the "fireplace" draw two ½-inch squares to represent
two chairs. Together the chairs will seem to the mind to "weigh" about
the same as the love seat, and the whole group will be substantially
in occult balance. Now erase the "love seat" and exactly in the same
position draw a rectangle three-fourths inch in length to represent
a sofa. You will notice the balance has been destroyed. It may be
improved either by moving the "sofa" closer to the center, which will
make it weigh less; or by moving the chairs farther away from the
center, which will make them weigh more. In order to create a perfect
balance, however, the chairs should be separated and a small rectangle
placed between them to represent a table and lamp.
The salesman, if he is wise, will suggest pieces which, after suitable
arrangement, meet the real needs and tastes of the family whether those
needs be musical groupings, game-corner groupings, or conversational
groupings. It may mean the sacrifice of some rule of decoration to
make or keep a place for a favorite rocker, a grandfather's clock, or
a treasured piece, but careful planning can make such a piece either a
featured asset, or an unobtrusive addition if appropriately arranged in
a proper setting.
_The master rule for furniture grouping._--There is one all-inclusive
rule for grouping furniture: "Bring together in a convenient place,
those objects which will be used together."[18]
So many rooms become mere collections of furniture that along with this
master rule for furniture grouping is placed William Morris' little
rule, "Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or
believe to be beautiful."
If a reading chair is placed in a room, make sure adequate lighting
provisions are made, either by the addition of a small table lamp or
a standing lamp. If possible, a table should be provided for smoking
accessories, candy, or a bowl of fruit. If a "quiet" corner is desired,
select one away from general room traffic. If the radio is a feature
of the room, and the occupant likes to lounge in an easy chair while
listening, place a comfortable chair near the radio. Remember that the
chair also may be used for reading, so be certain to provide adequate
light. Conversational groupings require two or more chairs placed close
together with a table for refreshments.
PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL HARMONY
Speaking in general terms, it may be said that things harmonize, or go
well together when they are more or less alike, and that they may be
alike either because they look alike or because they affect the mind in
the same way.
For example, if you cover a Sheraton satinwood bed with a fine silk
taffeta spread in apricot, the two units will be harmonious because
both wood and taffeta are in colors which contain a large admixture of
the same hue, namely yellow. Moreover, they also will be harmonious
because the fine lines and slender proportions of the bed affect the
mind with a sense of delicacy and daintiness, and the fine texture,
silken luster, and pale coloring of the taffeta affect it in precisely
the same way. We can call the first type of harmony _physical_, and
the second type _emotional_. Both are basically important in the art
of interior decoration, and make surprisingly powerful sales levers
in dealing with that 60 percent of potential buyers whose primary
interest in furniture lies in what it will do to make their homes more
attractive.
_Tests for physical harmony._--There are numerous tests which might
be made by a salesman on the floor such as placing a square white
handkerchief on a mahogany gate-leg table and placing under it a pearl
grey rug to illustrate inharmonious effect resulting from the fact that
the three elements are unlike in hue, tone (degree of light and dark),
defining lines, shape, and texture.
A much simpler method is to compare room harmony with ladies wearing
apparel. Let us suppose a woman put on a brown dress, white belt, and
pearl-grey shoes. Of course, the effect would be most inharmonious. On
the other hand, suppose she substituted a gold belt and brown shoes.
A harmonious effect would be achieved as was done in the instance
previously referred to, in which a dull gold velvet or satin, folded
to the same width as the table, was laid on the table and a deep warm
taupe or mahogany-colored rug substituted for the pearl-grey carpet.
Good rules to follow for harmonious physical harmony are:
1. All elements of a grouping should be united by a common strain
of color regardless of whether that common strain is a warm or
cool color.
2. All elements of a grouping should resemble each other in a
textural effect.
3. Accessories should resemble the piece with which they are used
in correct proportion to the whole.
_Tests for emotional harmony._--Important points to remember when
making tests for emotional harmony are:
1. Low illumination with areas of shadow is restful, but high
illumination is stimulating.
2. Horizontal lines and long, low shapes arouse a sense of repose,
but vertical lines and tall narrow shapes have the opposite
effect.
3. Dark colors (like low illumination and horizontal extension)
affect the mind with a sense of repose, but pale colors (like
brilliant light and vertical extension) affect it with a sense of
animation and activity.
4. Large, heavy objects give a sense of repose, but anything small
and light produces the opposite effect.
Bearing in mind these facts, turn on the ceiling lights in a room and
notice the stimulating effect. Now turn off the ceiling lights and
light the lamps in the room. Study the effect and you will see that the
lamp-lighted room is more inviting.
In like manner, tests may be made to illustrate each of these points,
such as substituting two high-back chairs in a room for the sofa. You
will notice immediately that the room is less restful.
[Illustration:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
_The scale of harmony_
---------------------------+-------------+-------------------------------
Blends harmoniously with-- | Preferred | Contrasts pleasingly
| color-- | with--
---------------------------+-------------+-------------------------------
Light blue, navy, light | Blue | Olive, yellow, orange,
green, green, heliotrope, | | cream, tan, brown, and dark
purple, lavender, and gray.| | brown.
| |
Blue, navy, myrtle, light | Light blue | Olive, pink, cream, and tan.
green, lavender, | |
and gray. | |
| |
Light blue, blue, navy, | Lavender | Olive, yellow, cream, and
light green, green, pink, | | tan.
purple, gray, and brown. | |
| |
Blue, navy, myrtle green, | Purple | Yellow, orange, cream, and
light green, green, pink, | | tan.
maroon, heliotrope, gray, | |
brown, and dark brown. | |
| |
Blue, pink, red, maroon, | Heliotrope | Navy, myrtle green, light
purple, gray-brown, and | | green, green, yellow, orange,
dark brown. | | and cream tan.
| |
Pink, red, heliotrope, | Maroon or | Navy, light green, green,
purple, brown, and dark | wine | olive, yellow, gray, cream,
brown. | | and tan.
| |
Orange, pink, maroon, | Red | Navy, myrtle green, light
heliotrope, brown, and | | green, green, olive, yellow,
dark brown. | | gray, and cream.
| |
Red, maroon, heliotrope, | Pink | Light blue, light green,
purple, lavender, and | | green, olive, and gray.
cream. | |
| |
Olive, yellow, red, cream, | Orange | Blue, navy, light green,
tan, brown, and dark brown.| | green, heliotrope, and purple.
| |
Light green, green, olive, | Yellow | Blue, navy, myrtle, green,
orange, cream, tan, brown, | | red, maroon, purple,
and dark brown. | | heliotrope, lavender, and gray.
| |
Yellow, orange, pink, gray,| Cream | Light blue, blue, navy, myrtle
tan, brown, and dark brown.| | green, light green, green,
| | olive, red, heliotrope,
| | purple, and lavender.
| |
Olive, yellow, cream, | Tan | Light blue, blue, navy, myrtle
brown, and dark brown. | | green, light green, green,
| | maroon, heliotrope, purple,
| | and lavender.
| |
Olive, yellow, orange, | Brown | Blue, navy, light green, and
red, maroon, heliotrope, | | green.
purple, lavender, cream, | |
tan, and dark brown. | |
| |
Navy, green, yellow, | Myrtle | Red, heliotrope, cream, and
purple, and gray. | | tan.
| |
Light blue, blue, navy, | Light green | Orange, pink, red, maroon,
myrtle green, green, olive,| | heliotrope, purple, cream, tan,
yellow, lavender, and gray.| | brown, and dark brown.
| |
Blue, navy, myrtle green, | Green | Orange, pink, red, maroon,
light green, olive, yellow,| | heliotrope, purple, cream,
lavender, and gray. | | tan, brown, and dark brown.
| |
Myrtle green, light green, | Olive | Light blue, blue, pink, red,
green, yellow, orange, tan,| | lavender, and cream.
brown, and dark brown. | |
| |
Light blue, blue, navy, | Gray | Yellow, orange, pink, red,
myrtle green, light green, | | and maroon.
green, heliotrope, purple, | |
lavender, and cream. | |
---------------------------+-------------+-------------------------------
Figure 32.--Chart of color combinations.[19]]
SUGGESTIONS FOR ROOM COMPOSITION