Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or
believe to be beautiful--_William Morris_
The decorating and furnishing of a house have their true beginning
in good architectural design. It is a mistake to proceed upon the
theory that decoration necessarily implies something added for its
own sake--something beautiful in itself but selected and applied
without regard to the lines, spaces, and colours of the room in which
it is to be placed and without considering the relation of this room
to neighbouring rooms and to more remote surroundings. The truth is,
a decorative object may or may not be intrinsically beautiful; but
however beautiful it may be in itself, it finds its truest beauty in
an appropriate setting. And the decorator who is actuated by the true
spirit looks to the architect for inspiration and finds his greatest
successes in acknowledging that leadership. To attempt to lead when
one should follow is neither good art nor good sense.
There is danger, perhaps, that this truth may be taken too seriously.
It would also be a mistake to run to the other extreme and adopt at
the outset a rigid plan of decoration and furnishing, specified like
contract work to be carried out and completed on a certain date soon
after the house is built. The problem is one of growing interest,
especially as regards furniture, pictures, and the smaller objects of
use or beauty, and for its best and happiest solution requires time
and study. Only the broad and fundamental features can be settled in
advance. The important thing is to have the main lines, dimensions,
space relations, and colour schemes settled with due regard to utility
and appropriateness and, as the work of construction proceeds, to keep
all details in harmony with this general plan.