By this we do not mean the arrangement or size of rooms, they may be
large or very small, and in either instance lack the conveniences which
may always be provided for by good construction. Even a small house
can have transoms over all the doors which open into a hall, proper
ventilating flues for all rooms, and a kitchen that will be comfortable
in all seasons, (see articles under the head of “Ventilation” and “The
Kitchen.”) These are essential; all dwellings, large or small, should
have them. The windows and doors should be arranged to suit the furniture
to be used. You have doubtless seen rooms with windows on two sides, a
door and fire-place on the other. This arrangement makes it impossible
for the room to contain an ordinary size bedstead, without placing it
before a window or some other opening. Study these things when getting up
plans for your house.
The dining room should be light and roomy, fronting the East if
possible, as the morning sun is always desirable, and adds much to the
cheerfulness of the family. The kitchen should not connect directly with
the dining-room. Construct a passage-way, well ventilated, between the
two rooms; this will prevent unsavory odors entering the dining-room. The
space at each end of the passage can be utilized for the kitchen closets.
Arrange your rooms so that you will not be compelled to pass through one
room to get to another. Do not disfigure the walls by driving nails or
hooks into the plastering for the purpose of hanging pictures, but fasten
a neat gilt moulding to the side walls all around the room, about one
foot from the ceiling. The moulding should be about one and one-half or
two inches wide, with a groove on its upper side. Hooks shaped as an S
can be placed at any point on this moulding, and the pictures are to be
hung to these hooks. This arrangement is somewhat expensive, but it is
the only proper way in which pictures can be hung.
Closets.—No house is complete without ample closets. Every lady knows
that clothing and wraps cannot be stored away in drawers, and look well
when wanted for use. As closets are expensive we suggest for small
houses, that a room be constructed from four to six feet wide, and from
ten to fifteen feet long, with a window at one end. Make shelves on one
side, and place suitable clothes hooks on the other. In such a room the
entire wardrobe and family linen can be properly stored. If you desire
a moth-proof room, the ceiling, walls and shelves should be made of
red cedar. We suggest this clothes room because of its cheapness. Each
bedroom of large houses should be provided with a clothes closet, which
should be lined with red cedar for the reasons above stated.
Don’t forget to have windows and all outside doors fitted up with light
sash and frames covered with woven wire cloth. This material is very
cheap, and can be purchased at any house-furnishing goods store. Its
use prevents mosquitoes and flies from entering the house. Freedom from
these summer pests will amply repay you for the expense. During the late
fall, winter and spring months, the sash and frames can be removed; they
should be stored in some perfectly dry place, such as a garret, never
in a cellar. Speaking of pests reminds us of another kind that breed in
cracks and crevices found in most kitchens, which might lead a thoughtful
man to suppose that the builder, in his kindness of heart, provided these
little hiding places for just such creatures. If you don’t want them, see
that there are no cracks left between the wood-work and plastering, or in
any part of the floor or walls of the kitchen. Fill with cement (Plaster
of Paris is good) all cracks caused by shrinkage of wood-work after the
walls are completed and are thoroughly dry.