THOSE HUMBLE FLATS

NZ Truth, Issue 1212, 21 February 1929, Page 10

THOSE HUMBLE FLATS

How to Make Them More BE IT EVER SO HUMBLE

. Even the smallest and most humble flat can be made to look a hundred times ■more homely when the individual note is stressed, and one of the most practical ways of beautifying surroundings is to get to work with a hopeful heartland a paint brush.

TTHERE is also no cheaper way of .1 going about it. Often, handed-on furniture is not up to what we have made our standard, but tremendous improvements can be made. In. the first place, do not have ugly brown kitchen chairs and table. The cleanest and most practical table is one covered with bright American cloth, which can be had m pretty plain shades or m fascinating patterns and checks. When one considers that there need be no scrubbing to keep it clean, but only 1 /washing down with warm water, and an occasional application of one of the many cleansers, one can see the advantage. Then the chairs can be painted to match. We would suggest blue, green, vermillion or straw color for the chairs instead of white, as white must needs be cleaned more thoroughly. Treat th,e chesC or chiffonier or shelves to the same coat of paint, and you will have a kitchen m harmony and one

that always looks bright, even if the outlook is only the drab wal> of the next house. And m the case of that unfortunately old-fashioned and uninteresting brown wardrobe m the bedroom, it can be painted m a bold Spanish design, of browns and reds, and make a thing- of beauty. Or it can be pasted all over with figured silk or chintz. This process requires that the wood be very >yell cleaned first, and then the silk, cut exactly to the shape of the squares, must be pasted on .with a. thin rice paste and finished by pressing with the fingers. The rice paste is put on the wood first and then over the surface of the material, while the material is flattened on to the wood with the fi tigers. This gives it a glossy surface, and makes it easy to dust and keep clean. White wood furniture, which is not to be despised, as it is generally well made and fitted together, can be dyed with Lux dyes put on with a sponge m two or three coats, letting each dry.