!

Our furniture ought, therefore, to be easy and familiar. We cannot
give our hearts to what is uncomfortable, no matter how quaint or rich
it may be. And though it is always pleasant to have colors and forms
assorted with perfect taste, it is not desirable to have the effect so
perfect that we are afraid to make use of it, lest we destroy it. No
furniture ought to be so fine that we dare not light a fire for fear
of smoking it, or let the sunshine in for fear of fading it. In such
rooms we do not lounge and laugh and eat and rest and live,--we only
exist.

The proper character of drawing-rooms is that of gayety and
cheerfulness. This is attained by light tints, and brilliant colors
and gilding; but the brightest colors and the strongest contrasts must
be on the furniture, not on the walls and ceilings. These must be
subordinate in coloring, or the effect will be theatrical and vulgar.

The dining-room ought to be one of the pleasantest in the house; but
it is generally in the basement. It ought to be a room in which there
is nothing to remind us of labor or exertion, for we have gone there
to eat and to be refreshed. A few flowers, a dish of fruits, snowy
linen and china, glittering glass and silver, a pleasant blending of
warm and neutral tints are essentials. For ornaments, rare china,
Indian vases, Eastern jars suggestive of fine pickles or rare
sweetmeats, and a few pictures on the walls, representing only
pleasant subjects, and large enough to be examined without exertion,
are the best.

Advantages of locality, a refined diner will always perceive and
appropriate. Thus I used to dine frequently with a lady and gentleman
who in the spring always altered the position of the table, so that
while eating they could look through the large open windows, and see
the waving apple-blossoms and breathe the perfumed air, and listen to
the evening songs of the birds. Bedrooms should be light, cleanly, and
cheerful; greater contrasts are admissible between the room and the
furniture, as the bed and window-curtains form a sufficient mass to
balance a tint of equal intensity upon the walls. For the same reason
gay and bright carpets are often pleasant and ornamental.

Staircases, lobbies, and vestibules should be cool in tone, simple in
color, and free from contrasts. Here the effects are to be produced by
light and shadow, rather than by color. Every one must have noticed
that some houses as soon as the doors are opened l