DRAPE COLORS IN HOME DECORATION

This choice or selection of color applies to curtains and portières as simple adjuncts of furnishing, and not to such pieces of drapery as are in themselves works of art. When a textile becomes a work of art it is in a measure a law unto itself, and has as much right to select its own color as if it were a picture instead of a portière, in fact if it is sufficiently important, the room must follow instead of leading. This may happen in the case of some priceless old embroidery, some relic of that peaceful past, when hours and days flowed contentedly into a scheme of art and beauty, without a thought of competitive manufacture. It might be difficult to subdue the spirit of a modern drawing-room into harmony with such a work of art, but if it were done, it would be a very shrine of restfulness to the spirit.

Fortunately many ancient marvels of needlework were done upon white satin, and this makes them easily adaptable to any light scheme of color, where they may appear indeed as guests of honour—invited from the past to be courted by the present. It is not often that such pieces are offered as parts of a scheme of modern decoration, and the fingers of to-day are too busy or too idle for their creation, yet it sometimes happens that a valuable piece of drapery of exceptional color belongs by inheritance or purchase to the fortunate householder, and in this case it should be used as a picture would be, for an independent bit of decoration.

To return to simple things, the rule of contrast as applied to papered walls, covered with design, ordains that the curtains should undoubtedly be plain and of the most pronounced tint used in the paper. If the walls of a room are simply tinted or painted, figured stuffs of the same general tone, or printed silks, velvets, or cottons in which the predominant tint corresponds with that of the wall should be used. These relieve the simplicity of the walls, and give the desirable variation.

Transparent silk curtains are of great value in coloring the light which enters the room, and these should be used in direct reference to the light. If the room is dark or cold in its exposure, to hang the windows with sun-colored silk or muslin will cheat the eye and imagination into the idea that it is a sunny room. If, on the contrary, there is actual sunshine in the room, a pervading tint of rose-color or delicate green may be given by inner curtains of either of those colors. These are effects, however, for which rules can hardly be given, since the possible variations must be carefully studied, unless, indeed, they are the color-strokes of some one who has that genius for combination or contrast of tints which we call "color sense."

NEXT: Drape Textures

BEGINNING: Principals of Home Decoration

Awaken Your Interior Designer
A Guided Journey to Creating the Home Your Spirit Craves. This downloadable ebook takes you step-by-step through a series of exercises to help you discover the decorating style that´s most compatable with your personality.