of the different period styles and the
manner in which they were used. To achieve this, one must study the best
examples it is possible to find in originals, pictures, and properly
made reproductions. Many of the plates in this book are from extremely
valuable originals and should be studied carefully as they give a fine
idea of some of the chief points in the different styles. One should
also go to libraries and Art Museums whenever possible and study their
collections. The more knowledge gained the more ease one will have in
furnishing one's home whether there is everything to buy, or one is
planning to add a few articles to complete a charming interior, or, with
an eye to a future plan, is buying good things piece by piece and slowly
eliminating the bad. It is this knowledge which will help you to study
your own possessions and decide what is needed and what will be correct
to buy. That, is one of the most important points, to have a well
thought out plan, and never to be haphazard in your purchases. Very few
of us have houses completely furnished in one period, but we do try to
have a certain unity of spirit kept throughout the whole, whether it be
French, Italian, English, or our own charming Colonial. There can be a
great variety in any one of these divisions, and suitable furniture can
be found for all rooms, from the simplest kind to the most elaborate. It
is easier to find good reproductions in the English periods of Jacobean,
Charles II, William and Mary, Queen Anne, and the Georgian time, and the
French periods of Louis XV and Louis XVI.

[Illustration: The upholstery of this Sheraton chair is fastened on with
brass-headed tacks placed in festoons.]

[Illustration: Notice the curved seat of this Hepplewhite chair.]

[Illustration: The wheel back design was often used by Adam. The arms,
the curve of the seat and carving, the tapering reeded legs, and the
angle of the back legs should all be noticed.]

[Illustration: As Chippendale did not use this style of leg they show
that the chair was probably reconstructed from two old chairs.]

If one wishes a house furnished in the Gothic period it will be
necessary to have nearly all the different pieces made to order, as
there are few reproductions made. As our modern necessities of furniture
were not known in those days, the designs would have to be carried out
more in the spirit of the style than the letter, and one must be certain
to have advice and designs f