PREFACE IT has been the purpose to bring together in this book the chief principles of art as they may be applied to the furnishing of homes of people of moderate means. Many volumes have been written upon the subject of house furnishing which describe in great detail the expensive furniture, rugs, and tapestries which can be purchased only by those few individuals who are also financially able to employ professional interior decorators and who for that reason have less need for a simple guide. It is the people who must make their own selections of furnishings and plan their arrangement who especially require some economic and artistic knowledge on the subject, so that they may obtain the greatest amount of beauty and convenience for the least expenditure. If they understand color and form harmony in the essential relation to artistic unity, they should then have sufficient confidence to express some of their own individuality in their homes as they endeavor to combine the ideal with the practical. Beauty and suitability will by this means be the result of a conscious obedience to the laws of art. The author gratefully acknowledges the helpful criticism of Miss Anna Cooley of Columbia University.....
