Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 161, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 July 1916 — PRACTICAL IDEAS IN HOUSE [ARTICLE]

PRACTICAL IDEAS IN HOUSE

Useless Articles Are Largely Being Done Away With in Most Up- ' to-Date Abodes. “And I want the kitchen and the bathroom dirtproof,” added the client, “If that is possible.” “Indeed it is possible,” the architect assured her, as positively as though It were an extra closet off the hall he were promising, instead of the successful solution of the knottiest problem that ever brought gray hairs to an architect’s head. Overdone ornament and useless filigree in the home had long ceased to appeal to his client; she wanted a practical house, one devoid of the sham and imitation of modern decoration, and when at last she heard of an architect so practical that even the word “artistic” was taboo In his presence, she decided that her plans would he safe In his hands. Now, In the finished house, William Morris’ principle: “To be beautiful a thing must be useful,” Is logically followed from the lowering of the floor levels to the application of the waterproofing. There is no preconceived “atmosphere” or style to be catered to or overcome in any of the rooms; each one fornis the most sympathetic background for the expression of a pleasing personality.—Persia Bingham in the Countryside Magazine.