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 from some person who thoroughly understands the period and who will see that the whole is properly carried out.  Gothic days were rough and strenuous, and the furniture was strong and heavy and was made chiefly of oak with no varnish of any kind.  The characteristic lines of the furniture and the designs for carving were architectural, and a careful study of the Gothic cathedrals of France, Belgium, and England will give a very satisfactory idea of this wonderful time.  The idea of the pointed arch, rose window, trefoil, quatrefoil, animal grotesques, and geometric designs, as well as the beautiful linen-fold design, were all adapted for use as carving in the panels of the furniture of the day, which consisted of chests that served as seats, buffets, armoires, screens, trestle tables, as well as the choir stalls of churches.

This style is appropriate to large and dignified country houses.  The architect must see that the background is correct.

The Renaissance period should not be attempted as a style to furnish one’s house unless it can be carried out properly.  The house should be large and architecturally correct, and there should be at least a near relation of a Fortunatus purse to draw upon.  It is one of the magnificent and dignified periods, and makeshifts and poor copies have a pitiful appearance and are really time and money wasted.