There was much beautiful marquetry used; in fact it is a marked characteristic of much of the furniture of William and Mary.  After she died in 1694, the white jasmine flower and green leaves were not used so much, and the sea-weed pattern and acanthus became more popular.

[Illustration:  An exceptionally fine reproduction of a Sheraton chest of drawers.]

[Illustration:  The walnut used in this adaptation of the William and Mary period is very fine.  Shaving-glasses were used throughout the eighteenth century.]

The cup-and-ball design of turned legs with curved stretchers was used for chairs, settees, tables, cabinets.  China cupboards with their double-hooded tops and soft colored brocade linings were used to display the wonderful china collections so much in vogue.  There was much upholstered furniture covered with beautiful petit-point, which is perfectly reproduced nowadays, but is naturally expensive.  Silks, velvets, and damasks were also used, and Queen Mary had a “beautiful chintz bed.”

The handles used were of various kinds, the favorite being the drop from a round or star-shaped boss.  The furniture was beautifully polished but did not have a bright gloss.

When Anne came to the throne in 1702, the English cabinet maker had became an expert craftsman, and we have the beginning of the finest period of English cabinet-making, which later, in the Georgian period, blossomed into its full glory.  The furniture of this time was of walnut.  The chairs had a narrow, fairly high back, with a central splat spoon-shaped and later fiddle-shaped.  The corners of the back were always rounded.  The cabriole legs were often carved with a shell on the knees, the acanthus being used in the more elaborate pieces of furniture, and ended chiefly in a club foot.  Stretchers became less common, but if they were used were pushed back and did not form such an important part of the chair design.  Seats were broader at the front than at the back, and all furniture showed a real desire for comfort and convenience.  Marquetry and lacquer were both in great favor, and there are wonderful examples of both reproduced, but especially lacquer.  Petit-point, damask, velvet, and chintz were all used for upholstery and hangings.  Chintz was becoming more plentiful, but it was not until the Georgian period that it reached its perfection.

The Georgian period covers the work of Chippendale, the Adam Brothers, Hepplewhite, and Sheraton, who gave to the eighteenth century its undying decorative fame.

[Illustration:  A glassed-in sun-porch furnished with comfortable wicker furniture adds much to the joy of life.]