The large window was treated as the emphatic point of the living-room. From beneath the yellow and black valence fell thin yellow silk glass curtains which gave the effect of constant sunshine. A box couch -that article of inestimable utilitarian and decorative value - was placed beneath and its severe silver gray velvet upholstery was enlivened by two symmetrical groups of vivid wool embroidered cushions. The unsightly radiator beside it, which, in its gilded glory, would have ruined the effect of any good composition, was covered with a piece of old fabric and a little jar with blossoms set upon it. A bookcase flanked it at close quarters on the opposite side. This was made to fit, stained black and had a yellow silk curtain. A small green pottery bowl and a low lamp with a yellow silk shade were set on top.

The center of the room was absolutely clear, and this is one of the great secrets in making a small room look larger and allowing a number of people to move about in it without stumbling over the furniture and upsetting the lamps. A few small black wicker chairs with seats of yellow-and-black linen were arranged close to the wall, and a comfortable chair upholstered inside with gray velvet and outside with a strong yellow, and a floor lamp crowned with a simple yellow shade were grouped around the linen paneled door.

The hideous brass lighting fixture was painted gray and charming yellow silk shades in the shape of flower-bells covered the globes. A plain rug of two tones of brown and tan was used on the floor.

In the adjoining room the conventional dining-room furniture was dispensed with and a black drop-leaf table and black wicker chairs were used. When not in use the table stood against the wall and held a flower-bowl and some books. China cupboards were made to match the bookcase and their contents concealed with yellow silk curtains.

The effect upon entering was that of a single fair-sized room, the furnishings restrained but colorful, and with a bright, homelike but distinctive atmosphere. Under ordinary circumstances the dining-room would probably have been strained and contorted to contain an eight or nine room "suite" of fumed oak and its walls covered with large-figured blue tapestry paper; while the living-room would have rejoiced in dark green walls, and mahogany furniture. If the difference in the aspect of the rooms under these two treatments can be pictured, the possibilities of even the least prepossessing apartments when subject to rational methods begin to be apparent. If the apartment cannot be made to fit the furniture, the course of least resistance is to make the furniture fit the apartment.

The same logical course of making two small rooms supplement each other was resorted to in the bedroom furnishings.

The door which separated the two tiny bedrooms was removed and its place filled with a bright chintz curtain. The color scheme employed in the two rooms was gray, salmon pink, and purple. The walls were gray outlined with narrow painted bands of salmon pink and purple. The hangings were purple figured chintz. The furniture was gray with touches of salmon, and the rug was plain gray.

The main chamber was just large enough to hold a bed of comfortable proportions, a chiffonier, two tiny chairs and a wardrobe necessary to supply the deficiency in closet accommodations. It left little space to move about in, so the adjoining room had to serve as a dressing-room. A discriminating selection of furnishings, however, made it also serve in the capacity of guest-room and boudoir - the guests, necessarily being of a very informal kind. It contained a small dressing-table, a narrow couch or day-bed with a wooden frame, three compact chairs and a writing table.

The radiators were boxed and fitted covers of a substantial material transformed them into very plausible window ledges holding tiny jars and pots of flowers. The lighting fixtures were painted salmon and the shades looked like little ruffled petticoats of pink silk edged with purple.

The daintiness, charm, and thoughtful convenience offered by such little rooms, is often absent from much larger and more sumptuously furnished ones. But the decorator did not stop there. He carried his campaign into both the bath-room and the kitchen. The bathroom had moss green walls and green swiss curtains, green rugs, and green bordered towels and shelf covers. The woodwork was white and on the wainscoting was stenciled a delicate conventionalized sea shell pattern.

The ugly brown woodwork of the kitchen was painted bright blue, and its shelves were lined with white jars decorated with naive little handpainted blue and red flowers. The walls were a deep cream and blue and white cross stitched curtains lined the glass doors of the cupboards.

When the young couple returned they were fully prepared to make the best of a bad bargain, but, instead, they were ushered into a delightful, comfortable, and well appointed home.

Let us consider another typical apartment. One of seven or eight rooms with the inevitable long, narrow hall through whose Stygian darkness one must navigate forward or aft to the living quarters from the front entrance. Two of the bedrooms will, in all likelihood, be small and on a court, while the living-room will take up the principal part of the frontage on the street, and the dining-room be located somewhere in the rear.

The first point to weigh is the entrance. Sometimes one enters by a pitchy black outer foyer. Artificial illumination will dispel the gloom and the decorative scheme may be made to provide a brief respite to fortify visitors for the journey which awaits them beyond. A small hat table, a lamp, and mirror are the necessary equipment for this outer hall. An attractive lamp shade and table cover, a bright bowl or vase with foliage, and a decorative picture will often endow it with qualities of genuine hospitality.

If one enters directly into the hall, either in the center or at one end, such a little foyer can often be constructed by placing a mirror and a table with a small lamp opposite the door. In one case this entrance, which was in the center of the hall, was cut off on both sides by swinging doors of red lacquer. The hall was absolutely lightless, anyway, and this little place with its luscious doors, a hanging Japanese lantern, a small black settee, with a throw of bright Chinese embroidery, and a long slender mirror, formed an attractive oasis in the center of an uninteresting and featureless inclosure.