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Require The Walls Treated:
Plaster effects. Certain types of rooms require the walls treated in the effect of rough, sand-finished plaster. The textural charm of old walls of this type is well known, and if mellowed by age, they have an unusual appeal and are exceedingly durable. If existing walls are not of this type, the painter may be called upon to cover the Wall with one of the many patented surfacing materials, to produce the desired effect. It is essential, however, that the degree of roughness and irregularity of the old walls be imitated exactly. Many of the old plaster walls consisted of a coating applied to rough stonework, and the unevenness of the stones produced slight variations in the plaster surface. The plaster, although it often gave the appearance of having been applied carelessly, had irregularities which were never intentional or self-conscious in appearance, nor was the aim to produce a crude or unfinished result. Many incompetent and unintelligent craftsmen have, in recent years, under the spell of early Italian and Spanish types of decoration, resorted to effects that have produced walls completely devoid of taste and understanding.Ceilings may be calcimined or painted white or off-white. An agreeable effect is obtained if the ceiling is treated in a lighter tint of the color used for the walls. Increase in color interest may be obtained by painting the ceiling a color contrasting, either in hue or in value, with the walls. Ceilings that are painted in a color darker than the walls or treated in gold or silver leaf tend toward a modern effect. If a definite color is used for the ceiling, it should be repeated elsewhere in the Decoration of the room. Using two or more colors on the walls in the same room is always logical if the materials are different, such as wood panelling on one wall, and plaster on the other, or if one Wall is treated with wallpaper and the other with paint. A plaster Wall may be painted a different color than the woodwork. Where wallpaper is used in part of a room, it is advisable to paint the remaining plaster walls with the lightest and most neutral color used in the wallpaper. The Wall area can often be painted the wallpaper-background color, or even more neutral in chroma. Where all walls are to be painted, decorators may use two colors; the window Wall is generally painted in a lighter tonal value than the opposite wall. In a double-use room (living room-dining room) an apparent division is often made by painting the walls different colors, and indicating the different uses thereby. Walls should not arbitrarily be painted different colors, but may be if there is a logical reason for so doing.
Decorators are often confronted with rooms that have walls in part or entirely of masonry that cannot easily be changed. These walls may consist of cut or uncut field stone, ashlar, concrete or cement-blocks, brick, or various types of tile. Stone is often used for fireplaces and chimney-breasts and it is best in these cases to leave the stonework in its natural finish. Concrete or cement-blocks, if used structurally, usually form walls that are 8 or 16 inches thick, and as these materials are moisture-absorbent in the majority of climates, they require a furred interior finish Wall of plaster or other material, built with an air space between it and the blocks. In warm and dry climates, or where walls are well protected by a Roof overhang, block walls may be treated with either a water or oil paint. Bricks and tiles are produced in an infinite variety of colors, textures, and sizes, and there is no objection to using them in their natural finish, if they are of good quality and color; otherwise a coat of paint is preferable. Masonry materials have a degree of permanence that does not exist in the majority of Wall surface treatments, and they have the added advantage of low cost of upkeep.
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