A photo survey
There are so many wonderful image collections out there, on flickr, pintrest and the like, but it is surprisingly difficult to come across images of interiors from the 1940s.
My interest in 1940s interiors is a personal one, that is, I'm looking for inspiration for our home, so I have put together a short(ish) collection of scanned images from some of our books and magazines, which I think is worth sharing here. This selection follows on from an earlier post on 1940s fabrics.
The images are mostly of fairly modest homes, a reasonable starting point since we're not likely to be in a position to furnish our home with Andre Arbus anytime soon (which reminds me, I need to speak to those lotto people about this on-going issue...) and I have selected them because each one has a particular feature or finish that interests me.
And why the 1940s? Well, it's hard to pinpoint, but I'm very fond of art deco, streamline moderne and post-war modernism and the 1940s is the in-between point of these styles. It's a place where there is a way to blend the otherwise very distinctive and opposing styles spanning either side of the second world war, and that's great for me and my partner and our eclectic tastes. So, here we are:
1. Textiles: Stroheim & Romann. Ceramics: Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Co. Ltd. From 'Furnishing the Small Home' - Margaret Merivale (1945).
2. Fireplace treatment. Designer: W. Curtis Green R.A. ibid
3. Room detail. Joseph Aronson. ibid.
4. Studio room by Helen Park. ibid.
5. Room detail. Oliver Hill. ibid.
6. Dining room, Bowman's Ltd, London. From 'Design in Every Day Things' - Australian Broadcasting Commission (1941).
7. Hand woven woollen materials by Catherine Hardess of Melbourne. ibid.
8. Living room of Miss Patricia Detring, Bel Air. Designer: Paul T. Frankl Associates. From 'The Studio Year Book. Decorative Art 1943-1948' - ed. Rathbone Holme & Kathleen M. Frost.
9. Scale model of living room. Designer: Edward D. Stone. ibid.
10. Japanese pavilion, World's Fair, Paris 1937. Designer: Junzo Sakakura. From 'Furniture & Interiors of the 1940s' - Anne Bony (2002).
11. Shangri-La Hotel 1939-1940. Photographer: Julius Schulman. ibid.
What do you get when you mix Mary Poppins with an African lily?
Chincheree! Beautiful and long lasting, chincherees are the perfect cut flower!
Putting some 1950s fun in your garden
You will need:
1 x pencil
1 x piece of paper
1 x dress-maker's measuring tape (or a piece of string and a retractable measuring tape)
1 x roll of masking tape
1 x calculator
1 x paint brush or mini-roller
2 x cans of paint, different colours
1 x round tapered pot; concrete, terracotta or fibreglass
Step 1
Choose a plain, smooth pot. Fibreglass is great because it is lightweight and smooth. Terracotta and concrete pots may be more problematic as they tend to leach moisture through the sides, which isn't good for paintwork.
In this case, I'm painting a terracotta pot because I couldn't find a fibreglass one, so I'll take my chances.
Step 2
You will need to seal the pot with an appropriate outdoor cement sealer. I used Bondall 'Pot and Ornament Sealer', and this is readily available from hardware stores.
Give the pot at least 2 coats of sealer, as recommended by the sealer manufacturer. Apply the sealer to the lip of the pot and to about 10cm down the inside rim.
Step 3
Choose your paint, in two colours. I have selected some left-over paint from when our house was done. An off-white and a light blue. The paint needs to be an outdoor paint, suitable for use on cement.
Use the lighter colour paint as your base. Paint the entire outside of the pot (you don't need to paint the base), including the lip and about 10cm into the inside of the pot. When you plant out the pot, you will still get to see the inside lip.
Two coats, at least.
Step 4
Ugh, the hard bit. This can be a very painful process, so be prepared. Don't do this bit when you're just about to go to work or when you're expected for lunch somewhere in half an hour. Tell everyone to just leave you alone for a good hour! Of course, you may be a mathematically inclined person, so this might be a cinch for you!
You need to plot the stripes. As a start, I should say that this is not an exact science. The stripes will not be perfectly regular, you will have all sorts of weirdness happening, but you need to remember that when the pot is finished and sitting in your garden, the overall impression is perfect! And I defy you to find any pot this glamorous in a shop!
So, here goes. Measuring the circumference of the top outside rim of the pot is difficult if you try wrapping a dress-makers measuring tape around it. So, I recommend just measuring the diameter of the pot, as best you can. With the measuring tape, stretch it across the top of the pot at the broadest part. Measure the distance between the outside rim of one side and the outside rim of the other side.
Multiply this amount by 3.14 and that will be your circumference. (This is where the calculator comes in unless you're a brainbox). Write this down.
Repeat this exercise by turning the pot upside down and measuring the bottom circumference. Write this down.
You need to determine how many stripes you want (and I mean stripes of both colour). I suggest being fairly generous with the width of the strip unless you really want to spend a lot of time painting narrow stripes. And make it an even number. Odd numbers will leave you with two stripes of the same colour next to each other.
I chose 10 stripes for this pot. To mark out where the stripes need to be, start with the top of the pot. Divide its circumference by the number of stripes you have. This will give you the distance between each edge of a stripe. The space between two marks is the width of your stripe.
If your pot has a seam, you are lucky, and you will find out why shortly. If not, it doesn't matter. Make a small mark with a pencil on the outer rim of the pot, where you want to start (if you have a seam, I'd start here). Then, you need to mark out each point on the pot. Using a measuring tape to do this can be tricky because it is hard to hold and mark at the same time, so I suggest just getting your piece of paper and folding it so one side is as long as the figure you have just worked out for the width of each stripe. Then, starting with your first mark, place the paper with one edge on that mark, and mark the point where the paper ends. Do this around the circumference of the top edge until you arrive back at the first mark. It may not be perfect! If you are quite a bit out, say by 2cm, you need to increase the width of each stripe by a couple of millimeters. This can be time-consuming and frustrating, but stick with it.
To repeat the process on the bottom, you need to make sure that you align one of the top marks with your first mark on the bottom. If you have a seam on the pot, you won't need to do this, just start the measuring on the bottom at the seam. Otherwise, using your measuring tape or string, start at your first mark and hold the tape or string so that it drops in a fairly straight line downwards. As best you can try to mark the bottom outside rim of the pot where the tape or string is. This will give you a fairly close alignment between the top and the bottom and hopefully, a straight stripe.
Then repeat the process of marking out the smaller circumference.
Step 5
It helps a bit to mark with an x which spaces you will be painting with your second colour.
Using the masking tape, you need to block out the stripes you do not intend to paint with your second colour. Start at the bottom. Allow a little of the tape to fold over onto the base of the pot. Align the edge of the tape to the left of one of the marks and draw the tape upwards to its partner mark on the top edge, making sure it is aligned to the left side of the mark. Moving towards the next mark to the right, repeat this, but align the tape to the right of both marks. In other words, the space you have marked with an x will be fully exposed, while the stripes either side of it will have the tape on.
Repeat this, moving to the right, for the remaining marks.
I suggest running your finger along the tape to ensure it has fully adhered to the pot. This will help ensure a crisp line when you paint.
Step 6
Paint the spaces you have masked off with your second colour. Don't rush it, be careful you don't paint over the masking tape and onto one of the base colour stripes. It's no big deal if you do, as you can touch it up afterwards, but it only adds to the amount of time and effort you spend on this.
Two coats, at least.
Step 7
The fun bit. Gently remove the masking tape. Your pot is now beautiful and ready to plant!
These pots look fantastic planted out with bright annuals or geraniums. We planted a small lemon tree in ours, but the options are endless! Enjoy!
Flea market find
I picked up these little paperback books a couple of weeks ago from a local flea market. I can't say I'm a fan of science fiction, but I love the cover art on these numbers!
I think my favourite cover is the charming, almost domestic, scene of three guys fixing a spherical ship of some sort. Love the leisurewear and how it looks like the type of illustration used in DIY home renovation magazines of the time - you've got the green lawn, the stepping stones, quite an idylic scene! Great colours - even the aliens look cheerful!
Fabric design from the 1940s - in colour!
These distinctly sophisticated and playful designs are a treat to see in full colour.
A "Top left, Celanese satin, screen printed in a design by Margaret Moore. Top right, 'Shiraz' - a cotton and rayon fadeless tapestry designed by John Tandy. Bottom, 'Bird' design by E. Winning Reed on an art silk and cotton material" from "30s 40s Decorative Art" - a source book edited by Charlotte & Peter Fiell, (Tashchen).
B "Furnishing fabrics designed by Jacqueline Groag, M.S.I.A., the top two for Hill Brown Ltd and the lower for F.W.Grafton & Co. Ltd." ibid.
C "Bonbonniere of faience, designed by Stig Lindberg and made by Gustavsberg's Studio, on a background of hand-printed glass-cloth named 'Maytime' by the same artist, printed by Textil Kammaren, Nordiska Kompaniet, Stokholm." ibid.
D "Textiles designed by Margaret Simeon. Left: Screen-printed linen and Right: Screen-printed furnishing satin, both produced by John Lewis & Co Ltd. Centre: Block-printed muslin printed by the designer. Vase designed by Nils Thorsson with 'Clair de Lune' glaze created by the late H. Madslund for The Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Co. Ltd." ibid.
E "Top and centre: 'Burntwood/Moorfield' rayon designed by Jane Edgar and 'Hurstwood/Alvis' cotton fabric designed by D.M. Batty, both made by Helios Ltd. Lower: Cotton damask by Old Bleach Linen Co. Ltd." ibid.
F "Corner of a lounge in a London flat by Ian Henderson. The fire-surround is in Australian walnut, the opening itself being framed in Japanese chestnut. Curtains printed in two shades of red with a line of [black] on a cream ground, and upholstery in a rough textured weave. Occasional table in Australian walnut with a cane shelf which doubles its utility without adding to its weight." from Decorative Art 1943-48 The Studio Year Book. (The Studio Year Books were the source for the illustrations in the Tashchen publication referred to above.)
G "Two curtain fabrics designed by Margaret Simeon; the floral pattern is a cotton textile with block-printed motif, made for John Lewis & Co Ltd. The pink and white design is a screen-printed linen, made by Allan Walton Textiles Ltd." ibid.
H An extract from an advertisement for the 'Old Glamis' range of fabrics by Donald Bros Ltd. The fabric design is named "Goodwood" and is a 50 inch screen-printed linen in 5 colours. ibid.
Further resources:
"Furniture & Interiors of the 1940s" - Anne Bony (Flammarion)
"Ponti" - Graziella Roccella (Taschen)
Bookshop find
During a recent holiday up north, we visited a wonderful bookshop in Kingscliff. It was old school so far as bookshops go, so there was much to find there. I came away with a couple of design books from the 1940s including this modest little number "Design in Everyday Things", published by the Australian Broadcasting Commission in 1941.
The book was an accompaniment to a series of educational lectures broadcasted on the ABC radio. It has a number of thought-provoking essays on design, but it is the illustrations, advertisements and photographs which interested me.
Being a big fan of moderne, streamline, art deco architecture, I zeroed in on these images in particular.
The first is an illustration in an advertisement for International Correspondence Schools (Australasia) Pty Ltd. The photo is unidentified and uncredited.
The second breaks my heart. It is identified as Wyldefel Gardens, a block of flats in Potts Point, Sydney. In 1941, they were being demolished to make way for a new Naval Dock. Imagine the views!
