LIBRARY OF ARCHITECTURE AND ALLIED ARTS Gift of The Heirs of R. Germain Hubby, Interior Painting A Series of Practical Treatises on MATERIAL; TOOLS AND APPLIANCES USED; STENCIL CUTTING; POUNCES IN INTERIOR PAINTING; PAINTING WOODWORK; HOW TO PAINT FLAT COATS; ENAMELLING; PAINTING PLASTERED WALLS IN OIL; FLOOR PAINTING; VARNISHING AND WAXING; FINISHING FLOORS; PAINTING PLASTERED WALLS IN WATER COLORS; CALCIMINING; REPAINTING OLD WALLS IN WATER COLORS; DECORATING IN OIL OR WATER COLORS; LINING AND STENCILING; POUNCES AND PAINTING POUNCED WORK. Each Treatise is followed with Test Questions : : : for the Student : : : By F. MAIRE Author of "Modern Painter's Cyclopedia" and "Exterior Painting" ILLUSTRATED CHICAGO Frederick J. Drake & Company PUBLISHERS Art Library TT RIO COPYEIGHT 1910 BY FEEDEEICK J. DEAKE & Co. Interior Painting PREFACE This, the second manual of the Bed Book Series takes up the course of paint- ing nearly where the first one ended, and much of the matter contained in the first is applicable in many instances to INTERIOR PAINTING. To save repetitions the same system of paragraphing the subject matter has been adopted and reference will be made throughout the text to such by num- ber to save space and the needless saying the same thing over and over. While INTERIOR PAINTING will be re- viewed in all its phases, there are some parts of it which, while being portions of the painted work in interior painting of buildings which really can be and are 17 18 INTERIOR PAINTING classed as separate trades and as each would require fully as much space in their handling as will be devoted to this manual, they will each appear under their proper heading, and each will be devoted specially to such branches as graining, marbling, wood finishing, etc. Decoration too, prop- erly speaking is much too big a subject to be handled as a side issue in a book treating of the interior painting in a general man- ner and it too will be divided up into sub- divisions which will facilitate its study, rendering it more thorough and easy. F. MAIRE. LESSON 1 1. It seems just and right that previous to entering upon the study of any subject that in order to understand it well, one should know what its main features are and that he should have a sketch or a syn- opsis given him of "how it is to be treated. " This is the principal object of this lesson, and the subsequent paragraphs indicate what will be more fully given in the lessons which follow it. 2. As to Interior painting it is pur- posed to be followed up from the founda- tion. This in many respects will be found similar to that which has been related in Vol. I of the red series manual yet is not so nearly the same that the student can be referred to it for full explanations. The material used on interior work comprises all that is described under that section of Vol. I, as well as most of the tools and ap- 19 20 INTERIOR PAINTING pliances there considered, but in addition very many others, so as many may not care to purchase it, the material as well as tools and appliances will be gone over in full, only tools, etc., which may have had a full description given in Vol I will receive but a passing notice in this manual, reserving the fuller ones for those which properly belong to interior painting. 3. The manner of preparing the w'alls, etc., in order to fit them for the applica- tion of paint and decorations either in oil or water colors, is an all important division of the subject, so it will receive full atten- tion in all its details. 4. How to handle the various devices in use for getting at the surface of walls is another very important preliminary step in enabling a workman to do the interior painting in the best and quickest manner This will also be fully described. 5. The application of calcimine and all water color paint, including the blending INTERIOB PAINTING 21 of colors, will next be taken up, giving directions upon the various stages occur- ringcommencing at the beginning and gradually bringing up the subject to com- pletion for the final decorative work proper and of so much of this as is possible with space at command. 6. The application of oil colors to the walls and the various manners in which this kind of interior work is usually done bringing it too through all its various stages up to finishing the walls ready to receive the decorations and of so much of the latter as can be easily done without a special study of the more artistic parts of it which will form the subject matter of another manual. 7. The painting of the wioodwork in plain or parti-colors and the flatting or enameling of the same or of its preparing for graining by coating it over with the ground coats will be treated fully and sep- arately from the wall work itself. 22 INTERIOR PAINTING 8. The new fad of glazing will be handled in Vol. IV, entitled graining and marbling. QUESTIONS ON LESSON I 1. This paragraph deals in generalities. 2. So does this and the following ones 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. The student need not memorize them, this lesson being intended to show him the division of the subject matter into sections. LESSON n THE SHOP 9. This has been described pretty thor- oughly in Vol. I. But it sometimes hap- pens that painters who do interior work and decorating do but little, if any, exterior work and again that those who do exterior work do but little other than plain interior work. In the description of the require- ments of the paint shop in that manual, there was no thought given to the needs of INTERIOR PAINTING 23 the decorator and while in the main all that was said there regarding its location and arrangement could be repeated here again, its location in basements must not be thought of. 10. Light and dryness should be con- sidered first of all, as it must be used for the sketching out of designs, pounces or stencils, the trying of tints and shades where plenty of light should be had. 11. A good long table upon which to lay out drawings, etc., and upon which good direct light should fall, should be added to the equipment of every shop ca- tering to interior decorations. Its pro- portions should not be stinted, for much valuable time will be saved where there is plenty of room to spread out sketches and designs in full view. The table should be no less than three feet wide and six to eight feet long. It should be either perfectly flat or with a slight slant although this is not so necessary as in drafting with math- 24 INTERIOR PAINTING ematical instruments. It should be solidly fixed as a wobbling work table is an abom- ination and a constant source of irritation likely to render one nervous and unfit him for good work. 12. A good gas stove, or where gas is not procurable a gasoline or kerosene oil stove, or what is better and safer, an elec- trical heater are too often needed for inte- rior work to be dispensed with unless the shop is so situated that access to heating conveniences can be had without too great a waste of time in getting at them in which case there would be no saving, but a loss. The stove will be needed every day for melting glue, preparing water color tints, making paste from flour or the prepared dry pastes for paper hanging and the one thousand and one uses for hot water which come up at all times and which cause a big loss of time in the procuring otherwise. 13. There should be a number of draw- ers in the equipment of a shop carrying on INTERIOR PAINTING 25 interior painting. While but few are really needed in an ordinary shop doing ex- terior painting only, the decorator has use for a great deal more coloring matter in a dry form and each one should have a drawer plainly labeled with the name of the pigment they contain. These drawv- ers will keep the dry colors clean and will prevent their being mixed up and being spilled over the floor and shelving so that the ordinary slovenly and dirty appear- ance of the premises which is the usual ap- pearance of the shops using dry colors di- rect from the paper bags containing them, will enhance the one well equipped and clean, in the estimation of the customer at once and the price for the job will not be questioned nearly so quickly as it would be were the appearances against instead of favoring the up-to-date shop style. 14. While sinks or some suitable place to clean up pots, vessels, etc., are needed in all paint shops, the shop of the decora- 26 INTERIOR PAINTING tor, no matter how good and handy every- thing else may be, would soon be dirty enough if pails and all other vessels used in preparing and using water colors are not cleaned up and put up in their proper places, cleaned, and kept there, as quickly as one is through with them. The same can be said of brushes used in water col- ors. They soon get out of shape and good working order unless well washed out after using. For the rest of the necessary equipment of the shop the student is re- ferred to Vol. 1 or Exterior Painting. Much more could be added to it, but it is thought best not to burden the list unneces- sarily as many or most of them while handy are not indispensable. QUESTIONS ON LESSON II 9. How should the shop be located? 10. Why should it be light! 11. What kind of table should be used to sketch upon? INTERIOR PAINTING 27 12. What is said about stoves? 13. What are the best holders for dry colors? 14. What is said regarding a place to clean pots, etc.? LESSON III MATERIAL USED IN INTERIOR PAINTING 15. The material used in interior paint- ing and decorating embraces every pig- ment known and in the way of binding substances, a number possessing binding qualities which enables the mixing of pig- ments with water holding these binding substances in solution and their applica- tion to walls with an assurance that they will not readily come off. For decorating walls in oil all the colors mentioned in exterior painting will be found useful and as a full description of colors or pigments will follow this manual in the Red series as Vol. Ill, the student is referred to that for the proper expla- 28 INTEEIOK PAINTING nations, as it would take up all the space which will be devoted to this manual to give them all, even a very condensed ex- amination. 16. For the easy finding of material, the same will be divided into : pigments or colors; vehicles to spread them with; var- nishes, etc.; accessory material used in connection with interior painting, but not directly used as vehicles for pigments. 17. Pigments will be grouped in seven general divisions which cover the leading and distinctly separate hues. Many come come so very near the border line of other divisions that in a few instances it is nec- essary to be arbitrary in placing them into one rather than another, but usually there is no difficulty in giving them their proper place. 18. The former division of pigments into seven general groups as given in Vol. I will be followed, to wit : The Whites, the INTERIOR PAINTING 29 Blacks, the Blues, the Browns, the Greens, the Eeds, the Yellows. 19. The white pigments comprise two very distinct sections, the whites derived from the metals and the natural and artifi- cially made whites or the white earths. 20. The principal white pigment of metallic derivation is white lead. Its great opacity or covering property enables the painter to obtain an even solid looking sur- face over anything he is called upon to paint. As a base for the mixing of all light tints it has no equal at least in oil painting either flat or glossy. More will be said regarding it when the mixing of tints will be reached in this manual. 21. Zinc white, the only other white pigment of a metallic origin which is use- ful to painters and decorators in the mix- ing of tints in oil for interior work, is a very good pigment for all such wtork, not only when ground in oil or varnish but also 30 INTERIOR PAINTING in the mixing of water colors in a dry state; but more will be said regarding its use, in the proper places when considering the several kinds of interior finishes. 22. The earth whites, which are chiefly useful as pigments in water color work, may be divided up into three classes, ac- cording to the principal component of its base. When clay predominates, they are called aluminous ; when this consists chiefly of silica, they are known as silicious; and those where lime holds the preponderance, are called calcareous and cretaceous. This is a somewhat arbitrary distinction as in many instances there is a great variation in the component parts of the earth whites and the base is sometimes found to be so nearly evenly balanced in quantity that it could be placed in another class without detriment. Their general character, how- ever, usually will be found such as will make their proper classing correct. INTERIOR PAINTING 31 QUESTIONS ON LESSON III 15. General remarks concerning mate- rial used in interior painting. 16. In how many classes can the mate- rial be divided? 17. How may pigments be grouped? 18. Name the various groups of pig- ments. 19. What is said regarding the white pigments? 20. What use is made of white lead? 21. What is said of zinc white? 22. How may the earth whites be classed? LESSON IV MATERIAL, USED IN INTERIOR PAINTING, CONTINUED 23. In the preceding paragraph it will be seen that, owing to the widely different main components of the earth wjrites, there must be a great difference in their working qualities. All of them are better 32 INTERIOR PAINTING adapted to do a certain class of work than are any of the others. Space forbids go- ing into full details concerning all the pe- culiarities belonging to each, which, how- ever, will be found by referring to Vol. Ill ; but the main characteristics of the leading white earth pigments of each class will be given in order that the student may under- stand why they are used for certain pur- poses instead of others. 24. The earth whites are all either transparent or semi-transparent when mixed with linseed oil. They are good ab- sorbents of it and owing to their transpar- ency or lack of opaqueness the oil colors them, imparting its yellowness to the ex- tent of causing these whites to lose their clean tone and muddying them so much that they are rendered useless for painting in oil in their self tone at least. They are sometimes used in the making of com- pounds into which white lead or zinc enter in sufficient quantities as to give the com- INTERIOE PAINTING 33 bination good opacity and color and as cor- rectives of some of the defects of these two metal whites they become of good use in such compounds. Most of them are inert in oil, but those of a calcareous nature (all but the sulphate) do exert an influence upon the oil and cause it to saponify more or less. This, however, is not always in- jurious. 25. The earth whites, while not being ideal pigments in oil, really become so when used in distemper or water colors. They show opaque when mixed with water and are used in enormous quantities in the make-up of the ready prepared calcimine tints and for the coloring of wall paper, to say nothing of the quantities of it used and mixed up by painters in preparing calcimine and all water color painting of whatever name it may go by. The peculi- arities of the main earth whites belonging to the several divisions mentioned in para- 34 INTERIOR PAINTING graph 22 will be noted in the following ones. 26. The aluminous whites are numer- ous. The better ones are those having been well cleaned and washed free of for- eign admixtures and can be procured un- der the name of China Clay or Kaolin in many of the better class of supply stores. This is the best one of the aluminous divi- sion. It covers best of any in oil and is inert nearly in that vehicle. In water col- ors it possesses also the best body or opac- ity of any one of the earth whites, but its working qualities are inferior to those of others which will be noted below. 27. The silicious white earths, while not possessing any body or opacity in oil, are used as correctives in connection with the good covering metal whites to good advan- tage. They are seldom used alone in wa- ter color work, as they are inferior in cov- ering and working qualities to the creta- ceous whites. The are used as said above INTERIOR PAINTING 35 mainly as correctives in oil painting, as ad- juncts in the flatting coats done in oil of which more will be said later. 28. The cretaceous whites are by far the best to use as bases for the mixing of water colors and probably ninety-five per cent of all water color painting contains it as the principal ingredient. Whiting or carbonate of lime is the prin- cipal one and the quantities of it that are used is something wonderful. While it is very indifferent when mixed in oil on ac- count of its transparency, it certainly is the ideal pigment when mixed with water. It covers well and smoothly and stands head and shoulders above all the rest in good qualities in the estimation of the trade. It works admirably well under the brush, which is a great object in itself as a time saver. And if for no other reason, this would place it at the head of the list. 29. There is another very good white earth pigment of this class having entirely 36 INTERIOR PAINTING different properties from the above. It is gypsum, or the sulphate of lime. It does not cover nor work as well under the brush as whiting and is never used for the mixing of water colors by the painters, but by proper compounding enormous quanti- ties of it are used by the concerns making the so-called anti-calcimine goods, etc. Their chief good qualities are as adjuncts with other whites either in oil or water colors and as bases for the preparation of certain colored pigments. QUESTIONS ON LESSON IV 23. What is said in general of the earth whites? 24. What are the main characteristics of the earth whites in oil? 25. What is said concerning their use in water color painting? 26. What are the peculiarities of the aluminous whites? INTERIOR PAINTING 37 27. What is said regarding the silicious whites f 28. Relate the properties of the creta- " ceous whites and of whiting in particular. 29. What is said concerning gypsum or the sulphate of lime! LESSON V MATERIAL, USED IN INTERIOR PAINTING CONTINUED THE BLACKS 30. They are nearly the same as noted in Vol. I with the addition of a few others. As all pigments will be fully reviewed in Vol. Ill, a mere nomenclature is here given, merely noting the ones which are chiefly used in water colors. Lamp Black, Ivory Black, Coach and drop blacks are of the same kind of prove- nance as Ivory Mack, i. e., bone charcoal. Gas or carbon black Graphite. The above blacks are all useful in oil and most of 38 INTERIOR PAINTING them in water colors. To the above list ' must be added for use in water : Brunswick or Frankfort black, also sold sometimes under the name of Charcoal black, only useful in distemper work. THE BLUES 31. In Vol. I the list of blues is re- stricted to Prussian Blue and Ultramarine, which with the exception of Cobalt Blue are the only ones of much value in out- door painting. To the above must be added for interior painting Chinese Blue, a soluble variation of Prussian Blue, Ceru- leum and a few decorators might miss Che&sylite, while the big majority would not use it. With the various shades of Ultramarine to be had, even the decorators can cut down the blue list to the two mentioned in exte- rior painting Prussian and Ultramarine Blues. INTERIOR PAINTING 39 THE BROWNS 32. These form a useful group to all painters for either outside or inside work, either in oil or water colors. Eaw and Burnt Umbers, Kaw and Burnt Siennas, Vandyke Brown are all very transparent or semi-transparent and are useful in both oil and water color painting. The metallic browns so useful in oil for the rough painting of buildings are but little used in interior work, although some produce some very good tints and could be used in their self colors also to good ad- vantage. THE GREENS 33. The greens, it will be noted in Vol. I, are restricted to the Chrome Greens which suffice for the producing of tints or self coloring in exterior work. To this must be added for interior work Cobalt green or green ultramarine, Viridian, the green oxide of Chronium, Paris green and 40 INTERIOR PAINTING the many fancy shades derived from the anilines. The latter class of greens are very beautiful and but for the fugitive character of most of them would be inval- uable to the decorator. THE REDS 34. The reds will be found of great use for interior painting and fortunately the group possesses a number of excellent pig- ments, stable, enduring and in a great va- riety of tones and hues, all being useful either in oil or water colors. In water, the quicksilver vermilions do not give good results as they will quickly turn black when unprotected by varnish. The imitation vermilions are better for use in water col- ors. Venetian reds, Indian reds, Tuscan reds and the red ochres are all strong iron based colors and are useful for either self painting or the producing of tints. A large number of red lakes are produced from aniline and are more or less fugitives INTERIOR PAINTING 41 except the so-called madder lakes made from alizarine which are very permanent. THE YELLOWS 35. The yellow group is also very rich in the great variety of tints or rather hues that they produce. The list given in exte- rior painting is restricted to the Ochres and the Chrome yellows. While the inte- rior decorator uses many more, the vari- eties of the above two are so many that nearly every tone of yellow can be pro- duced from some of them. Dutch pink, In- dian yellow, Naples yellow, Gamboge, Baryta lemon yellow, and Gamboge com- pose an additional list from which to choose and select for some decorators, while many would cut them out entirely. QUESTIONS ON LESSON V 30. What colors are named in the black group f 42 INTERIOR PAINTING 31. What is said regarding the pig- ments in the blue group ! 32. Name over the useful pigments in the brown group. 33. What are the pigments in the green group? 34. What is said of the pigments com- posing the red group ? 35. What is said regarding the pig- ments of the yellow group T LESSON VI MATERIAL USED IN INTERIOR PAINTING CONTINUED THINNERS OR VEHICLES AND BINDING SUB- STANCES 36. The thinners used in interior paint- ing are distinct from the only ones that are of importance in exterior painting, the fixed oil, for a fuller description of which the student is referred to Vol. III. A greater use is made of the volatile oils as INTERIOR PAINTING 43 in flatting, for instance, and for water color work the thinner is as the name indi- cateswater. But water, while it enables the thinning and application of colors, does not bind them on and some material must be added to it that will impart to it the binding properties that are lacking. 37. Linseed oil is the best fixed oil for painting inside or outside of all these. Poppy-seed oil is used with zinc white for some specific purposes of which more will be said later. The volatile oil mostly used is turpen- tine, and rightly so, as the smell of the vol- atile oils of petroleum extraction is much against their use in interior painting. Deodorised benzine and naphtha are some- times substituted for it and for many pur- poses are just about as good. 38. The binding material chiefly used to mix with water colors is such as is solu- ble in water as some of the vegetable gums are, as gum arabic, an excellent binder, 44 INTERIOR PAINTING but too costly and difficult to handle in the painting of large surfaces, but still used for the painting of some small work by a few decorators ; gum tragacanth, which is used only for specific work and for most situations very inferior to gum arabic. There are a number of others that are sometimes used in the binding of water colors. They are makeshifts at best and much inferior to gum arabic. Among them are flour paste, the prepared dry pastes, dextrin and starch. 40. The binding material of animal ex- traction is by far the most used of any. This is probably not so much because of their superior qualities as that they are so much cheaper, and gum arabic being the only one among those of vegetable origin which can make any claim of superiority over good glue and isinglass should the demand increase greatly over what it is now the supply could not keep up and the price would soon advance beyond the reach INTERIOR PAINTING 45 of any but for the users of water colors in artistic work. Glues and isinglass have very good bind- ing qualities when well made. They are easily dissolved, too, being readily han- dled, being superior in this respect to gum arable. The one drawback is that in hot weather colors prepared with them soon putrefy; but this can be guarded against by only mixing so much as can be used up clean during the day. With refrigerators into which vessels containing it can be placed until wanted (within a reasonable time) will keep it in good shape for several days. 41. Water and other putty for floor work, filling up cracks in floor joints and knot holes and many other so-called ' ' crack fillers " is a rather recent addition to the list of ready prepared goods on the market. Some are so good and so much superior to any of the home-made makeshifts, and be- ing so cheap at the same time, that they 46 INTERIOR PAINTING are and eventually will displace the home prepared article. QUESTIONS ON LESSON VI 36. What is said in a general way con- cerning vehicles for interior painting? 37. What are the fixed and volatile oils which are mostly being used? 38. What binding material of vegetable origin can be used in water colors? 39. What binding material of animal extraction is chiefly used in the binding of water colors? 40. What is said of the properties of glue and isinglass? 41. What is said of water putty for the filling of cracks, joints, etc.? LESSON VII MATERIAL USED IN INTERIOR PAINTING CONTINUED 42. As nearly everything that is cata- logued by painters' and artists' supply INTERIOR PAINTING 47 houses is used at times by some decorat- ors and painters in "interior work," the mere enumeration of it would be quite an undertaking of itself. The more useful and those of which considerable quantities are required, will be examined only. 43. Gold and other metal leaves, such as aluminum, silver, Dutch metal, etc., which are all used for such work as comes under the name of gilding, i. e., for appli- cation over a size to surfaces. All the metal leaves come packed in books between the leaves of which a single leaf of the metal is placed either loose, as is the case for most of them, or held by a loose leaf of paper as in the so-called "pat- ent gold leaf." 44. Bronzes, metallics, flitters, bro- cades, etc., can all be bracketed together. They are very useful in decoration and for many kinds of work indispensable. They come in innumerable shades and qualities, some being very carefully made and excel- 48 INTERIOR PAINTING lent, while others are coarse, poorly col- ored and tarnish quickly. 45. There are a number of other pow- dered substances that are not of metallic derivation, that are useful to the decorator and which he uses in a manner similar to the bronzes with and over a sizing. Mica powdered, powdered glass flakes usually known as frosting, finely powdered pearl flakings and also the larger flakes of pearl and a great number of others which are but seldom used however. In fact, there is scarcely any substance in nature that cannot be used in its proper place in decorating interiors. 46. Drafting paper to draw designs upon, some Bristol boards to make colored sketches^ some good and well sized stencil paper to cut stencils from will be required. While the first two can be gotten along without by substituting something that will takejkheir place, the last is nearly indis- pensable, as it is much more difficult to INTERIOR PAINTING 49 substitute anything else that will not re- quire many times more trouble and work to take its place. 47. Charcoal and other colored chalk crayons, while not absolutely indispensa- ble, will be found very useful. Gold fat oil size, bronzing liquids to be used in applying bronzes and other pow- dered material. The rest of the material can all be included in a large sized et cetera and, as said before, may consist of almost anything susceptible of beautifying the interior. To the above ought to be added all the material required in hardwood finishing which is a part of the interior work, but as this will be made the subject matter of a separate manual and as graining and mar- bling will form another, the two are omit- ted and will be treated as separate branches of the trade which they are in fact. 50 INTERIOR PAINTING QUESTIONS ON LESSON VII 42. What is said regarding the mate- rial used in interior painting? 43. Relate what is said of gold and other metal leaves. 44. Relate what is said regarding bronzes, metallics, etc. 45. Name over some of the leading powdered substances used in decorating. 46. What is said about drafting, sten- cilling and other paper stock? 47. What other material is used in in- terior painting and decorating? LESSON VIII TOOLS AND APPLIANCES USED IN INTERIOR PAINTING AND DECORATING 48. The tools and appliances used in in- terior painting, many of them, were de- scribed and illustrated in Vol. I, "Exterior Painting." Some special ones are re- quired for interior work which are never used in exterior work or, at least, only by; INTERIOR PAINTING 51 decorators ; such will receive fuller expla- nations and illustrations as far as practi- cable than the others, and the reader is referred to Vol. I for illustrations of most of these tools and appliances. 49. As in exterior painting, the brushes were considered of most importance in the matter of tools, so in interior work they are of prime consequence and well deserve first place in the order and task of exam- ination. 50. A much greater variety of brushes are required in interior painting and dec- orating than for exterior painting, as wa- ter colors require a somewhat differently devised brush for their application than oil colors do and those used in decoration have not only different forms but in many instances they should be made from differ- ent material. The brushes which are sim- \ ilar to those used in exterior work, will not be illustrated when there is a correspond- ing illustration of the same in Vol. I. In 52 INTERIOR PAINTING such instances reference will be made to them by their figure number. For ease in understanding the subject matter, the brushes will be divided into two categories : those which are used in oil colors mainly, and which are therefore nearly the same as described in exterior painting, and those which are chiefly tise- f ul in water colors, although some of them are used in oil by decorators, but are not described in Vol. I. 51. The bristle brushes used in oil painting consist of flat wall brushes (see Viol. I, figs. 3 and 4), round and oval brushes (see Vol. I, fig. 5) round, oval and flat sash tools (see Vol. I, figs. 8 and 9), round and flat artists' fitches (see Vol. 1, fig. 21), oval varnish brushes (fig. 1), a good brush to use, not only for varnishing but for painting woodwork when well broken in. The weighted floor wax brush is not used for the application of either oil or INTERIOR PAINTING 53 IIIIHII 54 INTERIOR PAINTING water colors but for the polishing of waxed floors (fig. 2). The artists' flat and round bristle brushes are really as useful in oil as in wa- ter colors. They are well shown up in fig. 3. The flat and round dusters (see Vol. I, FIG 2. fig. 52). The brushes which are princi- pally useful in water colors, commencing from the larger downward to the smaller, are the calcimine brushes (see fig. 4). To the artists' flat and round bristle brushes should be added the angular ones, shown in fig. 5. INTEKIOB PAINTING 55 FIG. 3. 56 INTERIOR PAIXTIXG INTERIOR PAINTING 57 There are several other varieties of brushes built somewhat in the same fashion as the artists' bristle brushes or fitches, as FIG. 5. some would know them. The fresco round and flat bristle liners are of this order. They are so nearly related that the one 58 INTERIOR PAINTING showing will suffice, the difference being that the fresco liner is a trifle longer. iiliiminmiimiimi O O 3 3 Q mmmiiim.mmMi The flat bristle varnish brushes in single and double, thick, plain or chiseled edges, are so similar in shape to that of the fitch INTERIOR PAINTING 59 and chiseled edged flat varnish brushes shown in figs. 6 and 7, given here, that they llllillil FIG. 7. will suffice to illustrate the bristle brushes, too, as the shapes are similar in all other respects than the material composing them. 60 INTERIOR PAINTING The gilder's tip for picking gold leaf out of the book or cushion and carrying it to the sized parts to be gilded is shown in fig. 8. Stencil brushes are shown in figs. 9 and 10. Camel hair artists' brushes, red and black sable artists ' brushes, round and flat both of which are shown in fig. 11. The various lettering brushes either round or square, pointed in either camel's hair, ox hair or red or black sable, are at all times useful to the decorator. Fig. 12 shows their shapes and gradations. Many more brushes could be given as INTERIOR PAINTING 61 nearly every brush shape has some advo- cate for its use. but the above will suffice FIG. 10. for nearly all the legitimate needs of the painter and decorator. There is another one, however, that 62 INTERIOR PAINTING should not be overlooked, and while it is not used to spread paint, it is needed for IW1 FIG. 11. the eradication of brush marks in flatting in oil colors; in blending in water colors, INTERIOR PAINTING 63 64 INTERIOR PAINTING etc ; it is the stippling brush, and its shape is well shown in fig. 13. FIG. 13. QUESTIONS ON LESSON VIII 48. What is said generally regarding tools and appliances for use in interior painting ? 49. What are the most important tools ? 50. What is said in a general way con- cerning brushes ? 51. Which are the bristle brushes prin- cipally used in interior painting? 52. What brushes are principally used in painting and decorating in water colors ? INTERIOR PAINTING 65 LESSON IX TOOLS AND APPLIANCES CONTINUED 53. As a rule there will be found but little use for the larger ladders in interior work, the only place where they would likely be found useful would be in the paint- ing of large and high walled halls and churches in order to reach the working platforms. These being built within reach of the work itself requires but little ex- planation, as the carpenters who usually put up this sort of scaffolding know how to get at it better than it is possible to tell it in a manual of this kind. The manner in which the painting and decorating can be reached readily and per- mit the easy performance of the work is the main thing to hold in sight in prepar- ing to do interior work. 54. Step-ladders as shown in fig. 14 are needed constantly, especially such make as the figure shows. These are hinged at the 66 INTERIOR PAINTING top like the ordinary ladder trestle and having well braced, broad steps can be used as an ordinary step-ladder or to lay walking boards upon as trestles, and are FIG. 14. perfectly safe to stand upon as there is perfect rigidity in these ladders even when working upon the top step. This cannot be always attained in other forms of step- ladders. INTERIOR PAINTING 67 55. The painters' hinged trestles, as shown in fig. 15, are very much used for the building of scaffold in ordinary rooms or for holding up a two-inch walking board between a pair of them which permits the painting of a stretch the full length of the FIG. 15. room, when the whole can be pushed along to unfinished parts and another similar stretch painted and so on until completed. They are also used in sets of four some- times and after laying 2-inch boards be- tween each pair at parallel sides of a room, 63 INTERIOR PAINTING other boards can be laid crossways and a complete covering can be had if desired. Where there is a considerable amount of decoration done this is the better way of getting at it, as it saves so much moving about. FIG. 16. 56. Sometimes in halls or in places where stairways are in the way or too nar- row for the setting up of a step-ladder, some means must be resorted to to remedy this. A very good and cheap device is shown in fig. 16. The walking board can INTERIOR PAINTING 69 be set upon the projecting teeth wihich will hold it firmly while the other end can rest upon a trestle or step-ladder. At the foot of the trestles shown in fig. 15 will be also seen on adjustable walking board which is a very handy one as it can be used short or long, as space permits, PATENT PEND1N3 FIG. 17. and gives in one what otherwise would re- quire a number of different lengthed, or- dinary walking boards. It is sold under the name of adjustable walking board. 57. Another very convenient device for scaffolding is the Tilley adjustable scaffold- ing jacks which is shown in fig. 17. Any 70 INTERIOR PAINTING sized scantling can be used between them up to 2 inches and a floor laid to connect the space between two pairs, the height be- ing adjustable, the platform can be raised or lowered to suit. They are made in three sizes. The above will suffice to indicate what can be used in getting ready to do the in- terior painting of ceilings and walls and while the same object may be attained in other ways, they for that reason may not be said to be indispensable nevertheless they will be found handier and easier to handle than many others and few others will be found as good or as safe for the men to work with. QUESTIONS ON LESSON IX 53. What is said regarding the manner of scaffolding for high interior painting? 54. What kind of step-ladders are the most useful? INTERIOR PAINTING 71 55. Kelate how the painters' ladder trestles are used. 56. What is an adjustable walking board ? 57. What are adjustable scaffolding jacks? LESSON X TOOLS AND APPLIANCES CONTINUED 58. The tools needed in doing the paint- ing and for the preparing its possibility, by scaffolding and by means of step-lad- ders, was the subject of the last lesson. There are still others which are needed to be used in preparing for the ornamenta- tion, such as for the preparing of pounces, stencils, etc., etc. The most useful and in- dispensable ones will form the subject mat- ter of this lesson. 59. The straight edge is used not only in drawing and drafting but also in mak- ing lines in oil and water colors, and can- 72 INTERIOR PAINTING not be dispensed with. In choosing them one should be careful that they are truly straight, which can easily be seen by sight- ing along the edge. One edge should be bevelled. 60. The T square is another tool used in drafting and drawing. It cannot be dis- FIG. 18. pensed with as all work which, to look well in the making of stencils, must be truly squared to register well and it would be impossible to do that without its use. See fig. 18. 61. The triangle or fourth part of a cir- cle is another tool which, while not abso- lutely necessary, proves a great time saver. INTERIOR PAINTING 73 Fig. 19 represents it. It is needless to say that this, as well as the T square and straight edge, are all made from wood. 62. Woodenleg dividers are also useful adjuncts to the drawing table, although it can be better dispensed with for such drawings as the decorator has to do than any of the other tools mentioned before. FIG. 19. Many supply its place with a string and tack, however, but it is a convenience and in enlarging certain drawings which must be done to scale, it will be greatly missed. 63. A box of mathematical instruments does not come amiss in making drawings to scale, although but few decorators would have much use for it. 74 INTERIOR PAINTING 64. A stencil cutting knife such as shown in fig. 20 is needed for cutting sten- INTERIOR PAINTING 75 cils. There are many other forms of it made and for sale at the supply stores. This one is excellent for general stencil cut- ting. It can be extended in and out to suit most purposes. 65. A good side drawing board to tack paper upon in making designs, while not a necessity, is a great convenience to have. A supply of different sizes of thumb tacks to hold the paper in place on the board and which are used also in fastening stencils to ceilings or walls while coloring the plumb bob to true perpendicular lines is a too well known device to need illustrating, but there is one made and patented which is a dandy, as it is a chalk line and bob at one and the same time and a great time saver. It is represented in fig. 21. The inside is hollow, containing coloring mat- ter for the line when it can be snapped as soon as plumbed, one end being fastened to a sharp awl which can be pushed into the plaster without damage to it. 76 INTERIOR PAINTING 66. Putty and scraping knife were il- lustrated in Vol. I and the reader referred to that. Palette knives to triturate colors INTERIOR PAINTING 77 are useful but not indispensable. All tools and contrivances could be included in the list of useful articles to have on hand for certain kinds of work ; but of those which have been named many decorators will be found who have never owned them all they make out by substituting something that answers the same purpose to them. QUESTIONS ON LESSON X 58. What other tools are reviewed in this lesson? 59. What is said regarding the straight edge? 60. What use is made of the T square? 61. What is said of triangles? 62. Eelate about dividers? 63. Are mathematical instruments much used? 64. What is said about stencil knives ? 65. What can you say about the draw- ing board and other things mentioned? 66. What other too ] s are needed. 78 INTERIOR PAINTING LESSON XI STENCIL CUTTING 67. It is not intended to go very deeply into the study of decoration in this manual, but to treat it in its preliminary stage leav- ing its many sided branches for some spe- cial study in subsequent manuals which will treat them specially and at greater length. The proper consideration of drawing, pre- paring and cutting stencils in itself is cer- tainly subject matter enough to fill up the whole of this manual; so as said before, the first steps is all that there will be room for here. It will be well to say, however, that there is no reason why the student should not by practicing what he can learn from the little that is given out, to become an excellent stencil producer and cutter. Practice makes perfect and the first step is the hardest. 68. The first requisite is to have some good manila wrapping paper, or better still , INTERIOR PAINTING 79 some manila drafting paper upon which to draw the design which is intended to be cut out. The first step is to square up a base line which is easily done by 'using the T square. Then find the exact center of the design and square that with the base line by the same process. Then proceed to draw one half only of the design intended to be cut out. It is best to draw it first with a charcoal crayon, then with a pencil, correct all lines to what they should be, wiping off the charcoal marks entirely so as not to be misled in the next operation by mistaking them for the true ones to follow. 69. The next step is to prick holes in the half design made. This can be done with a needle or any other sharp pointed thing. In order that the needle may pene- trate easily it will be well to lay the design upon cloth which has been folded suffi- ciently to make a cushion for the design. Better still than the needle, is a good tracing wheel; some are made especially 80 INTERIOR PAINTING for this purpose and so constructed as to enable one to follow curves as readily as straight lines and to make complete revol- utions in circling inside of one half inch. 70. Now square up a space upon the stencil paper similar to the one described in paragraph 68, using pencil for marking out the base line, center and ends. Make a pounce bag out of any thin muslin. This is readily made by cutting a small square of cloth, in the center of which put some finely powdered dry paint of whiting or any other color which you think will show best upon the paper you intend to cut the sten- cil upon, tie the muslin up above the bag like ball produced by the bulk of the dry color inside. The rest of the cloth above the tying making a sort of handle to hold in pouncing the design; which should be carefully gone over in order to be sure that every portion of it will show well on the stencil paper below. It is almost useless to tell that the center of the design must be. INTEKIOR PAINTING 81 placed exactly upon the center line drawn out upon the stencil paper and that the base must be in perfect line also with each other, otherwise the design will be imper- fect from being untrue. Then turn the pricked design over and proceed to pounce it on the reverse side. This will give the other half of the design in perfect uniformity with the first half giving a perfect replica to the first part. 71. There is another way of obtaining the same results which is employed by many. The design is drawn upon the pa- per in a manner similar to that stated in paragraph 70. Then instead of pricking it to make a pounce of it, it is reversed and the design is traced with a pencil on the back which is easily done if it is placed against a window pane, the light shining through will show every line on the otter side which can then be easily followed and traced with the pencil. This will give the two sides neded to make the design com- 82 INTERIOR PAINTING plete. Then proceed to copy it by placing a sheet of carbon paper between it and the stencil paper to receive it, having first squared and prepared it in the same man- ner as related in paragraph 70 then trace out the design with any pointed thing. The carbon paper will give a good clearly de- fined design. After having gone over the first half of the design, turn it over and proceed to trace out the other side which the carbon paper will faithfully reproduce also, and there will be a clearly marked out whole ready to be cut out. This gives clearer markings than a pounce ordinarily does, especially when not well made or the wrong color is used in pouncing. QUESTIONS ON LESSON XI 67. Deals in generalities concerning stencil cutting. 68. How are designs to be drawn out upon the drafting paper? 69. How is the design to be pricked? INTERIOR PAINTING 83 70. How is the design pounced on to the stencil paper! 71. In what other manner can the de- sign be transferred to to the stencil paper? LESSON XII STENCIL CUTTING CONTINUED 72. In the preceding lesson the man- ner of getting the design upon the stencil ready for the cutting was explained, this lesson will try to show how to do the cut- ting properly. 73. There are several makes of highly sized paper which is sold as stencil paper. Some is excellent and again some is far from being so. The requisites for a good paper are that it should be pliable and tough, ability to resist moisture and the possibility of making clean cut edges easily upon it, but perhaps the greatest claim that can be made for it is that of toughness, i. e., in that it will not be likely to break where the ties are made. 84 INTERIOR PAINTING 74. The ability to resist moisture can be supplied very easily. It is to give the finished cut stencil one or two coats of shellac varnish. The orange shellac is bet- ter than the white for this purpose, as it is stronger and much less likely to soak up than the other after repeated use in water color stencilling. It is much safer to give the stencils this shellac varnish coating over twice, even upon the very best of ready prepared, highly sized stencil paper. 75. So far only the ready prepared stencil papers have been noticed. Many decorators prefer to prepare their own, however, and such are in no wise inferior, on the contrary they are better when well prepared. There are a number of ways of doing this; about as good as any of them is to take some strong tough manila drafting paper. Soak it with raw linseed oil and let it dry well, then repeat the dose and let that dry again. The surplus oil should be INTERIOR PAINTING 85 carefully wiped off or it will be gummy and skinny on its surface. Stencils cut upon it will after having been shellacked stand as much or more than those made on ready prepared paper. 76. The first thing to do before proceed- ing to the cutting proper is to mark out the ties. A tie in stencil cutting vernacular is the name given a small strip of uncut paper as it helps to hold the design together and these should all be carefully marked out upon the design beforehand. This mark- ing out should be done in ink, in order that no mistake can be made and an incision made beyond the pencil lines as that Would weaken the ties. Their proper location generally speaking is dictated by the needs of strengthening the design, but their proper location has a great deal to do in the producing of good effects and it re- quires some little experience in locating them at the right place. 77. The cutting of stencils requires 86 INTERIOR PAINTING sharp knives and care. The shape of the knives helps the cutter making the cuttings more easily, but any pen knife well sharp- ened will answer the purpose nearly as well. The one shown in fig. 20 has a heavy handle which enables one to have a better grip and control over it than with the usual penknife and the tapering form of the blade with a strong back permit the cut- ting to be done somewhat more easily, but as said before, such are not indispensable. The cutting should be done over glass or a zinc sheet the stencil paper having been placed over them, let the cutter proceed to do his work carefully so as not to trespass with his knife .beyond the ink marks indi- cating the location of the ties. It is better to start the cutting of a member at the up- per and lower tie cutting away from the tie itself and cutting between the ties on the longer lines after that ; that will reduce the hazard of cutting over to the minimum. Small circles are best cut with round INTERIOR PAINTING 87 punches, such as harness makers use in punching leather with. They are great time savers and can be procured in all sizes up to % of an inch or more. % in. are as large as will be required as above that size the knife will do the work about as well. Immediately after the stencils have been cut, the shellacking mentioned in para- graph 74 should be given them in order that they may be ready for use at a mo- ment's notice. QUESTIONS ON LESSON XII 72. Tell of the subject matter of this lesson? 73. What is said of the ready prepared stencil paper? 74. How are stencil prepared to stand water color work. 75. How is other prepared for stencil cutting? 76. What is said regarding the proper placing of the ties ? 88 INTERIOR PAINTING 77. Relate how the stencil cutting should be done and the stencils made ready for use? LESSON XIII POUNCES IN INTERIOR DECORATION 78. In the preceding lesson the man- ner of preparing pounces for stencil cut- ting was incidentally mentioned as it was necessary to do so in order to pave the way to the preparing for the stencil cutting but all was not said concerning them nor the making of them for the reason that pounces play an important part in decora- tion and this was reserved for this lesson. 79. The repetition of conventional de- signs, or the repetition of designs that are not conventionalized also must be done and can be done only through the use of pounces in a practical manner. By their use an exact repeat can be produced at a minimum of labor. 80. Unlike stencilling on the designs, INTERIOR PAINTING 89 the whole of the outlines is hand work where pouncing has been used to lay out the design. The coloring itself being a matter of taste and the number of colors used unlimited. Here is where the skill and taste of the artist comes in for the lack of it will mar the job and make it daubby wthile when properly done it will be sightly and pleasing to the eye. There is no royal road by which the beginner can jump in and reach success in it but by practice and perseverance in trying to do the execution in a workmanlike manner. 81. The beginner should choose some modest designs in frieze work and the same in bordering, centerpieces, corners and brakes, using but few colors to start with until his experience in these easier exer- cises render him more confident and able to proceed into more intricate and difficult designing. 82. Preparing the designs for pounce work is very much the same as indicated 90 INTERIOR PAINTING for the designing of stencils if the repeats are short especially ; but it frequently hap- pens that they are not doubled up at the center to form the replica of the other half of it nor are they always so even in sten- ciling. In either case, however, the design must be drawn in full upon the paper until the repeat begins again. 83. The designing as noted in para- graph 68 will apply as already stated. In designing the whole of the repeat, proceed to lay a perfectly well squared base line and perpendicular with it the end lines where the design begins and ends. With a stick of charcoal the design which is to occupy the space should be laid out roughly; this should be corrected until it suits, then the same should be penciled and the charcoal marks removed by crush- ing and wiping off. 84. The drawing having been com- pleted it should be pricked as recommended in paragraph 69. It may be well to say INTERIOR PAINTING 91 here that sometimes the holes clog up from the paper which is raised on the underside being drawn back to the places they were punched out of. It is very easy to prevent that by simply using some sand paper lightly on the under side, taking care that it does not cut through too much. The ob- ject being to just cut down the raised por- tion on that side which will leave the holes open and unclogged to perform the work intended they should do. QUESTIONS ON LESSON XIII 78. What is said in a general way con- cerning pounces? 79. How are repeats of any design uni- formly reproduced? 80. What is said concerning the use of pounces in interior work? 81. What advice is given beginners in making a selection of pouncing designs? 82. How are the designs to be drawn for pounces ? 92 INTERIOR PAINTING 83. What is further said concerning the designing? 84. How are designs to be pricked and the openings cleared? LESSON XIV PAINTING OF THE WOODWORK 85. The painting of the woodwork comes first for consideration. Much of what has been said concerning the paint- ing of exteriors in Vol. I, will apply to the painting of wood in the interior as well. At least cheap work will be usually finished in the same way as the exterior is. But a& the interior wood work is not exposed to the vicissitudes of stormy weather nor to the great changes in temperature which prevail upon the exterior, a much greater range of work can be done in interior painting than is possible on the exterior. 86. If the finish is in hard wood, it will not be painted at all, of course, and it may be finished in a number of ways as will be INTERIOR PAINTING 93 seen in the volume of the red series treat- ing especially upon wood finishing. 87. It may be coated over and painted with ground coats for graining, as will be fully explained in the volume of the red series treating the subject of graining and marbling. 88. Again it may be painted flat, an operation which will receive due attention in this manual at its proper place where will be given the best manner and princi- ples for its execution, not only for wood wiork, but for all oil painted wall work as well. 89. Or again it may be enameled which will also I- be fully explained further on in this manual. As it pertains nearly exclu- sively to the wood work proper or parts of the walls in bath rooms it will be handled in connection with the painting of the wood work. 90. In all new work the priming should be applied with raw linseed oil, only 94 INTERIOR PAINTING mixed with a sufficient quantity of white lead to show where the application has been made, but not nearly so thick as to hide the grain of the wood underneath. Be- fore the application of the priming coat every part of the wood work should have been carefully dusted and the floors cleaned as much as possible in order that no dust may arise to settle on the priming. Before the application of the priming all knots and sappy parts of the wood should be gone over with a good coat of orange shel- lac varnish, in order to keep them from coming through on the subsequent paint- ing. 91. The second coat should be mixed very much as for exterior painting mid- dling thick and it should cover solidly over the priming. It may contain a generous quantity of turpentine if the last coat is to be given glossy, as a gloss coat always looks best over a flat coat ; while if the last coat is to be flat then but very little turpen- INTERIOR PAINTING 95 tine should be used in order to have it dry glossy as flatting looks best over a gloss coat. As no doubt there will be nail holes, possibly cracks and defects to fill and level up after the priming has become dried, all such should be well puttied up before the application of the second coat. Should dust have blown upon the prining before it was dry the work should be gone over with No. 1 sand paper and afterward well dusted before applying the second coat. 92. The third coating described in this paragraph presupposes that the finish is to be glossy as in outside wiork. If it is to be flatted it will have to be given in the man- ner related in lesson 15. The paint for this coat should be heavy but it should not be plastered upon the sur- face on the contrary it should be well rub- bed out with the brush and on no part of the work should the paint be left thick as it is sure to dry wrinkled if it is. 96 INTERIOR PAINTING QUESTIONS ON LESSON XIV 85. What is said concerning the paint- ing of the wood work inside? 86. What is said ahout the hard wood finish? 87. What is said about the graining? 88. What is said about the flatting? 89. What is said about the enamelling? 90. How should the priming be ap- plied? 91. What should be done in second coating? 92. How should the third coat be given? LESSON XV HOW TO PAINT FLAT COATS 93. Flatting is a mode of finishing sur- faces which are painted in oil in order to kill the glare which is always present upon varnished or glossy surfaces. This may be executed upon all kinds of surfaces not only upon wood work, but also upon walls , INTERIOR PAINTING 97 and ceilings or plastered work. As the les- sons have not reached this part of interior painting as yet it is mentioned because the details here given will not be repeated where that part of interior work is reached, but the student will be referred to this les- son for the details of the " modus op- erandi. ' ' 94. Flatting for good work requires three coats of previous painting and it be- comes the fourth one. It sometimes hap- pens that the specifications require that the flatting be done in three coats and that it shall be applied over the second one. "While it is possible to do this in a way it is far from being the best way, and will not be so uniform in appearance as if given upon a good solid gloss coat and such a coat is not always obtained on the second coat in the painting of new wood. The priming penetrates and fills the wood, but not completely, and there is still consider- able suction left afterward so that the sec- 98 INTERIOR PAINTING ond coat is called upon to finish this incom- plete filling. In doing so it parts with a portion of its oil, especially upon soft parts of wood. The hard parts will not absorb much if any, of this oil, and upon such the second coat will stand out with a full gloss while it will flat more or less upon the others. The surface of the wood therefore will be uneven, and the third coat flatting will be uneven too. It is much safer to in- sure good work to give the third coat of oil-paint, as this will be uniformly glossy which will insure a good all-over-alike flat coat over it. 95. What is said in the preceding paragraph as to flatting over wood work, is fully applicable to all plastered work in so far as it should be applied only to a uni- form gloss coat. The method of painting the walls will be considered in subsequent lessons, so the student will have to wait till that is reached in order to know how it should be done ; but the principles involved , INTERIOR PAINTING 99 are the same. It matters not by what sys- tem the walls may be painted nor of the number of coats used but the last one must have a uniform gloss to apply the flat- ting upon. 96. The mixing of the flat coat is a particular piece of work, but presents no difficulty when the principles governing flatting are understood. These have been explained in so far as to the condition re- quired to insure a good flat upon a gloss coat. There remains to explain now that the flat condition of paint is obtained by thinning the pigment with volatile oils such as turpentine, benzine, naphtha, etc., the first named being by far the best for the nostrils and stomach at least. It had possibly been better to have said that tur- pentine is not quite so bad as the others, which would have been nearer the truth, for it too is bad enough, especially in warm weather, as will be explained later on. 97. It may be well to say here that 100 INTERIOR PAINTING there are several degrees of flatting known to painters. The "dead flat" which gives nearly as flat a tone as water colors. This is produced by thinning the pigment with volatile oils only. What is known as "drawn flatting" goes even farther than that, for the lead which in its paste form is ground in oil is mixed with benzine over night in order that it may dissolve the oil which was used in grinding the lead, and this is poured out after the white lead has settled down. Then it is mixed with clear turpentine as in dead flat. Of course such work must be very short lived, and easily damaged, as there is noth- ing to hold the pigment on the walls or woodwork, but some people must have it done in that way and one must know how to do it. 98. Much the better way is to add a few spoonfuls of linseed oil in order to have something to hold it on the work. It will not be dead flat but will become what INTERIOR PAINTING 101 painters call "eggshell gloss' 9 which is a very pleasing condition to the eye. It has a peculiar softness which pleases. It pos- sesses the advantage over a dead flat that a soft sponge can be used over it to cleanse it with but little danger if done with care, which cannot be done over the dead flat safely. 99. Some painters use silicate earth finely ground to mix with their paint in flatting. Some use as much as one-third by weight as they use of white lead. It is claimed that more oil can be used by its ad- dition to the lead and that the flatting is softer toned. This from the tests made by the author is true, but he has not done so much of it as to warrant the claim that more oil can be added than without its use without producing a gloss. It certainly does not cover so well as the pure lead mixed flatting does but it is more economical and having a peculiar softness of its own, is well worth using for many situations. 102 INTERIOK PAINTING 100. The application of the flat coat on wood work is only noted here that of coating the walls will be explained later on. The tools should be clean, the brashes free from specs. They should be well broken in, but not worn out. The painting must be done quickly as it sets rapidly. The opera- tor should do the panels of doors first, then the middle stiles, being careful not to have the brush run over the edge of the cross rails. If accidently smeared over, this paint should be wiped off, as otherwise it would set and when ready to paint the rails there would be a doubling up over such places and the finished work would be imperfect. After painting over the mid- dle stiles, proceed to paint the cross rails, then the end stiles, being careful all along not to put paint outside of the particular parts being painted. INTERIOR PAINTING 103 QUESTIONS ON LESSON XV 93. Is flatting done on wood work only? 94. How many coats of paint should be given to new wood work to flat upon and why so? 95. How should the flatting be applied to plastered work? 96. What causes the flatting of paint ? 97. How is the paint mixed for dead flat, and drawn flat. 98. What is an egg shell gloss? 99. What effect have silicate earths upon flatting? 100. How should the flatting be applied upon wood work. LESSON XVI ENAMELLING 101. Under the above name a class of work is done which is just the opposite of that explained in the previous lesson. It 104 INTERIOR PAIXTIXG is not used to nearly the same extent as flatting and on account of its glare is usu- ally confined to the painting of wood work, being very seldom applied to plastered walls and never outside of bath rooms and dadoes of stairways and halls. 102. When enamelling is done upon new wood it requires seven coats or the going over work seven times with various coatings in order to do a good first-class job of enamelling. It is possible, of course, to cut this down two or even three coats, and to do what some may call a job of enamel- lingbut it is not the best. As it is neces- sary at some time or other to do such work after the best way shall have been de- scribed, the others that are not so good will be noticed in order that the student may know how to do it w i hen it is forced upon him. 103. In order to do a good job of enamelling on new wood, no pains should be spared to have it in good condition, by see- INTERIOR PAINTING 105 ing to it that it has been well sand papered and if it has not, to do it carefully in order to cut down all the irregularities of ma- chine planing, etc. This should be attended to before the priming. Enamelling is usu- ally done in white or else in very light tints and before the enamelling proper begins a solid coating of white ground must have been obtained. This usually requires four coats when done mostly with French zinc white but it can be done in three coats if white lead is used instead, as it is so much more opaque than zinc. The great risk of white lead turning yellow, however, and of showing through the semi-transparent fin- ishing coats of zinc and muddying its spot- less whiteness, unfits it for the best work, except for the first two coats. 104. The wood work having been pre- pared as directed in the preceding para- graph it should now be primed with white lead, thinned with raw linseed oil. Unless the weather is very cold no turpentine need 106 INTERIOR PAINTING be used although a small quantity of it -would not hurt it. Ample time should be given it to dry well, not less than one week, as it will have to be the support of all the rest of the painting. Then sand paper it well after having puttied up all nail holes, cracks and other defects. Should any part be marred by having been sunk into holes, deep hammer marks, etc., it should be leveled up with lead putty, put on rather thin and smoothed up with the scraping knife. 105. It is then ready to be second coated with another lead coat, but thicker than is given in the priming. This coat should be thinned with half linseed oil and half turpentine. It should be well rubbed out in order to dry free of fatty places, as this will greatly mar the finish. When possible a week should be given it to dry hard. It will then be ready to sand paper and dust off for the next coat. Should any part have been overlooked in the puttying over INTERIOR PAINTING 107 the priming, now is the time to remedy it by doing it over the second coat. 106. This coat should be mixed mid- dling thick, but not quite so thick as it is usual to do in exterior painting. It should cover solidly and give a well filled and opaque surface. The thinning should be one-fourth linseed oil and three-fourths turpentine. It should be well brushed out also in order to avoid fatty edges and un- even covering. Give it three or better, four days for good drying, when it will be ready for sand papering and dusting. 107. The fourth and last of the lead coats strictly speaking is a half and half coat. Half white lead and half zinc white to give the job its solidity. It should be put on thick and rubbed out thin ; but little linseed oil should be used in it, just enough for a binder, the rest being turpentine. Some painters use coach japan with a very little oil, thinning with turpentine. If the 108 INTERIOR PAINTING color is well rubbed out it will be in shape for the finishing coats. QUESTIONS ON LESSON XVI 101. "What parts of the interior work are sometimes enamelled? 102. How many coats are required to do the best sort of enamelling? 103. How should new work be prepared for the enamelling? 104. How are the lead coats to be mixed and applied. The priming coat? 105. How is the second coat to be mixed and applied? 106. How should the third coat be mixed and applied? 107. How is the fourth coat mixed and applied? LESSON XVII ENAMELLING CONTINUED 108. The fifth coat and the next have an important function to perform in that they . INTERIOR PAINTING 109 will interpose their semi-transparent but unchangeable character to the solid white base under them. They act as a glaze coat too. The effect being very similar to that seen in white chinaware. The solid under coat can in a manner be seen through the medium of these two semi- transparent additions producing effects that it would be impossible to obtain in any other w,ay. 109. The fifth coat should be mixed from the best green seal French zinc ground in poppy seed oil and thinned with turpentine mainly use no linseed oil as it has a tendency to darken when not fully exposed to light. Some if the so-called white copal varnish may be added but in small quantity, just enough to bind it as it is bes