Decor of the Twenties

Furniture

• Different styles of furniture were found in homes during the 1920s -- including rustic cottage, Federal, Empire, Elizabethan and Gothic furniture styles. Authentic Duncan Phyfe, Thomas Chippendale and George Hepplewhite furniture were found in homes of those who could afford them. Otherwise, furniture influenced by these designers were used instead. Furniture was practical and functional, such as built-in bookcases, breakfast nooks, sideboards, china cases and window seats. Furniture was oven made of wood, but other materials including leather, glass and steel were also used.

Walls

• Not only were homes decorated with wooden furniture during the 1920s, but doors and window frames were also made of wood. Walls were either painted or paneled. Paneling, though, in the '20s was done by attaching molding frames on the walls instead of being completely covered with wooden panels. The space inside the frames were either painted or covered with textured wall paper. Covering the walls with wallpaper with a scenic pattern, especially in the dining room, was also common during this time period.

Floors

• Wood flooring in maple, beech, birch and oak was common in the 1920s, and home did not have carpeted floors. Floors, especially in the living room and dining room, were usually covered with Oriental or Oriental-style area rugs in muted colors such as blues, greens and taupe. Sometimes floors were covered in linoleum, even in the living room.

Accessories

• The player piano, which was a self-playing piano, was often found in 1920s homes. Another accessory found in homes was the talking machine, or phonograph. The phonograph was concealed in a wooden cabinet, allowing it to double as a piece of furniture. Cabinets were often made of mahogany or oak and had elaborate inlaid sections and hand-carved details. Windows were covered with curtains ending at the sill, with a window shade underneath. Draperies that reached the baseboard were hung over the curtains and pulled to the sides.

Lighting

• Dozens of styles of lighting fixtures were available during the 1920s. Rooms often had Art Deco-style fixtures, such as brass wall sconces with a frosted or clear-glass shade. Electric fixtures in hammered iron and copper that hung from a chain with shaded or unshaded bulbs were also used. Other light fixtures during the '20s were mostly in brass or iron and made use of square brass tubing and square glass shades, along with colorful stained-glass table lamps with square oak frames and bases.