Colors and Patterns of the late 1800s

We were treated to a personal tour of an old Mansion today...
My Aunt used to live in what was called the McHenry Mansion. She gave us a wonderful tour and as we were hearing stories of the many people who had lived there, I noticed the colors and textures of the walls and carpet and even the ceilings. There was so much to look at! It was fascinating to see the wallpaper and carpet throughout the place and how they complimented each other...

These are examples of the wallpaper throughout the house. Even the ceiling was papered! (Can you imagine?) 
I really love the prints on these.

The time period is about 1890s - 1905 or so. The picture on the upper left here is another wall paper sample, and the other three are of the carpet in the different rooms. Many of the floors were hard wood, as well. 

 One thing is for sure: These people LOVED decoration. Notice the pictures on the left. They are made of HUMAN HAIR. Apparently women used to make pictures out of the hair that fell from their heads after brushing it. They might even TRADE it with another lady, for a color they wanted for their picture. wow. 

Have you ever seen a door hinge that cool? 

Speaking of doors, how about these door knobs? I didn't take the time to look at all of them, but the 4 knobs I looked at closely were all different from each other. What attention to detail! 

We had a fun tour of the McHenry Mansion. My kids enjoyed the stories that were told. Don't anyone tell them that they were learning a little history at the same time!