The room appears to have been originally designed as a parlor room, complete with dark red stripped walls and a gaudy chandelier. Along one wall is an amazing nook where our beloved 1919 player piano resides – right at home in the late 19th century motif of the room.
Historically, the parlor room was typically set apart for formal occasions, conversations, and entertaining acquaintances. It was the mothers pride and joy and not to be defiled by her children. Think Farmer Boy. You remember the scene. Mother and father are out of town and Alice wants to make a pound-cake and eat it in the parlor room. Eliza Jane, the oldest and most responsible sister, tells her ‘you’ll do no such thing… you know the parlor’s just for company’.
"That day they made ice-cream again, and they ate the last cake. Alice said she knew how to make a pound-cake. She said she’d make one, and then she was going to go sit in the parlor. Almanzo thought that wouldn’t be any fun. But Eliza Jane said: “You’ll do no such thing, Alice. You know very well the parlor’s just for company.” ~ Farmer Boy, Laura Ingalls Wilder
We have never eaten pound cake in our parlor room… but that’s only because I have never made pound cake. Contrary to Mrs. Wilder’s home, our parlor room is the children’s space. There are days I do dream of making the parlor room all mine… No pound cake! No children! No pets! A room where I can go to find refuge from the chaos. Where I can enter without stepping on Legos, sit in a chair without first clearing it off, or read a novel without looking around at all that needs to be tidied. I would sip tea with girlfriends and play chess with my husband. I would sit at my writing desk and scribble notes for the most wonderful stories… Alas, that is not my season. Nor do I want it to be. The truth is that I love my season and the energy my children bring into our home. I wouldn’t have it any other way! There will be days for a parlor of sorts I suppose. But then I will miss my school room terribly.
After some deliberation, my husband and I have decided to change the paint and light fixture, all while working to maintain some of the parlor charm. The term parlor was originally derived from the French verb parler, which means to speak. Therefore a parlor room is a room in which to have conversations (1). I love that! Isn’t that what school should be? A place where we converse and share ideas. A place where children are seen and heard. A place where friends gather. Perhaps, after all, a parlor room is the perfect school room.
- https://www.americanheritage.com/parlor
