Problem
A wall which is too hard or too cold or too solid is unpleasant to touch; it makes decoration impossible, and creates hollow echoes.
Solution
Make every inside surface warm to the touch, soft enough to take small nails and tacks, and with a certain slight “give” to the touch. Soft plaster is very good; textile hangings, canework, weavings, also have this character. And wood is fine, where you can afford it.
Related Patterns
… and this pattern finishes the inner surface of the Wall Membranes (218), and the under surface of Floor-Ceiling Vaults (219). If it is possible to use a soft material for the inner sheet of the wall membrane, then the wall will have the right character built in from the beginning.
In our own building system, we find it is worth putting on a light skim coat of plaster over the inner surfaces of the Wall Membranes (218) and Floor-Ceiling Vaults (219). Wherever finish plaster meets columns, and beams, and doors and window frames, cover the joint with Half-Inch Trim (240) …
Alexander, Christopher. A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction. Oxford University Press, 1977, p. 1096.