AT HOME AND ABROAD.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 167, 16 July 1924, Page 12

AT HOME AND ABROAD.

STENCILLING WALLS. i The stencilling of walls is a delfghtful J moans of home decoration tliat is avai]i able to amateurs. It docs not call for any particular artistic ability other than I rare and cominonsense in the laying on :of bold flat colours. The stencils can he bought ready out. and though it. is I possible to mix the colours at home, amateur workers arc far better advised to buy 'hem all ready in tubes, i If lh.*" arc done at homo, they must bo well jriouml in raw linseed oil to the consistency of cream with some patent dryer added. At least an hour before use the colours must be spread upon several : t hick nesses of blotting paper, in order ; thai any surplus o. may be absorbed. ' Turpentine is used for thinning, and kept ill hand for dipping the palette knife into as required. The Required Tools. The tools required are a short stencil brush, used with an up-and-down dabbin-; movement, and also a stencil roller. The latter is a much more satisfactory tool to work with, as it does not clog and spoil the edges of the plate as a brush is apt to di>. It leaves just the right amount of colour, and docs not I thicken the edges. The brush is rei quired for corner work or on ceiling, where it is impossible to use the roller. Before using the roller soak it ill oil, and, after squeezing out. vash with turpentine. Charge it moderately from the colour ready spread a palette, and roll evenly over the : tencil till the design in tilled. ; Prepare a Plan. Never start to stencil haphazardly.. Measure out the walls and determine how many lengths o. the design will be needed, and how best to make a finish of the work. Otherwise one is apt to get left on the fourth wall an awkward and abruptly broken design. If the design is carried out in two or more colours, the greatest care is needed to see that the register is correct. There must be a plate for each colour, with the full design accurately drawn on them all. They must not be different in any single detail, or, of course, the whole design is spoiled. Each plate is cut out only on tlie parts intended to be of one colour. The plates must be identical in size, and with the margins on each exactly the same width. Having got the register right, punch a hole through all the plates at once, and make a mark on the wall for tacking up the stencn. Then as each is put up separately through the same placed hole on the same mark, it will help considerably in getting the register correct. Having decided the position of the stencilled design, penen or chal-c a line the full length of the border along the wall and tack the first plate to this line. Before taking down the plate to move it along the line, mark the angles of the corners at the end at which work is left off, to assist in getting the next stretch true. Bronze may be included in the design by the use of bronze powder over glycerine and honey mixed with water.

WOOL EMBROIDERY FOR COCONUT MATS. Ordinary coconut mat lengths, natural or coloured, are rendered more attractive by the skilful application of a little embroidery. An American writer purchased p.aln coconut mat lengths tor a room on which no great expenditure was desirable. The floor boards were successfully treated with dark-brown solignum, polished, and the mats laid down, but the effect was very colourless. Thereupon, she had the idea of embellishing the mats with wool. A few ounces of orange and the blue rug wool wore purchased and a coarse rug needle. With the aid of chalk, a design was roughly outlined on each mat. Then, with the mat held in a convenient position, stitching began. A crewel stitch of about U inches was employed and care taken not to draw the thread too tight. The design was simply a series of oblique lines running from one side of the mat, to the. other. These lines of blue and orange wool crossed each other midway, and werp eventually fastened together with a simple raised stitch in the shape of a large button. The end of each mat was run with alternate rows of oransre and blue. The whole process of embroidering two mats occupied two hours. These mats were in constant use for six months, and have worn most satisfactorily, and when the embroidery wears out it can easily be unpicked and renewed. Odd strips of felt also can be embellished in this manner. The felt lends itself to easy manipulation and can therefore be embroidered more elaborately. FIRST AID FOR BOOKS. There arc many little repair jobs and renovations that can be done in and about the house during the long winter evenings. Such, a job that really makes a pleasant change of occupation and is very much worth the time spent upon it, is to overhaul the bookcase and its contents, cleaning up the books, repairing loose pages and torn covers. The two main requirements of the first aid outfit are some linen thread, a darning needle, and a pot of good glue, heated to a workable consistency. Where just a few odd leaves are loose thej- may be refixed by lightly touching the edges with glue and fixing into position, but if. as so often happens with a much-used or carelessly handled book, a whole section has worked loose, stronger measures must be taken. With the linen thread sew through the section, using double thread and dividing the page into quarters at each section, leaving two long ends. These are for tying the loose section to the : binding threads of the section before and the one that follows after. Then take a strip of strong paper, or preferably of linen, and glue at the back of the binding. If the book is opened to its full extent it is quite easy to poke the binding strip down the back of the cover. Sometimes, however, it is the cover that has sustained damage. If one side only of the cover is off, it may be mended as follows:—Separate the cloth from the stiffening board all the way down the back for a width of about half an inch, using the small blade, of a penknife for

tho purpose. Kepeat this process with the back binding. Then get a strip of cloth about au inch wide and the length of the back of the book. Cover this j evenly with glue, and slip half tho width into the first opening. Press down, and ■ then put, the remaining width into the ; other Eiae. Of course, both sides of the , strip must be glued, and when this is! dry it will be found to be quite secure. j When both sides of tlie cover arc loose another method must be used. Assrmi- j ing that the hook has left the cover! intact, strip the paper padding from the inside of the binding piece. Coat the hack of the quires of the book with glue, and stick £hem direct 011 to the cloth back. Then with two strips of linen glue down the outer cover and the first and last leaves of the book to give added strength. This is not a beautiful way of binding, admittedly. It is what is known as 11 tight back, but it has the merit of being lasting, and will allow Hie book to open well. i TAKE CARE OF YOUR TEETH. An exceptionally clever dentist once told mc that the three chief reasons winmodern folks did not possess such sound teeth as their grandparents were the following habits: Taking food too hot, especially drinking tea much hotter than one should. Neglect to cleanse them the last tiling at night. The use of acids to whitfn them—a \ practice largely.indulged in by a good many girls. If you wish to keep your teeth in per-; feet condition you must pay attention to the back teeth as well as the front. The latter need more careful cleansing, as it is on and around them that the particles of food taken during the day cling, and set up decay, if not removed before sleep. Don't nibble sweets or biscuits at night after giving your teeth their final cleansing, and never allow lemon juice or any other acid to come into contact with them—if you can help it. Lemonade should always be taken through a straw. The state of the gums is also of great importance. If your gums feel soft and spongy there is certain to he something wrong. A dentist should he consulted at the first symptom, especially, if there is a slight bleeding of the gums when the teeth are being cleansed, for this may be a sign of the beginning of pyorrhoea, which, if neglected, will cause the teeth to become loose and fall out. Au excellent wash for spongy gums can be made by adding half a drachm of tincture of myrrh to one ounce of water. This should be used to wash out the mouth, and the tooth brush should he dipped into it and the gums gently brushed. For cleansing the teeth use lukewarm water, and see that the tootli brush is only moderately stilT, never too hard, for a hard brush will bruise the gums and make the mouth feel sore and uncomfortable. Should any tartar have formed en a tooth it should be removed promptly, as to allow it to remain on the tooth is to encourage decay. A little powdered magnesia, which can be obtained from any chemist, will remove it quickly and easily. Damp the tooth brush and dip it into the magnesia, then rub the tooth lightly with it. If the tartar does not come off at the first application give a second.