AT HOME AND ABROAD.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 306, 26 December 1924, Page 11

AT HOME AND ABROAD.

USES FOR DISCARDED GLOVES. .Scraps from discarded gloves shou.d r always find a place in the piece-bag. f and. at the same time, when sorting ) over old gloves, cut off the pearl b.:t- t tons. These come in extremely usef-.il | f when you happen to lose one off :il ( newer glove. White kid gloves no longer I(. tit lor 1 " the street may still do goo I j service for bedroom wear when you a c I giving your hands a softening and! whitening treatment. A round hole, should lie cut in each palm to allow * air to circulate freely. Tight gloves arc \* not oood for this purpose, and. in any i' case, they ought never to be fastened j | round the wrists for the night. Keep ' mi old white glove or two with the ' '■first aid" outfit for linger stall pur- ; poses, while a square cut from the palm of a chamois one makes a useful little ' aid to the toilet for the handling, since there is nothing better to remove dust

ami smuts from the lace when motoring ' and travelling. Never, in fact, throw ; away any pair of gloves pas: ordinary wear: they come in handy to slip on lo protect "the hands for gardening, and when cleaning anything. | CHILDREN'S EMBROIDERY. i Kverv mother knows bow diflicult it j |is to induce the small girl to love ,i-r j needle, when lirst introduced to it. The | ■ inexperieiiced little ringers will grow j I weary of making small stitches "for, | ever and ever" in a long, unending vow-, the stuir get grubby-looking unheeded : the thimble is an instrument of lor-| Hire. But give the child something; bright and easy to do, and see howl • quickly neat stitches and cleanly work i "come" to her. j ■•Blossom work" is perhaps the best' for children—just appliques of colour d j casement cloth or cretonne, Inutonbolestitched round on easement cloth, or other material of contrasting shade, and fashioned into really useful little bags and book-covers. | They should be cut out in simple four or five-pctalled shape from small ! circles of material, and lightly tacked] in place with white cotton, then the, child who has learned to do blanket- ; stitch, or to buttonhole after a fashion, will settle down contentedly without: supervision, acquiring a love of neat-i iios.s and cleanliness in her needle-work, I

! with an eye for design and colon•-. !'/ almost without effort—certainly with-11 ■ out tears. Aud if anyone likes this j i , work better than the small girl it isle ■ her brother of similar years, who is £ generally proud as a peacock of the fl i strip of embroidery he has made "all i i himself" for the nursery tablecloth or t curtains. i t i TWO SIMPLE SOFA CUSHIONS. < Square-covered sofa cushions have a| r 1 distinctive appeal all their own. Audi L have the added advantage of wearing j •' well and holding their shape. You can - have a foundation made in any desired j ■ size, or you can make the foundation , yourself of unbleached calico and cottnu. i waste in any desired sizes as follows:-- . - Cut two squares or oblongs the size '. desired. A good, useful size for a . large cushion is I Sin by 24in. and a 1 smaller one might lie ISm square. Cut v a strip 4Jin wide and long enough to | I extend around ■ all four sides of the I c square or oblong, allowing two extra n inches for turning the corners. Stitch - one edge of the slip around each square | -1 or oblong, turning the corners sharply i i' and leaving one end open. Turn inn side out. pushing the corners .out 1 - sharply, and fill. The filling should I ; have a little give, but should be tight ! i. enough to hold its own when you lean o against it. r To cover outside larger cushions cut • '' (wo pieces of cretonne 19in by 2."> in. i L " Cut a, strip 4Jin by B(>in or the size of • ,c your cushion. Cover a heavy KOin cord I •f with a strip of plain coloured sateen 2in c wide: stitch the pieces of the cushion i II together, inserting the cord between the ! "' seam. . -' Square Cushion. —Cut. two lßinj squares of sateen or whatever material : il you choose, and a strip of sateen -s wide and 74in long. Cut a piece of j re orange sateen 2Jin wide and 148 in long.; ie Fold" in half lengthwise, so it is 1 iin; ie wide, and have it plaited in Yin plaits, j w Insert one end of this plaited piece in; iv the seam when you sew long strip to | a top square, allowing the plniting to i t. extend up on the inside. Sew opposite in end of slip to second square. Cover ,ir joining with orange blanket stitching.