WOMEN'S WORLD.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 142, 17 June 1926, Page 23

WOMEN'S WORLD.

USEFUL HINTS. DYEING. Dried onion skins boiied in -water and strained w,U colour Uce. silk gloves, feathers, etc.. any shade from cream to brovrn. according to the quantity of ■kins used. SLIPPERY FLOORS. To prevent mats slipping on polished floors or linoleum, stitch a thin piece of crepe rubber —or a piece of old motor tyre would serve —on the ends and sides of ea.jh mat. The rubber grips the surface and obviates all chance of the mat slipping and causing a possible bad accident. TO PREVENT FOODS BURNING IN THE GAS-OVEN. When rooking by gas. do not place food to be cooked in the oven with the gas full on. Heat up the oven to the required temperature and then lower the gas before comm. ncing to cook. If the gas is left full on, food burns very easily. WHEN NOT TO GREASE TINS. It is not generally realised that it is quite unnecessary to grease the tins in which pastry is cooked, as the pastry itself contains sufficient fat to prevent it sticking. For the same reason, a paper-lined cake tin need not be greased when cooking a rich cake. FOR HOUSEMAIDS' GLOVES. First stretch them on a frame, then give the fingers and wearing parts one thin coat of enamel paint. When this ia worn off. apply another coat. Do not paint the backs or wrists of the gloves, as this makes them harsh and too stiff. This has been proved to lengthen their life considerably. REMOVING LAUNDRY BLUE. To remove blue from an over-blued article is usually a fairly simple matter. The most common laundry blue is ultramarine. This blue is readily decomposed by dilute acids and consequently may easily be removed by stepping the garment for a short time in vinegar and water. The soluble rr liquid blues do not usually respond to such simple treatment. A NOMELETE HINT. To prevent an omelette sticking to the pan, two precautions must be taken. I.—The pan should be that is, it should be heated well with a tablespoonful of salt in it and then scoured out with soft paper. 2.— The butter in which the omelette is to be cooked should be clarified. This is done by melting the butter in the pan and skimming off the curd before frying the omelette.

CLEANING BROWN SHOES. Brown shoes that have become neglected, or on which a too liberal amount of polish has been used, may be cleaned efficiently with a mixture of two parts turpentine 'to one part water. Put the shoeg on trees, moisten a cloth in the mixture, and rub the Bboes evenly all over. Allow them to dry whilst still on the trees; the next day polish with a liberal amount of any light-coloured shoe cream. Use a nail brush to remove grease and dirt from brogue shoes. WONDERFUL BORAX. For the preservation of meat, milk, butter and all animal food', borax acts in a marvellous way. Though perfectly harmless to human beings and domestic animals, it kills many household and garden pests. It heals "festering wounds, ulcers and sore throats. It whitens clothes and softens water for drinking and washing. It is preferable to carbonate of soda in cooking green vegetables, not only improving the flavour, but preserving their colour. Soak the clothes all night in a solution of a quarter of a pound of borax to every five gallons of water; next morning wring out, place in cold water and bring to the boil; they will be beautifully white, and the hands remain •oft, while there is a saving in soap. A FEW PAINTING HINTS. Keep your stirring stick by you, and use it occasionally while you're painting, to keep the consistency c-"en. If, after thoroughly stirring, the paint is still stiff, add a little turpentine and linseed oil in equal part 3, and stir again until you have the right consistency. When you've finished painting, add a little linseed oil to the paint that is left in the tin, before putting it away. See that the lid fits quite tightly, and is really air tight. Thoroughly rub all paint possible from your brush, and wash it in turpentine before putting it away. If you are expecting to use your brush again in the near future, put it in a jar or tin containing enough water to keep the bristles thoroughly covered. CHILBLAINS. "Prevention is better than cure" surely applies to chilblains, those horrid, hot, itchy, painful swellings which appear with the first cold weather. Now, in the early days, even though they may be fairly mild, is the time to take precautions in order to stave them off. To fight chilblains it is important to get plenty of exercise so that the blood circulates welL The young girl has her sport, and if she is wise she will cling to it as long as she can. Every woman should walk as much as she caa in chilly weather. Nowadays what with motor cars and motor buses many rarely walk half a mile in the day. Pottering about is of little use; it is the brisk sharp trot that keeps chilblains at bay. SALT WATER FOR TEETH. " The best thing to use for the daily cleansing of the teeth is salt water — a teaspoonful of kitchen salt in onethird of a tumbler of water," said Sir Harry Baldwin, surgeon-dentist to the King, in a recent lecture. Pastes and powders, he continued, might be used for occasional polishing of teeth. Pyorrhoea can be avoided if the edges of the gums are kept tight and hard by daily friction. Every part of the gums, back and front, should be rubbed vigorously with a toothbrush, night and morning. Although pyorrhoea does not cause pain, it is a serious disease that might eat through the bone of Uie jaws and penetrate to the nose. The destructive action of acids resulting from stagnation of starch foods in the mouth is the cause of the decay of teeth. Fruit is an excellent thing to stimulate the formation of an alkaliflg saliva, aa an antidnta ta +*■» add

A HOME-MADE CRAWLING-RUG. If two pieces of double-knit Turkish towelling, 38 inches wide, in brown or some other serviceable colour, are > joined together and the edges bound ! with carpet binding, a strong yet soft crawling-rug is made. This is easy to wash and will be found suitable for ; use in baby's playing- pen, etc. Tapes should be sewn to the four comers. TO REMEDY A CLOGGED PIPE. j When water in a bath, etc., refuses to run away as quickly as it should, ' owing to an obstruction in the pipe," this can frequently be remedied at home if : a 6ft length of spiral wire is worked down the pipe. When withdrawn, this will bring away the accumulation of soap. etc.. which generally forms the obstruction. CRETONNE CUTTINGS. | Very attractive book covers can be made from, pieces of cretonne left over from the making of curtains and chair covers. Make them in several different sizes. As heat readily damasres the binding of books, a cover of this kind serves a very useful purpose when reading by the fire. ' MAZING ONE'S OWN POLISHES. : There are many household polishes; that can be made at home with very little trouble, and at about one-quarter the cost of the bought varieties. The following recipes are well worth trying: i Cheap and Good Shoe Polish. One and a-half pieces of beeswax; j half an ounce of white wax, half an ounce of Castile soap, half a pint of turpentine. i Put the wax into a jar. and the soap into a saucepan with a pint of boiling water. Let both stand on the hot stove until melted. Then mix the two well together, add the turpentine, and pour into a jar. When cold the polish is . ready for use, and should be applied in j the usual manner. j Non-Slip Polish for Linoleum. i Mix together one gill of methylated: spirit and one ounce of shellac. When the shellac has thoroughly dissolved, i apply to the floor with a piece of soft flannel. This will give a long-lasting, non-slippery polish. Cleaning Solution for Shiny Wood. Before any kind of shiny wood is polished it is essential that it should be free from dust and stickiness. A rubover with the following cleaning solution will prepare the surface for the polish; into a gallon of warm water shave half a cake of Castile soap, and add one ounce of olive or salad oil. When the soap is thoroughly dissolved the mixture can be poured into bottles | or jars and is ready for use. Boot Creams. Take 2oz of shredded white wax, and dissolve it in turpentine, either by heat or allowing it to stand. When dissolved | cool it, and. as it cools, beat in a little \ warm water to produce a creamy consistency. To make this cream black, stir in sufficient lamp-black to colour it. I To make it brown, add red lead or yellow ochre. Mix together two ounces of 'boiled linseed oil, three ounces of. turpentine, one ounce of vinegar, and a quarter of a pint of methylated spirits. Rub the mixture well in, and polish with, soft dusters, finishing off | with a piece of soft flannel or an old i silk handkerchief.