HOW TO PREVENT SHININESS

Evening Star, Issue 19197, 13 March 1926, Page 21

HOW TO PREVENT SHININESS

The tailor who humorously declares that Mr Hard Clothes-Brush was his best friend spoke the truth (says a writer in the ‘Daily Telegraph ). The shininess that is such a bugbear is the result of frictional wear. _ In so far as the friction can be eliminated, so also will the shininess. Those of us who are in- business and have to sit for some hours daily ou a chair with a wooden or horsehair seat should—this seems a counsel of perfection get a cushion or cover. But not any sort. Therein lies the secret. The material must be a non-polisher, and must not ibe stretched tightly. The looser the better. Serge is a polisher, so also is chintz. The best non-polishing material is a piece of twill sheeting that has been washed several times. It would soon become grubby, of course, but not if it v/ero dyed a dark color—brown, for instance. An experiment, four months old now, has shown that twill will not “ shine ” cloth or serge. Where the shininess is due not to frictional wear, but to pressure —the pushing down of tho nap into the rnaterial—all the cure that is required is to stretch the shiny portion quite tautly and then “burr’ it up with a nailbrush damped with turpentine. Then, to open Ufo web of the compressed material, rub it on tho back a few times with a finger-nail. If the material has been made shiny by friction, the parts affected should be dabbed with a sponge squeezed out in cold water to which a few drops of ammonia have been added. Then, three hours later, hold a hot iron over tho wot places, at such a distance—2in or so—that the steam rises. Just before tho steam ceases give a quick, sharp brush to the material, and then put it aside to dry. The shininess will have departed.