THE ART OF MENDING

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume I, Issue 28, 16 January 1911, Page 7

THE ART OF MENDING

Nothing is more aggravating 't-han to find that sons** small ant-icle of dress lias either been torn or eltse wont out. Gloves are mo>t annoying in this resqxct and have a provzsing h ibit of needing mending at the wrong n • n eut. For mending /.(-so. there is nothing so useful .■>?. a small basket devoted wttroic.- to tbo necessary cottons. T..v basket should contain eotto.v to match all the gloves warn. Cotton is better than sil'k as it does not cut the kid and wears better. A packet of assorted glove needles, a little box fuel of tiny buttons. cut from old gloves, a bit of wax and some pt res of kid of various colors. When possible, buy gloves of I' the best quality, as in the end they wear better than cheaper ones. Aivars puM the gloves into shape after taking off. and if the hands are hot, sprinkle a little violet powder into them to diy them. This saves the gloves from g ■ttir.g mildewed and d.scolonng when hid away in their box.

The best way to mend l-ut'tonlM’:l<es that are tonn is to lay a piece of kid to match underneath and to sew tfiie edge of the buttonhole down to it. Cut the bntonhob s righ<t through the patch t- getlier till they set evenly. If the seams at the hick tear out, lay a narrow strip of kid underneath and ! draw the edges of t’he tear togetiier. If neatJy done, the join will not sliovv in vhe least, especially if the stitdbing at the back of the glove is restored vvitih silk twist to match the rest.

A worn top of a finger, or thumb, may he mended by Hying a tiny patch underneath and sewing the glove very neatly down to it. Holes may lie mended in the same way as

our grandmothers did by buttonholing around the edge and going around and around butonholing inito tite last row and narrowing the circle until die w'hole was fi’Jled up. This makes a very neat mend if nicety done.

In mending silk, Lisle thread, or «ooZ. n gloves, always turn in <id? out before conimenehjg operations. Each time they are taken off. tips of the fingers should be examined for the least sign of wear. A few stitclues of darning will often eave an unsigirtly hole. Patch always with a pic e of materia) of the exact texture and color of the glove. Very fine col ton or silk and small needles should be used.

Stn»r.»g kid or leather gloves can be nK ink'd with a little bicycle solution, i Fix the finger, or the part that reqiurvs mending, on some convenient object that will keep it steady but not drag it out of shape. Follow ah the djreetions for the repairir.g of a puncture. Cut a tiny piece of kid the exact shape of the h</e with an eighth of an inch to spare ail round. Scrape the edges very careft:By to make them quite thin. : then rub over with the solution ar.d when it gets to.-king apply to the Ik?-*. Hold in place until it sets. If carofuKy and neatly done, tlie patch will be hardly perceptible. Tears in lace may be neatly mendi J i>. t . e rent 1»... g drawn ic-gethei " t:* J::u* ivj.on or thread to n’.a>tih t! •• e of the ».;.•••. Good lace v-.h :• rd patent can l»e restored i y rfl i g in die |*irt with the correct -lie-. To d.» th;- tr.ck the torn I part of the h<v very carefully on to : a piece of clink linen, and tlien w’ith

tlve proper cotton, or linen thread, restoring the ckatriyed portion. Lace so repaired is quite equal to new. R oinly requires great caro and neatness in the carrying out of the work. Lore that has a pattern worked or woven upon, fine net may be easily mended. It is rarely the flower or pattern that is torn, t.he weaker net generally going first. To repair this, ity as the ground of the iace. Lay procure some net of the same quaithe damaged portion of the lace upon this, and with very fine cotton run 3 firm thread all round the pattern, and care fully fix down the edges. Turn in the tom part of the net, and if it is neatly done the tear wail be hardly ixerceptible to the ordinary observer. When lace is very mudli worn, the whole pattern may bo transferred to fresh net. This is especially tr-eful to restore good silk lace of the Cbtutii'iy and Spanish type. But ilrt.e.rs tilt* Lire is very good and the pattern large, it is hardly worth the trouble, now good imitations can he bought so cheaply. A temporary mend can be made by laying the lace on a folded cloth, and dipping a p;ece of ntt into boiled starch. Lay the starched net over t'h? tear, and with a hot iron drying it in place. This makes a very satisfactory mend, but of course it cannot be washed. Tins chics very well for mending, at the cost of very litltlle trouble, the torn lace, and just catch the damaged pormer.d will outlast the dress.

The net may be used to mend the lace on a petticoat. Buy a piece of net and cut in strips the width of the 'ace. Sew- ft top and bottom to Hie lace, and just catch th edamaged portions down to tlie net. This should lx* dene just before the petticoat goes to the laundry. When it returns the mend wJII not show, and the lace will •rear as well as if it were new .

Tears in dresses are particularly maddening, especially if they are three-cornered ones. To mend these, get some ravelliugs of the material the dress is made of, and darn very neatly on the wrong side. Lay a damp cloth over and press with a hot iron. If a hole has been torn right out of the dross, procure a piece of the same material, and, laying it underneath, tack’the whole in place to i keep them firmly together. With some ravellings darn the edges of the hide down on to the patch underneath, taking very tiny stitches. When finished, press carefully with a hot iron with a damp cloth over, and [ the patch will hardly show. Care : must be taken to have the stuff of I te patch exactly match in every way the part of the dress it is replacing. I There should be no break in the pat- '■ tern. The lines of the material should run in the same way, and the ups and downs should also be considered. Unless these are matched exactly, the r.* ite.»t darning would never make the patch look anything but a patch. When clothes are made, a small roll j of pieces should always be saved to help with the mending if required. ' It is generally very difficult for tints to be matched. Gne season’s goods, I hough apparently the same, have a difference from those of last year.