WOMEN’S NOTES.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 285, 30 October 1934, Page 9

WOMEN’S NOTES.

THE HOME.

(By Miss Mary Tallis)

Thistledown Cushions. —If you are requiring something new in the way of cushion stuffing, try thistledown. This is so soft and light that it is quit© a wonder that more people have not taken it into us©. In some parts of England there is a regular practice of collecting thistledown each year. Offhand it might seem a difficult matter to get enough of the down without a great deal of trouble, but it is really an easy matter to collect a considerable quantity. ' I'he thistle heads are cut just when they have started to set seed and little tufts of white fluff stick out from the tops of the heads. Th© heads are spread out on trays or large dishes and placed in an oven where the heat is declining. After an hour or so the thistle heads burst open and great masses of the down are disclosed. Before the down '-an be used any hard pieces from the buds must be sorted away.

COOKING

Try Jap Cakes for Your Next Teaparty.—Mix 6oz of castor -sugar and 5 oz of ground almonds together. Whisk 3 egg-whites to a stiff froth and add them to the dry ingredients, with a teaspoonful of vanilla flavouring. Mix all ingredients together i.gl'tly but thoroughly. Have a shallow tin greased and lined with well-greased paper. Turn the mixture into this and spread evenly over the tin. Then put it into a moderately hot oven to bake. In about 15 minutes, when the cake mixture is set, remove it from the oven and stamp it into rounds, using a pastry cutter about 2ins. in diameter. Leaving th© rounds still in the tin, return them to the oven and finish cooking them. Remove them carefully and leave them to get cold. Leave the trimmings in the tin. Return these again to th© oven and cook them until they are a deeper brown and crisp. When the trimmings are cold, crush them with a" rolling-pin and rub the crumbs l through a wire sieve. To Make the Icing: Sift Jib icing sugar and beat 2oz butter to a cream with half of it. Then add the remainder of the sugar and beat the mixture until it is creamy again. To make coffee icing, stir in 1 or 2 teaspoonsful of coffee essence. If chocolate icing is required, dissolve loz of grated chocolate in a very little milk. If too much milk is added the icing will be too moist. When the chocolate milk is cool, add it to the creamed butter and sugar, with a few drops of vanilla essence. To Ice the Cakes: Sandwich two rounds together, spreading some of the icing between them. Spread icing round the sides of th© cakes and, if liked, over the tops as well. Then roll the cakes in the prepared crumbs separately, if liked, instead of sandwiching two together. Or, the mixture may be baked in a larger, more shallow tin, making the rounds thinner. In this case, sandwich them in pairs. Decorate some of the cakes with half a glace cherry, and some with blanched almonds, using a dab of icing to m the decoration adhere.

GENERAL.

Cosmetics.-—ln the olden days our great-grandmothers spent hours in the still-room making their cosmetics. The modern woman seems to have no time for such interests, but there are many delightful preparations which cannot be obtained from shops. For example : One of the most refreshing lotions for bathing the face and hands is milk of jasmine. You make it by placing in a bowl a liberal handful of fresh-gathered flowers (blossoms only) and pouring over them a pint of boiling milk. Cover closely with a plate, to conserve the perfume, and leave it until tepid. This is splendid for whitening and softening the skin. As it will only keep a few days, it is well to make a small quantity at a time. Home-made creams are also very simple to make. Their basis is fresh lard of the best quality. Melt your lard in a fireproof earthenware vessel, then put in as many of the chosen flowers as the fat will cover. Several largo handfuls can be absorbed by i)-lb. fat which, after 15 minutes’ gentle simmering, will have become thoroughly impregnated. Strain through fine, clean muslin into small jars. When cold, cover with paper and tie down firmly. The flowers our great-grandmothers used to use were: Cowslips, lilac, rosemary, violets, elderflower, lavender, roses and carnations. In gathering the flowers care must be taken not to shake off more pollen than possible. It is also advisable that flowers should be picked when the dew has gone off them and, preferably, after several days of hot sun. If these directions are carefully followed the creams will keep for a long time in perfect condition.