OF INTEREST TO WOMEN

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXVI, 19 August 1933, Page 9

OF INTEREST TO WOMEN

APPUQUES MAKE A GOWN LOOK DIFFERENT HAND-WORKED CLOTHES FROCKS FOR THE TENTHS The woman who is "handy with the needle” and also possessed of artistic taste, should congratulate herself now. For it is decreed that applique trimmings and delicate hand-worked embroideries are to he regarded as a hallmark of good style for the next month or two. To take appliques first.—T particularly admired a model gown that was intended to grace any smart afternoon party, or to serve as that most ful (if all garments, the “cinema frock.” Beige crepe de chine patterned with in clear green was the ma"terial chosen. The skirt was made entirely of the patterned crepe, but the

little Magyar shape bodice was beige georgette on to which trailing leaf patterns cut from green ancl beige crepe were appliqued. Just a spray of leaves outlining the neck and the draped V front of the bodice, and two more coming up from the waist at the side fronts, merging into the all-in-one sleeves, and running down the sleeves to the cuffs just below the elbows. The beige hat shown with the model was similarly appliqued round the shallow crown. Incidentally, the appliqued gown represents an excellent way of using remnants of plain and patterned materials bought at the sales. Another applique idea—blouses being so much in the picture now', you might make a very simple one of string-coloured net, with a round neckline and rather full Bishop sleeves. Then cut some small blossoms from an oddment of floral crepe, and sew them like a necklace round the neck and like bracelets on the cuffs. The flowers need not be all of one colour—in fact a. very successful blouse was adorned with appliques in almost all the flower shades, but this of course meant cutting into two or three different kinds of patterned crepe. SHOCKING AND HONEYCOMBING Apart from appliques, there is much hand-w’ork on clothes at the moment. Smocking is back, and so is honeycombing, both used effectively on simple day dresses. Sometimes a deep ovcr-the-shoulders yoke is smocked all over, and this naturally emphasises the still-fashionable broad shoulder line. Honeycombing appears below the straight yoke of a blouse in natural Shantung, the stitching, done in bright red, also drawing in the sleeves at the wrists. Similar w'ork suggests a deep corselet belt on an afternoon frock of grey wool crepe, the colour contrast here being secured by using deep rose silk for the honeycombing. You can imagine how prettily the bodice fullness is drawn in by the work, and how gracefully the skirt hangs from the yoke which it forms. Then there is faggot-stitching. Some frocks, of light materials have all the seams joined in this way, and some blouses have deep collars and cuffs trimmed Vvitli the stitching in contrasting tones. Checked dresses .often have large spots hand-worked in alternate squares at the herns, belts and ties being similarly treated.

INDIVIDUALITY It is simply a question of artistry, ' plus the time and patience needed to apply the “different” touch to your own clothes. In this respect, at least, you can he sure of being original. For, though many of the best dressmakers

TfShms. frills aid FURBELOWS f

use these decorative embroideries, no two use them in the same way—and your way will naturally be different

again! CHILDREN’S FROCKS

Smocking, honeycombing and faggotstitching form delightful means of adorning the children’s frocks, too. A scrap of silk costing but a few shillings will look worth as many pounds when made up into a simple frock falling from a round yoke smocked in blue-and-green, pink-and-green, yellow-and-green, or white- and-green, according to (In- colour of the material. I sugo'est green as the second colour, because I think it is delightful for small folk.

Buttonhole stitching is useful for finishing the scalloped hem aiid front of a little girl’s coat, and here again the contrasting colour note may be introduced by means of the embroidery. And of course it is excellent on collar and cuffs sets of linen or lawn to go on a schoolgirl's navy-blue dress Diana Dane. “DOUBLE-LIFE” CLOTHES FOR THE CHILDREN At one. time, if you wanted your children to have clothes sensibly reinforced at the parts that get most wear, the garments had to be made at borne. To-day you can find shops that specialise in clothes that promise a double spell of endurance, since they have been strengthened just where they are most likely to give way. “REINFORCEMENTS” Take, the boys’ shirts, for example. These first give way where the. collars rub the yokes and where the braces rub the shoulders. Then comes the wear uiulei the arms. The new shirts are. fashioned with double yokes and double shoulders extending from under the anus. The seams round the arms are double-sewn to prevent pulling out, and the (.riffs arc interlined so that they do r.ot readily tear where they are folded hack. Boys’ pyjamas have double shoulders to ti e jackets and double seats to the (reusers. The stuff of winch .they arc made is rendered unshrinkable so they v-:ij. if chosen in the first instance oil 1 lie large side, last for some years. Flannel suits made of special material, not only have double seats and shoulders, but also double elbows. Moreover, subsequent lengthening is provided for by specially deep turnings. In fact, they have obviously been designed by some-one with a motherly mind. Waterproofs have a habit of giving way when the wearer is not too thoughtful of them, so the double-life mackintosh is made with taped seams, and a tape “conductor” stitched round the skirt and cuffs. As for girls’ stockings, these are fashioned with double knees as well as double soles, toes and heels. Girls’ dresses, too, wear twice as long as usual when the pockets are supported with linen stays, the buttonholes reinforced with linen interlining, and (lie hems so deeply turned that they will stand some years of “growing taller.”

Ready-mades for youngsters have come well into line with modern needs! -~M. 11.

THE MAGIC WORD MONEY The word money has a romantu ring, which vanishes completely when we call it coin, wages, cheques, or bank notes! To the ear which takes a pleasure in sounds words have great significance, and money, although not one of our most beautiful words, has a delightful cadence. It comes to us from the past—the Roman past. JUNO AND THE GEESE When the Gauls invaded Rome, the Capitol was saved by the cackling of the sacred geese in the temple. Manlius Capitolinus was the first to hear their warning, and he roused the soldiers. Afterwards a temple was built on the spot where the house of Manlius stood. The temple was erected in honour of the goddess Juno, and was called Juno Moneta —the monitress, the one who admonishes in reproof or caution—and part of it was a mint where money was coined. These Roman coins were called ‘moneta’ in memory of Juno arid the geese, and behind the name was the warning that they should he spent wisely, that their possessors should watch out, for like the Capitol itself men were open to attack at any moment.

The ancient Britons used iron rings for money, but silver and gold coins are said to have, been struck by Cuno-

belin. The Romans took their own money to the island, and the. custom ot impressing the King’s head oil coins comes from tlie old idea that kings were descended directly from the gods and could do no wrong.

The sovereign as it is known in Britain was first issued in 18J0, but there was money called the sovereign in the reign of Henry the First. r Jhe English shilling dates from 1503. There was no copper money till about 1020; before, this date, groats, pennies, halfpennies, and farthings were made of silver.

ANGELS AND ROSES

The angel, a gold coin worth seven and sixpence, introduced by Edward 4th, showed St. Michael slaying the dragon. Crowns and half-crowns were struck in 1553. Cold florins were used in the reign of Edward 3rd, and the silver florin appeared in 1849. Elizabethan gold had beautiful names; there were . sovereigns, royals, nobles, double-nobles, angles, the rose or rosenoble, and that most magnificent of coins, the doulde-rose-noble. The last showed the Queen seated on a throne with portcullis at her feet, and on the reverse a large rose and f-he motto which Elizabeth chose herself when told she was Queen of England: “The Lord hath done it, and it is marvellous in our eyes.” Elizabeth never forgot that she had come very near to losing her head at the age of sixteen or seventeen! —M. T. TO DETECT FOOD ADULTERATION

In Coffee: Place a spoonful of the coffee in a glass and pour cold water over it. If the coffee is pure, the water will scarcely be stained; if it contains chiory, the liquid will immediately assume a deep brown colour. In Sugar: Burn a little on a spoon. If a small ash remains that is (lie impurity", for the sugar burns entirely" away". In Butter: Place a pat of butter on a plate and hold it over a flame. If it melts very quickly and becomes an oily mass with an unpleasant smell, it is not pure. In Milk: A simple test may be made with an ordinary knitting needle if the needle is bright and well polished. Dip the needle into the milk, and quickly" withdraw it in an upright position, if the milk contains only a small quantity of water, this prevents even a drop from adhering to the needle.

A NOVEL SWEET Two muffins, three eggs, half-pint milk, one and a half ounces sugar, halfpint white sauce, quarter-pound preserved cherries, six or eight macaroon biscuits, port wine, angelica. Well butter the inside of a plain mould, and stick macroon biscuits, cherries and angelica over it, making a decorative pattern. Shred the muffins and mix them with the remaining cherries and powdered macaroons. Three parts fill the mould with this mixture. Whisk the eggs, pour over them very gradually the boiling milk, stirring all the time, flavour with a little port wine, and add the sugar. Mix well, pour over the other contents of the mould, tie a cloth over the top, and steam for an hour and a quarter. Serve with white sauce flavoured with port wine. kitcheYcorner TESTED RECIPES Galantine of Marrow Have ready 21b of minced veal, one slice of ham cut in squares, three hardboiled eggs, a little chopped parsely, pepper and salt to taste. Peel a nicesize marrow very thin, cut the end off, about 4in deep, scrape out the seeds and pith of the inside. Fill with minced veal and layers of hard-boiled eggs in rotation and parsely. Put the top on arid roll in greased-proof paper and bake one hour in a good oven with clean fat. Cold Apple Sweet This sweet should be made when the kitchen range is being used, as it needs to be simmered for some hours. One quart apples, weight of apples in loaf sugar, half pint water, one lemon, cochineal, cream. Choose apples of the hard eating variety, not the frothy cooking kind. Peel, core and cut them into rings about a quarter of an inch thick. Put the sugar into a pan with sufficient water to keep it from burning, and-boil for fifteen minutes. Skim the syrup, then put in the apple rings, with the juice of a lemon and a little of the peel. Bring to boiling point again, and at once remove the pan to

: the side of the stow. Leave there for live hours - just simmering genGv. I Arrange the apple rings in a. glass dish, I strain the syrup, add a few drops ot ■cochineal, and pour it over the truil. Serve cold with whipped cream. Scolloped Eggs Four hard-boiled eggs, bait cupful grated cheese, three tablespoon fills butter, breadcrumbs, two euptuls milk, four tablespoonfuls butter in a, sauccipan. Stir in flour and, when frothy, add milk, stirring constantly till you obtain !a smooth sauce. Season with salt and j pepper to taste. Stir in cheese. _ Place | kiyer of stale breadcrumbs in the bottom of a. buttered piedisli. Cover I With half the eggs, then with half the ! sauce. Sprinkle with parsely to taste, j Repeat layers. Cover with stale crumbs. Dab with tiny pals of butter. | Bake in a hot oven t ill crumbs are crisp land brown. Enough for two or three ! persons Honey Roly-Poly Make an ordinary suet crust (Alb selfraising flour, jib shredded suet, and enough water to mix into a soft reliable, dough is a good mixture), and spread with a special filling made by beating ilb honey and 2oz breadcrumbs in a saucepan' and then leaving it to cool. Do not spread (lie tilling to the edge of the dough—leave, a good margin all round. Damp the edge, and roll up the dough as you would a Swiss roll. Press the edges securely together at either end. Now wrap the roll in a floured pudding cloth and tie tightly at both ends. Then put it into a pan of boiling water and boil for one hour and a half. Heat extra honey and serve as sauce. Creamed Eggs and Spinach

Make a cheese sauce, add two hardboiled eggs chopped up. Put some spinach puree. or any cooked vegetable into a pie-dish, then pour creamed eggs on to]), sprinkle with grated cheese and cracker crumbs on top, and bake in a moderate oven. Meringues To every white of egg, allow 2oz of castor sugar. Whip until stiff, dry and fold in the sugar. Form into shapes with a spoon or bag and set until crisp

in a, very slow oven; or the meringue can be used to decorate sweet dishes. Italian Coffee Cake Cream dozs butter and dozs castor sugar. Add dozs sifted flour and the yokes of four eggs. Beat, in a dcsserts|ioonful of eoli'ee essence. Mix all well and add the whites of the eggs, thoroughly whisked. Bake in a. moderate oven. When cold, slice the cake

through the middle and spread with apricot jam. Replace the. top of the cake, and ice with coffee icing. Decorate with chopped walnuts. Pear Ginger Make a syrup with 4ozs, granulated sugar and a gill of water. Peel and core six good-sized pears. Insert a small piece of preserved ginger in each, and simmer gently in the syrup until the pears are very tender, but not broken. Lift them gently on to a glass dish, and insert strips of blanched almonds all over each pear. Add two fablespoonfuls of the ginger syrup to the syrup in which the pears were stewed, mix well, and pour round the pears.

HOUSEHOLD HINTS THINGS USEFUL TO KNOW The Amateur Painter The first thing the amateur needs to do is to see the brushes, which, if new, should be soaked for spine hours in cold water before use. They should then be dipped in a. jar containing turpentine, and between operations put hack there to prevent stiffening. Next, all wood to be painted should be cleaned with hot soap and water, a stiff brush being used for corners. All traces of son]) must then be removed and the wood allowed to dry. Generally the fault of the inexperienced is the tendency to apply the paint too thickly. Paint applied in thin coats lasts longer than wiieri thick; it does not got so dirty or chip off. A Cheap Floor Stain Dissolve loz permanganate of potash in one pint of ltiokwarm water and stand for 12 hours, Pour some into a shallow dish and dilute with cold water, according as light or <1 a rip stain is desired. Apply with paint brush the way of the wood, and let it dry before giving a second or third coating. Keep free of dust; and then varnish. A floor siained in this way keeps a good colour if well polished with floor polish. To Remove Ink-Stains Ink-stains can usually be removed from material without much 1 rouble if they arc tackled at once. If is a, good plan to soak out as much of the ink as possible in water, squeezing the spot gently. Lemon, tomato juice, or cold milk should then be applied, and, if the stain is a fresh one, they will prob-

ably" remove all trace of it. If, however, you want, to get rid of an old stain, you must try something stronger. Salts of lemon may he applied sparingly", on a matehstick, to an obdurate, stain, and left lo dry. Don't, put, it near a lire, but. lei. il, dry naturally. As sails of lemon is a very poisonous substance you must, be careful in using it. General To prevent the skin from discolouring after a. fall or blow, lake a. little dry starch, moisten il with cold water, and lay" it on the injured part. To prevent, a. ladder in a, stocking take a piece of damp soap and rub if on the place where the silk thread has broken. Ink spots on carpets can often be removed by washing them with warm milk and afterwards sprinkling with cornflour. The cornflour should lie brushed off after twenty-four hours. A lemon cut into slices and boiled with white clothes keeps them white and takes out stains. Clothes that, have been packed away for any length of time often become very" creased. To remove the creases, hang the articles on a clothes-line in the bathroom, and turn on the hotwater tap until the room is full of steam. Leave them for an hour or two, and then dry’ (hem in the open air, and pres on the wrong side with a rather cool flat-iron.

If beef or mutton dripipng is beaten to a cream and a few drops of lemon juice and a little bicarbonate of soda added it will serve as well as butter for cake-making.

Vegetables that are grown above the ground, such as cabbages, cauliflowers, peas, should be cooked with the lid of the pan off. Those of (he root variety, such as carrots, turnips, parsnips, should be cooked with the lid on.