THE HOME.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11854, 4 January 1902, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE HOME.

. • HOUSEHOLD HINTS. To Clean Silver : Mix a lump of whiting or prepared chalk with enough: cold water to make a paste about as thick as thin cream. Add a few drops of ammonia, rub on with a soft rag, brushing it into small* crevices,; let dry, and at .once brush off the whiting and polish 'with chamois;. : leather. Special brushes ! with-soft bristles that will not scratch are sold for cleaning! silver. ;: To Take but Ironmould: , Salts of lemon is the : best thing for;: this; : but, as: it is a poison, it needs : careful handling. To use. moisten the stains with hot water, spread them on a hot'surface, a saucepan or boiler cover in which water is boiling does excellently—rub the salts of lemon in -with your fingers till the stain disappears, and- rinse immediately in several lots of hot water. y% Rusty Black Lace: If you have some black lace that looks hopelessly rusty soak it for some hours in cold vinegar and watertwo tablespoonfuls ' of the former to a pint then rinse in cold coffee, and iron while damp between two pieces of flannel. It is-wonderful how this treatment improves shabby lace. . :■;... The Use of the Clothes-Brush: To keep everything in good condition the clothesbrushes must be used regularly. ' -Hard brushes for cloth and wool, soft ones for hats and bonnets. To Freshen Old Black Shoes: Shabby black shoes should be sponged over with this j mixture. »-and they will': look almost like I new: Equal parts of sweet oil, treacle, and lampblack. " Mix thoroughly. Old Tan shoes: Shabby tan shoes should be washed with strong lukewarm sodawater. When they have dried : black and polish in the usual way. You will be surprised at the improvement. For the Cook : For greasing caketins, etc., nothing is nicer than! a wide, flat paint brush. Melt the fat, dip the brush in it, and the greasing can be done in almost no time, and far more effectually than in any other way. The Care of Jewellery: Remember that pearls should never be damped, though they should be exposed to light and air as much as possible. If turquoises are wetted they are liable to change colour. Opals must not be exposed to great heat, or they are likely to crack and fall from their setting.

BLANKET WASHING MADE EASY. Wash your blankets this way, and you'll say it's the easiest you ever tried. First make some soap-jelly by shredding a pound of good yellow soap into a quart of boiling water and stirring till dissolved. When cold, it will be a jelly. Into a big tub put as many gallons of hot water in which you can comfortably bear your hand as you think you will need —it depends on the number of blankets you want to wash; there must be enough to just cover them. , For,! every gallon of water allow one tablespoonful of soap-jelly and a teaspoonful of liquid ammonia. Make sure the soap is dissolved, then put the blankets in, pressing them well down into the suds. ■-•...-■. ■ Leave for half an hour, giving them an occasional stir. Then prepare a second tub of suds, exactly like the first, except that only half the quantity of soap will be needed, and a third tub of about the same temperature, with no soap or ammonia. .'.'/ Souse the blankets up and down in the first suds, wring, sop.se up and down in the second tub, wring again, and finally rinse in the clear water. .;.-., Wring as diy as possible before hanging on the , lino to diy, and get someone to help you shake them. ; A shaking before drying makes them light and Huffy-looking. Unless there are any stained spots it is quite unnecessary to rub them at all; all the dirt will come out in the suds. ' A wringing-machine is a great help, especially at this time of year, as it is impossible to wring blankets very dry by hand. If you have no wringer squeeze the water out as it drains to the lower part when they are on the line. TOILET HINTS. , Putting on New Gloves : Always well powder new gloves , inside with fullers' earth or French chalk before attempting to put them on. This makes them easier to put on, and they are less likely to be pulled out of shape. Your Hands: Don't depend entirely on soap and water to cleanse your hands. Provide a small brush to scrub them if necessary, a piece .of pumice stone to remove stains, and some borax and lemon juice to whiten them. Dissolve the borax in the water and rub in the lemon juice after, wash- | ing and drying. • ; V ] Washing" Your Face : If you want to avoid j sunburn don't wash your face in water , more than twice a morning and even- j ing. If it gets dirty at other times put a little cold cream on a soft rag, and wipe your face over with this, afterwards wiping off all remaining grease with another clean piece of rag. Or, if you prefer, you may use cucumber emulsion in the same way. ' , ■"* For a Good Complexion: If you want to be the happy possessor of a good complexion don't eat fast, Lots of people ruin the texture ; of their skin by bolting their food. Regular . meals, plain and wholesome dishes, ■ and time ;to masticate everything properly will do much to keep your complexion clear and bright; and remember that to be able to masticate food properly your teeth must be in good working, order, so don't put off necessary visits to the dentist. , • _ Red Noses - and Hands: Special . care should be taken by sufferers from red noses that the sleeves of their dresses are easy at the armholes, elbows, and wrists; a hint, by the way, that should be taken by those afflicted with red hands. It is needless to say that a crimson nose is often the result of tight lacing. Inappropriate diet will also cause it. : , ■ How Wrinkles are Made: Try to think of something pleasant when you are going to sleep, and don't screw your eyes up tightly or draw down the corners of your mouth. Both these little habits produce wrinkles— former round the eyes, the latter at the sides of the nose, above the mouth, and down the side of the chin. Pleasant thoughts bring a pleasant expres- | sion to the face, which remains during sleep and when you remember how many hours of the twenty-four you spend in sleep you will realise what a difference it must make. ' ; Food for the Fat: If you want to reduce your weight your principal article of diet should be lean meat; white fish, poultry, green vegetables, salad, and fruit in moderation should also be included, but foods which contain sugar or starch,. such as bread, potatoes, sago, and similar foods should be avoided. Dry toast or rusks should take the place of bread,' and saccharin should be substituted for sugar. Tea should be taken without milk or ' cream; and a glass of hot water sipped slowly half an hour before each meal will assist the cure. DON'T GROWL AT MEAL TIMES; Nothing is more conducive to the enjoyment of a meal—to say nothing of the benefits to health— pleasant, sprightly conversation at the table. H If, as Shakespere .says, " Good digestion waits on appetite," it is very important that the condition of the mind should be pleasant when we are eating. . , • ■ ;A : custom • prevails lin . many families of making .complaints of the, ills of life at the table. : ...': .... :'.',-!-",',-';;:-.;."-. • The wife and mother retails the misdeeds of the children and the shortcomings of the servants;.the husband, too, often takes the occasion to complain of the cooking, the extravagance ,of the household, and. similar grievances ; while the children, -taking up the same tune, tell, of the injustice of their schoolteachers, and the unpleasant associates of the schoolroom, thus rendering the time of meeting at the table a season of discomfort to all. ".'"..- * ! Every mistress; of .a home should early teach her family, old arid young, that silence and surliness on the one hand, .querulousness and snarling on the other, are poor aids to digestion, and convert a feast of food into a" famine of thought and goodwill.'Somebody wisely says ; on! the 'subject, '!_ Half the nostrums for the cure of dyspepsia, headache, and similar, ills would be unnecessary if domestic troubles 1 were never referred to at meal time." . •■