Household Hints.

Otago Witness, Issue 2493, 25 December 1901, Page 66

Household Hints.

To Clean Dirty Matting.— Have it well shaken to remove all dust, then well rub it all over with a cloth wrung out of salt-and-water. Alcohol will remove stains.

To Remove Rust from Niokel. — Cover the rust-marks with mutton fat and leave for two or three days. Then rub the spots with a rag dipped in ammonia, and the rust and grease will come off together. To Clean a Rusty Grate. — Rub it well over with rather f-oft blacklefd. and leave for a day or two. The damp blacklead wi' eat off the rust, ar.d the giate may then be reblacked and polished as usual.

To Remove White Marks from Crape. — - If the marks are caused by rain they cannot foe removed. Try painting them over wi<h a very little black ink. This will hide them and make the cape wearable.

To Make Children's Stockings Wear Better. — Try tacking a piece of nun's veiling or any other rather thin material inside the knees while the stockings are new. This will prevent the knees from stretching, and the stockings will wear much better. • Inkstains on Wood. — Try this plan. Scour the spot first with sand and ammonia. Then well scrub with hot water in which a little soda has been dissolved. Chloride of lime may be spread on the spots if these remedies fail.

To Remove Blacklead Stains from Oarpets. — Make a paste of fullers- earth and; water, spread on the stains, and leave till dry. Biush off and repeat the pro-cess if necessary. Provide a cloth to spread over the carpet when the grate is being cleaned, and so prevent the carpet from getting stained.

To Clean Black Silk.— First shake out all the dust, then lay on a flat board and well rub on 'both sides with a piece of flannel ; this takes out any dust tnat may be left. Take some beer and sponge the silk all over, sponging across the width of the silk, and not down the length. Leave for 10 minutes, spread on a clean u'oning-board, and press with a moderately hot iron on what is intended to be the wrong side. Another plan is to siponge it with coffee which has been freed from sediment by being strained through muslm. The silk is sponged on what will be the right side, left till nearly dry, and then ironed on the wrong side. The coffee removes all grease, and greatly improves the appearance of the silk.