HOW SHALL I CLEAN IT?

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIV, Issue 18849, 11 April 1931, Page 9

HOW SHALL I CLEAN IT?

ALABASTER AND TORTOISESHELL To clean alabaster trinket sets, figures, lighting bowls, and delicate ornaments of all kinds, dissolve half an ounce of borax in a pint of cold water, stir well, and immerse the articles in the solution, moving them about so that the water cleanses them thoroughly. Dry on a piece of old silk, and the alabaster will come up equal to new. If any article is in very bad condition, two or more applications may be necessary.

To clean tortoiseshell hairbrushbacks, trinket sets, combs, and the like, dip a soft cloth in finely powdered rotten-stone, rub the shell with it, and polish with a dry soft chamois leather. Should the shell have lost its brightness, go over it with a finger moistened in olive oil. Set aside for 24 hours, remove the oil with a cloth, and polish with a warm chamois leather.

Lacquer work may be cleaned with a smooth paste made by mixing flour and olive oil together. Rub this paste over the wood with a soft rag, and polish with a clean cloth. If the colours need to be restored, give a final rub over with a cloth moistened with olive oil after the paste has been wiped off. Second-hand lacquered articles generally require this treatment to bring out the colouring. MARMALADE JELLY. Marmalade jelly is a welcome change from the usual marmalade, and suits those who do not care for the shreds of peel, however finely they may be cut. The following recipe makes delicious jelly. It is easily made, economical, and always turns out well. Take eight bitter oranges, four sweet oranges and four lemons. Cut them up roughly, separating the pips, which are to be covered with some of the water. Time and labour can be saved by cutting the fruit into quarters, squeezing out some of the juice, then putting it through the mincer. Cover with six quarts of water (24 breakfastcups) and leave to soak all night. Next day, put all into the preserving pan, including the water from the pips, and boil gently for li hours. Pour into the jelly bag and leave to drip, without pressure, until the following day. Add 81b. preserving sugar, irrespective of the quantity of juice, and boil until it jellies. Begin to test after five minutes’ boiling. In making a smaller or larger quantity of jelly, keep to the same proportions. Taking the number of bitter oranges as the standard, take half that number of sweet oranges and of lemons, the same number of pounds of sugar, and three times the number of breakfastcupfuls of water. HOW TO BUY AND CLEAN GLASS There are three points to look for when buying glassware. It should be free from tiny air bubbles, otherwise the glass will become semi-opaque after a few months’ use. Such “seeded” glass cracks readily when only moderately hot liquids come into contact with it. Good uncoloured glass is perfectly water-white, as faint traces of colour indicate the presence of impurities which curtail its life. Thirdly, glass should be perfectly transparent. A slight turbidity means a tendency to devitrify, i.e., the glass slowly disintegrates into tiny indipendent crystals and becomes both opaque and very fragile. When washing glass the golden rule to remember is that soap and borax in the washing water quickly remove greasy dirt, especially if a small brush is used to get into the crevices, and the glass must be rinsed in clean, hot water before it is dried and polished with a chamois leather. TO PICKLE CUCUMBERS. Choose small cucumbers and wipe clean, pack into a stone jar in layers with vine leaves between, sprinkle with handful of dill, and salt each layer and cover the whole with water, add one cupful of vinegar, and weight to keep all under water. Cover mouth of jar and leave stand about two weeks when they will be ready for use.